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GEORGE JONES SURPRISES KENNY CHESNEY ON STAGE IN LEXINGTON

NASHVILLE, TN -- When you have your hands on all aspects of your business like Kenny Chesney does, it’s hard to have a surprise pulled over on you, especially on your own stage. But Saturday night in Lexington, KY, after weeks of under-the-radar-preparation, when Chesney took the stage, a bus with a special guest pulled into the backstage parking area. So, halfway into the show, just before an acoustic part of the set, friend and musical icon George Jones walked on stage. As the crowd goes completely wild, Chesney is unaware that Jones is walking towards him. And just as he turns around, Jones meets him mid-stage to a completely shocked Chesney. 

As the band breaks into “I Don’t Need Your Rocking Chair,” Chesney realizes that everyone is already in on the surprise. After the song, Chesney asks Jones to stay and sing the George Jones classic “He Stopped Loving Her Today.” Walter Tunnis of the Lexington Hearld wrote, “In an age where country music has lost much of its sense of risk, this obviously heartfelt meeting between two generational stars was a bonafide thrill.”

On the magical evening Chesney said, “There's nothing like sharing the stage with your heroes and when George walked on stage in Lexington it was one of the biggest thrills of my life!  He means so much to so many and it meant the world to me that he came to the show.”

Chesney and Jones have been friends for years and Chesney’s current album, Hemingway’s Whiskey, features the two on the Bobby Braddock song, “Small Y’all,” a song that Chesney has loved for years. Chesney says, “George recorded this song first and  I’ve had his version in my car for years. It puts me in a good instantly. When we decided to record it for the album, it was a no brainer to call George and ask him to be apart of it and when he comes in on the song it’s just, it’s so special, cause I love the guy. He’s been a part of my life for a while, and he’s obviously a hero, and somebody who inspires me, and somebody who means a lot to the world of music.”

Next week, the 4 time CMA Entertainer of The Year and four consecutive time ACM Entertainer of the Year, takes his Chesney’s “Corona Presents Kenny Chesney’s Goin’ Coast Tour” to Columbia, SC and Atlanta, GA. Chesney is currently climbing the charts with “You And Tequila,” which features another special musical partner Grace Potter. Hemingway’s Whiskey has already yielded the # 1 singles, “The Boys of Fall,” Somewhere With You” and most recently “Live A Little,” which became his 22^nd # 1 song.

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For more information or to make donations to GiveTuscaloosa.com call 205-758-7588 or visit www.givetuscaloosa.com. Contributions may be made by making checks payable to “Tuscaloosa Disaster Relief Fund” and mailing them to P.O. Box 020410,  Tuscaloosa, AL 35401.

For more information on Chesney's 2011 'Goin' Coastal' Tour or the Tuscaloosa concert, please contact Rebecca Shapiro (rshapiro@shorefire.com) or Jon Bleicher (Jbleicher@shorefire.com) at Shore Fire Media, 718.522.7171 or Wes Vause (wes.vause@sonymusic.com) at Sony Nashville, 615.301.4373.