Kenny Chesney Honors Randy Travis Onstage in Texas [Watch]
More than 46,000 fans filled the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday night (June 4) to see Kenny Chesney live in concert. While Dallas Cowboys Cowboys owner Jerry Jones — as well as players Jason Witten, Travis Frederick, Zack Martin and Dan Bailey — were among the 46,273 fans in attendance, it was Randy Travis who was the most honored guest of the evening.
Travis sat side stage throughout the show, but when the band began to play "Diggin’ Up Bones" from Travis’ 1986 album Storms of Life, Chesney invited the singer up, much to the appreciation of the crowd, who applauded the legend.
“Randy Travis paved the way and brought back country music,” Chesney told the audience. “Like George Jones, he is an original — and the real deal. It was great having him in the house, and it was great bringing him out for all the fans to see the man who brought so many young people to country music back in the ‘80s."
Chesney's two-hour set included 18 songs. He covered George Strait’s “The Fireman,” which included some Texas two-stepping with Miranda Lambert, invited Old Dominion’s Brad Tursi and Matthew Ramsey out to sing on the three-week No. 1 “Save It for a Rainy Day,” which they co-wrote, and a barefoot Jake Owen joined in on “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy.”
“Some nights just have their own energy, and their own momentum,” Chesney admits in a press release after the show. “There’s something about playing AT&T Stadium that just brings out the best in everybody! The crowd is always so great; you wanna do things a little different, bring up your friends and share the moment with them."
Watch 7 Unforgettable Randy Travis Moments
Country Artists Who Have Suffered Unthinkable Tragedies