- Have YOU got a story? Email [email protected]
Kenny Chesney is bringing a bit of Nashville to Las Vegas as it was announced Thursday that the country crooner will soon kick off a residency at the Sphere.
Kenny Chesney Live at Sphere Las Vegas is a 12-date concert experience that will begin on Thursday, May 22, with tickets going on sale Friday, January 31.
The futuristic 18,600-seat arena — which opened in September 2023 and cost $3.58 million to build — has already hosted legacy acts like U2, Phish, the Eagles and Dead & Company.
Last year, The Eagles extended their popular residency to April 2025, with Chesney set to takeover as the venue's headliner just weeks later.
What sets the Sphere apart from other Sin City venues is its 270-degree, high-resolution LED screen that wraps around the audience as well as the use of '3D audio beamforming technology' and 167,000 speakers for an 'immersive' experience.
For their respective residencies, U2, Phish, the Eagles and Dead & Company collaborated with artists to create 'mind-blowing, hallucinatory' visuals' that accompany their hits.
In a statement obtained by THR, Chesney said he is looking forward to 'deepening' his fans' connection to his music by becoming the Sphere's first country music act.
Kenny Chesney is bringing a bit of Nashville to Las Vegas as it was announced Thursday that the country crooner will soon kick off a residency at the Sphere; seen in October 2024
Kenny Chesney Live at Sphere Las Vegas is a 12-date concert experience that will begin on Thursday, May 22, with tickets going on sale on Friday, January 31
'I'm always looking for ways to deepen the way No Shoes Nation experiences this,' the She's Got It All hitmaker, 56, began.
'Over the years, they have shown me through their own response to these songs how passionate they are about what they mean, how these songs are part of their lives.
'When people give you that much heart, I want to give them even more.'
Chesney continued: 'When we started talking about all of the possibilities playing Sphere offered, I was all in. Just the idea of 4D technology and the impossibly dialed in sound raises the experience for No Shoes Nation, literally immersing them in music, visuals, sound and being together.
'To me, this is going to be a whole new way of rocking the fans, and I can't wait.'
Chesney said he was further sold on the idea after catching a showing of U2 An Immersive Concert Film at the Sphere.
'When we started talking, I flew to Vegas with my key tour team. We stood on the floor as they ran the film of U2's show and we were completely consumed,' he gushed.
'We could see the band, but it was so much more than that. It almost took what they were doing and multiplied it by another dimension.
The futuristic 18,600-seat arena — which opened in September 2023 and cost $3.58 million to build — has already hosted legacy acts like U2, Phish, the Eagles and Dead & Company
What sets the Sphere apart from other Sin City venues is its 270-degree, high-resolution LED screen that wraps around the audience as well as the use of '3D audio beamforming technology' and 167,000 speakers for an 'immersive' experience
'Knowing how much intensity our shows generate, my mind started thinking about all the things we could do. Once you see how the show wraps all the way around you, the dreaming begins,' the superstar concluded.
While many fans expressed excitement over Chesney's upcoming residency, others found the singer to be a 'boring' choice for the venue.
'That will be a GROSS underutilization of [the Sphere's] capabilities to be sure,' tweeted out one disappointed X (formerly Twitter) user on Thursday.
Several people responded to the announcement with various gifs of comedian Larry David shaking his head in disgust and of Rowan Atkinson's Mr. Bean character yawning.
'Ugh..... You can't win em all,' penned one X user, with another calling Chesney's addition the Sphere 'lame.'
Despite a few naysayers, Chesney took to social media on Thursday to celebrate the news.
'If you're going to make history, show up and honor the moment. Sometimes you gotta pull over. See you at Sphere in Vegas No Shoes Nation!' tweeted the There Goes My Life crooner.
He included a photo of himself posing in front of a billboard for the upcoming residency in NYC's iconic Times Square.
The Sphere first teased Chesney's addition to their list of all-star residencies by debuting a new visual on the building's striking exosphere.
The visual showed waves crashing onto a beach's shore while a whicker chair with an acoustic guitar leaned up against sat idly in the sand.
While many fans expressed excitement over Chesney's upcoming residency, others found the singer to be a 'boring' choice for the venue
In a statement obtained by THR , Chesney said he is looking forward to 'deepening' his fans' connection to his music by becoming the Sphere's first country music act; seen in 2018
When the waves crash a second time, a white cowboy hat suddenly appears on the guitar.
With a career spanning over 30 years and 20 albums, Chesney is among country music's biggest superstars with a reported net worth of $250 million.
He is a six-time Grammy Award nominee with 33 songs that have topped the Billboard charts.
Chesney wrapped his 18-date Sun Goes Down 2024 Tour in August 2024 after four months on the road.
