There are a lot of upsides to being a celebrity. But, with the glamour and attention that comes with it also comes the lack of personal space. And Kenny Chesney knows that to be true.
The 55-year-old country superstar has managed to maintain his superstar status, despite being private about his personal life. And he intends to keep it that way.
During an appearance at Country Radio Seminar in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday (March 14), Chesney opened up about various topics, including his level of fame and whether or not he enjoys being in the spotlight as a celebrity.
“Not really,” Chesney admitted during the session moderated by Country Countdown USA’s Lon Helton, according to Billboard. “I enjoy certain things about it… I shy away from the celebrity thing [and] I say no to a lot of things that come my way that a lot of people might say yes to — it’s too celebrity-oriented in nature.”
He added, “I would rather be creating.”
“I Just Don’t Feel Comfortable Going Down That Road”
Chesney, of course, loves being a singer/songwriter. He also enjoys performing for his fans affectionately known as the No Shoes Nation. But, when it comes to the personal aspects of his life, he’d rather keep that for himself and away from everyone else. It’s something he says he has consistently worked hard to accomplish.
“I just don’t feel comfortable going down that road,” Chesney said. “[I] work really hard to be this person, and I want to keep some sort of dignity and integrity intact and not feel like I’m selling my soul to get higher in the consumption chart.”
“I realize that the person I am today, some things are fair game,” he notes.
Social Anxiety
Looking back at his earlier years and noticing a shift in his success, Chesney recognized something. People were getting to know more details of his life that weren’t necessarily related to music, and that’s when Chesney says he began to develop more social anxiety.
“One of the reasons I’m so private is when my life started to change, and people started caring at a different level, the only thing I could keep to myself was the intimate details of my life….,” Chesney said. “… That changed a lot. What is interesting is we were playing stadiums already, and after that …. I didn’t have social anxiety before that, [but] then you add our success, and then you add that to your life, and you have a little bit of social anxiety.”
With the addition of social media, Chesney is even more aware of how fast news can spread about a person. And he also knows many times that fast-spreading information is untrue and often taken out of context.
“Now, dealing with the way the world is today and how social everything is, and how information is transferred — yeah, you’d have to be crazy to want to be a celebrity today,” he said. “Can people talk about you? They make stuff up, they run with it, and the media runs with it. People are really curious to know those intimate details, I get that. But the reason I’m so private is that if I don’t keep those details to myself, where do I go? What else do I have?”
I Go Back Tour
Chesney is in the process of working on his next album and is also on the road as part of his I Go Back Tour. The trek, which features Kelsea Ballerini as a supporting act, kicked off on March 25 and runs through July 22.
