Kenny Chesney Concert Keeps Going, Even With Crushed Foot
This weekend started out like many weekends with CMT Insider. We arrived in our location city, this time Columbia South Carolina, excited about the interview and the upcoming show we would be covering. This weekend was Kenny Chesney and the first stadium stop on his Poets and Pirates Tour. Everything was going perfectly.We had a great interview and the weather was gorgeous, despite the threat for bad weather later in the day. The stadium was empty, quiet, and full of promise. Kenny was really excited and could barely sit still in his seat as he spoke about the upcoming show. He was especially excited about the extra T-section of stage that would allow him to reach even more fans. He joked that it would be giving him quite a workout trying to cover that whole area.
Later in the day, the tailgaters started to arrive. I have never seen tailgating like this. One fan had even turned her bus into a tiki hut complete with sand. Unfortunately the skies opened up just before the stadium was set to open and dampened the tailgating fun. Everything was postponed just a bit, but the fans did eventually make their way to their rain drenched seats. Kenny fans are loyal to the core and these hard working folks weren't going to let their hard earned dollars go to waste. No one could have predicted just how hard Kenny would have to work later that night to give his fans this show.
After watching Luke Bryan, Leann Rimes, Gary Allan, and Brooks and Dunn rock the crowd, it was Kenny's turn to do what he does best. He let our cameras in on his warm up ritual. He has a vibe room set up backstage at every show and he gathers the band, friends, and family together for a big toast. His horn section played "When The Saints Go Marching In" and then it was time to hit the stage.
We could all feel the anticipation in the air. The lights dimmed and I watched from backstage as Kenny slowly rose up into the platform in the center of the stadium. At first it just seemed like he was taking his time standing up. The band kept playing and we all started to wonder why he wasn't singing yet. He managed to get a few lines out and then was silent again. It was becoming clear that he was stuck. It looked like he was struggling to free his right foot. The backstage area was quickly becoming chaotic with everyone trying to figure out exactly what was wrong and how to help him. Just then, he was able to free his foot and started singing. He sounded slightly winded but alright. We all