Old Dominion Dish Lessons From Kenny Chesney

Old Dominion have had, in their words, a "tremendous year." They have been playing with Kenny Chesney at sold-out stadiums across the country, and they've learned a thing or two (or thousands) from him. The "Break Up With Him" singers stopped by the ToC Nights studio recently, where they opened up about the man who has become somewhat of a mentor.

Old Dominion have gone from playing small club shows to playing arenas for one of the biggest names in country music. They've had to adjust a lot for these big shows, but seem grateful for the huge opportunity.

“It’s a big difference," they explain. "The club shows, well for us, it’s like a packed in shoulder-to-shoulder type thing and people know the words. It’s a longer set and we get to kind of stretch our legs a little bit and it’s kind of a party scene. The stadium is like we have 20 minutes to win this stadium over.”

Chesney's been a guide for them. They say he's taught them "3,000 things," but broke it down to the three most important — and some of them may surprise you.

"We can play in a stadium," they say of the ability they weren't sure they possessed. "I think we also learned how to keep it true to a crew. His people are so cool and a lot of them have been around his camp forever, for years and years and years. Just how to run an organization."

"He also taught us a lot about song choice and how certain songs connect with certain audiences and why."

Old Dominion will keep on learning, and winning over crowds, but they're also focusing on their upcoming album, Meat and Candy, which drops on Nov. 6. The band cowrote all the songs and will enjoy playing those for their fans, along with others they've written for other artists (like the Band Perry's "Chainsaw.").

They're also booked to headline the Taste of Country Christmas Tour this December. Get more info here.

Sam Alex is the host of Taste of Country Nights radio, a syndicated night show which airs on more than 60 Townsquare Media Group stations nationwide.

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