It’s been four years since Kenny Chesney created new music for No Shoes Nation. During that time, he got to reflect on some of the great songs he’s written and been able to record, the kinds of songs that helped make him the artist with the most No. 1’s in Billboard’s Country Airplay category. And when the East Tennessee songwriter/superstar heard “Take Her Home,” he responded because – like Academy of Country Music Single of the Year “The Good Stuff,” “Don’t Blink” or even “There Goes My Life” – it served as a series of snapshots that marked pivotal moments in how love happens.
When it came time for a video for the song currently moving up the chart, the man known for his high energy shows and stadium-sized summers wanted something decidedly different. As he explains of the creative mandate for the video for “Take Her Home,” “Everything about this song is a little movie. Each verse is its own act, and you can see all the details if you’re listening. The deep cut Cheap Trick on a jukebox in a crowded bar... the pink and black suitcases... even the little baby in the last verse. There’s so much detail, people can see it in their heads.
“I wanted to figure a way that mirrors the innocence in this song. I wanted something that wouldn’t take away what someone else was seeing when they saw the video. It seems like the opposite from what you might do, but I think it’ll make sense when people see it.”
Simple and straightforward, the “Take Her Home” video leaves lots of room for people to populate with their own images, their own life’s story even. While Chesney serves as the clip’s narrator, an old school video effect turns the action into a slightly distorted set of vignettes that follow the storyline without overwhelming viewers’ own inner movies.
“Songs like ‘Take Her Home’ deserve to paint pictures for the listeners,” Chesney continues. “When you can see yourself, or your friends, or someone you know in a song, that’s when a song will last long after it’s done playing. To me, this song has that potential for people... and as much as I like making videos, I also know the power of No Shoes Nation’s ability to live in my songs.”
Watch the video for “Take Her Home” below.
Having announced the March 29 release of BORN, his greatly anticipated album, Chesney is moving the creative process forward with purpose. Not only is he delivering the video from “Take Her Home” directly to his fans, he’s finalizing the track listing for his first new music since 2020.
Defining his place in American music by distilling the best part of being young, alive and seeking what the world has to offer, that hunger for music and life as it’s lived continues fueling Chesney’s work. As the chiming acoustically-grounded life-in-three-acts “Take Her Home” continues its rise up the charts, currently #27, it’s hitting a note for listeners who’ve been there.
With his Sun Goes Down 2024 Tour adding an unprecedented third show at Foxborough, Mass.’s Gillette Stadium, Chesney’s ability to make common moments remarkable brings No Shoes Nation together summer after summer. “Take Her Home” is part of that magic.