Guitars. Tiki Bars Follows Prince and Britney Spears in Pollstar's Midyear Ticket Count
Los Angeles, CA: In most places being 3rd is a bronze medal, but when the dust's settled on Pollstar's annual halfway tally of ticketsellers, being 3rd means fast company. For Kenny Chesney -- who saw himself behind rock icon Bruce Springsteen and progressive jammers the Dave Matthews Band in 2003 -- this year, he's locked up with seminal soul/funk force Prince and pop teen queen Britney Spears.


"It's one of those things, you know, you don't think of yourself in that kind of crowd," says Chesney with an almost embarrassed laugh.
"I mean, I'm a guy from East Tennessee who grew up listening to Conway and Alabama, Randy Travis and Keith Whitley. THAT'S the music from where I come from -- and sure we loved Bruce and Van Halen, but that's not necessarily the kind of company you think you're gonna be keeping when you grow up, let alone share a list like this."

At a time when the media is ruing the sad state of the touring industry, Chesney's doing big business -- setting attendance records and faster sell-outs than just about anybody out there. Maybe it's the fact that When The Sun Goes Down, his second straight all-genre Billboard Top 200 debut, has already produced two multiple week #1s with the 8 week chart-topper "There Goes My Life" and the 6 week #1 title track, featuring Guitars, Tiki Bars & A Whole Lot of Love tourmate Unkle Kracker. Or perhaps it's the three act, fan-friendly price of the Cruzan Rum-presented tour, where tickets not only average well under $50, but are some of the lowest on the entire Pollstar list.

"I'd like to think it's 'cause the fans know when they come to see us, they know they're gonna have a good time," Chesney offers by way of explanation. "When we were playing clubs, people would come see us, then come back and bring their friends… And it's always kinda been like that. Every night, I tell the crowd, 'Whatever's bugging you… when you come in here, leave it out there… for the next 90 minutes, just forget about all of it…' And I mean it.

"To me, a show should make you forget everything. Just have a great time. Have fun. Blow it up -- and throw it as hard at the crowd as they can take it. And our fans are pretty serious about having a good time! So, it's as much about them and what they bring to it. They bring it all -- and they seem to come back and bring their friends every year."

After doing the first half of Guitars, Tiki Bars & A Whole Lot of Love with keith urban and Dierks Bentley, Chesney took a more pop turn for the summer portion of his tour -- enlisting CMA and ACM Vocal Group of the Year Rascal Flatts and Unkle Kracker. It follows in a tradition of mixing it up with support acts who bring a strong sense of self and a will to entertain, including Montgomery Gentry, Sara Evans, Phil Vassar, Deana Carter and Carolyn Dawn Johnson.

"My fans like music… and we work real hard to give them as much music as possible - and keep it affordable. That we're behind Prince and Madonna tells you everything you need to know about our audience, and thank heavens!"