There was laughter. There was singing. There were shouts and revelations. But mostly, there were singular conversations as high-impact country sensation Kenny Chesney kicked off the book tour for HEART LIFE MUSIC with two sold-out events in Johnson City, Tennessee and Boston. With lines wrapped around the buildings to see the 2025 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee explore another first, Kenny Chesney returned to East Tennessee State University, where his journey truly began, and Boston, MA, where No Shoes Nation was named, to explore the origins, insights and memories that have seen HEART LIFE MUSIC – released nationwide Tuesday, Nov. 4 – already deemed “One for the road” by Publisher’s Weekly and Travel + Leisure calling it “a genuine meditation on connection and purpose.”
“I can’t believe people would come to hear me talk,” confesses the songwriter/superstar of his first book events. “It’s one thing to come sing these songs with us, to throw your problems or your heart into the air with us for a few hours every summer, but this is a whole other thing. And to be honest, it’s way more fun than I would’ve ever imagined! So far, we’ve gone into the places we are, talked about the people they’d know – and come out on the other side having laughed a lot, cheered plenty and remembered even more about this wild, crazy magical carpet ride. I’m having the time of my life.”
Introduced by ETSU President Dr. Brian Noland and Country Radio Hall of Famer Ginny Brophey in Boston – both who appear in HEART LIFE MUSIC – the beyond sold-out events were riotous, often soul-searching beyond the scheduled time length, celebrations of Chesney’s life, love of creativity, the struggles and triumphs that have defined his unlikely rise and establishment of No Shoes Nation. More than a conversation with 12-time National Arts + Entertainment Journalism Awards nominee and co-author Holly Gleason, these book talks are a freewheeling trip through the process of how he got here, what dreams are made of, unthinkable moments and the places that made him.
Whether recalling the college bars on the Tree Streets, getting his doctorate and a particularly eye-opening trip to Moscow with the ETSU Bluegrass band or the evolution of overlapping similarities between New England, his island friends and people from back home, Chesney went deep to honor the people attending at ETSU’s Martin Center and Boston’s Back Bay Center with in-the-moment stories, including reminisces of the local “The Cas Walker Show” slogan or the polar reaction of Grace Potter and his fans’ reaction to their duet on the GRAMMY nominated, CMA Award-winning “You & Tequila.”
There was even a decades-long tradition in Boston. After multiple calls, cheering encouragement, Chesney sang an a capella verse and chorus of “Boston” with the audience who couldn’t get enough. “This is so in the moment, so like spending an afternoon on a bar stool with me,” Chesney says of the book events. “It’s more intimate than I could’ve ever imagined, more fun than I’ve had in a long time – and something completely unlike anything I’ve ever done. It’s just me, the questions and a whole lot of love coming from the people in the room – but what a rush! I wish I could do this everywhere.”
And so, just like those tours he takes to the cities beyond the stadium tour markets, Kenny has been watching the calls for “please come to our town” or “you’re not coming here” in the comments – and he’s found a way to include anyone who wants to be part of these very special, one-of-a-kind conversations. For anyone who’s not in the remaining cities that still have tickets – Philly tonight at the Academy of Music, Englewood, NJ at the Bergen Performing Arts Center 11/4, Chicago at the Copernicus Center 11/5, Nashville at the Country Music Hall of Fame on 11/6 or the Miami Book Fair on 11/16, Chesney has worked with the promoters, his publisher and the powers that be to create a virtual event out of his 11/7 appearance at Los Angeles’ Saban Theater for anyone who either couldn’t get a ticket or couldn’t get to a book event city to be able to take part in one of these outrageous conversations.
“This is too much fun,” enthuses the man the LA Times called “the people’s superstar” of these intimate conversations. “I’m learning even more about me, this journey and how much all of it means in these talks – and I don’t want anyone who wishes they could hear all about it to not have their chance to come along with us. I’m glad we figured out how to capture the magic – and make it available on demand for an entire week for anyone who wants to see what this is all about. AND if you buy a virtual ticket, we’re going to make sure you get the very same signed book everyone coming to one of these talks is going home with! They actually have book plates that say ‘Book Tour’ to commemorate the moment.”
Tickets for In Conversation with Kenny Chesney (Virtual Event) available HERE.
Photo Credit: Ron Campbell for ETSU
“After all of it, I can’t wait to share all the characters I’ve met, people behind the scenes, the dead ends and places that maybe seemed like not much with everyone,” Chesney marveled during the process. “Because every single step, smile or hard lesson was part of this crazy ride. I had no idea how much I’d remember and learn about how we got here, but I am really excited to share it with No Shoes Nation.”
And now he adds, “Sharing these stories in these small rooms with several hundred members of No Shoes Nation makes HEART LIFE MUSIC suddenly really real. When you’re telling the stories and hear the laughter, or the cheers, or even the sighs, that’s when you know how much the things that have happened truly mean. It’s not just me, it’s us – and when we’re all together, and Holly’s asking all those questions to make me unpack not just how we got here, but why we all love each other so much, it’s awesome.
“I mean, when you look into the eyes of the young men and women who are the current ETSU Bluegrass Band or folks who’ve been coming to see me since we weren’t selling out small places, you realize: it really has been a helluva journey – and it’s a lot to take in. But I’m so glad we’re out here doing it.”
Joined for the spontaneous conversations that explore the stories from George Jones to Ethel Kennedy, Bruce Springsteen to Robert Kraft by two-time LA Press Club Music Criticism and Entertainment Journalist of the Year and co-author Holly Gleason, Chesney’s unpacking HEART LIFE MUSIC in a way that genuinely demonstrates the fun, the courage, the myriad artists, but especially the love of bringing people together that have defined No Shoes Nation. Establishing a voice that captured coming of age and living life as fully as possible in the 21st Century, Chesney wants each event to reflect his unique relationship with each city he’s going to, the music and anyone seeking inspiration to create their own place in the world.
“No Shoes Nation is my favorite place because there’s no borders, just coming together to love life, music, the moment and each other. I’m sure nobody votes the same, goes to the same church or school, but that’s okay: we see all the things we share and have in common. I love that, and that’s what this book, this tour and this moment is all about.”
For more information about remaining dates on the Heart Life Music book tour, visit HarperCollins.com/Pages/Chesney.
