No Shoes Navy Standing By --

While people think of Kenny Chesney and the ocean, don’t write off the land-bound boaters. When you have three rivers coming together, and you add the passion of No Shoes Nation, look for pirate flags and boats named “Positive Vibes.”
 
Two weeks ahead of Kenny Chesney’s 12th show at Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium, the No Shoes Navy has begun sailing in, tying up and dropping anchor for the show that – like several other stadiums this summer – stands to break the eight-time ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year’s personal record.
 
Pittsburgh’s WTAE-TV sent a crew down to the water to interview walkers and boaters, experiencing the phenomenon through the eyes of fans and locals. “It’s the anticipation of him coming back,” Roy Sparrow, one of the sailors, explained to the ABC affiliate. “Before you know it, there will be boats, probably, 40 feet out, and that’s why it’s so important to hold your spots now, including myself.”
 
With the Coast Guard outlawing open anchoring in the water, all boats having an aquatic concert experience must be tethered to a boat that’s tied up to the wall. It makes for an incredible overhead spectacle, as well as a whole other way of living the music.
 
“The first time I saw the pictures, I was blown away,” the East Tennessee songwriter/superstar marvels. “Realizing that all these people have come together, tied up their boats in groups and are having a big time on the river. Pittsburgh and all the people who come from the surrounding states have so much heart, I’m not surprised – but it’s still something to see.”

For Chesney, who celebrates coming of age in the flyover, growing up in small towns or working-class families in his music, being out on the water is something he’s always loved. Whether a lake, a beach or a river, many of his songs contain all the fun a day on the water can be.
 
“I just want people to be safe,” he says of what’s become a notable No Shoes Nation tradition. “If they wanna float to the songs, sleep on their boat, I’ve done it myself a time or two. I’ve been told a lot of boaters either have tickets and are tailgating on the water, or they’re pre-gaming with friends at their boat, then the ones who couldn’t get tickets can be there waiting after the show. Either way, I love people living the songs.”
 
Called “country’s king of stadium concerts” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Wall Street Journal’s “King of the Road,” the Sun Goes Down 2024 Tour is shaping up to be a big day where the Allegheny, the Monongahela and the Ohio Rivers come together. Presented by Blue Chair Bay® Rum, it’s all about the friends, high energy and songs people know by heart.

* Megan Moroney and Uncle Kracker only
^ Megan Moroney only

 “...because everything gets hotter when the sun goes down...”