Five moments caught in Kenny Chesney’s Sphere finale Saturday night:
5. Unbilled performer action
Vermont singer-songwriter Grace Potter was the night’s bonus performer. She and Chesney brought back “You and Tequila,” their 2011 duet. Potter was also a guest in Chesney’s first Sphere run.
4. Boots doffed for ‘No Shoes Nation’
Potter in a pair of sparkly boots that Chesney had gifted her “in St. Barts,” as Chesney said, likely when the two recorded “You and Tequila.” Potter then kicked her boots, saying she was part of No Shoes Nation. Chesney started to kick off his sneaks, then changed his mind. He needed them, for …
3. Unplanned choreography
Like his good buddy Tom Brady avoiding a sack in his playing prime, Chesney spun and ducked from Potter as she chased him around the stage. This was as she tried to wrap him in her frilly, red leather jacket. He didn’t need that image spread across social media (or, mass media) on his send-off night.
2. Loving some Vegas
Chesney shouted to the crowd to ask, “How many people flew in for this show!?” The balance, for sure. But a lot of Las Vegans caught Chesney (and, by the way, Sphere is actually located in our city). So it was right that his ending spree for “Out Last Night” included the now-classic images of the “City of Las Vegas” arch on Las Vegas Boulevard at The Strat, the Strip skyline, and Sphere itself. We’ve written about this lasting scene before, which hits our neighborhood.
1. A dearth of announcements
When he left Sphere in May 2025, Chesney announced he was restarting his residency this summer. There was no such event Saturday night. The country superstar kept his comments in the moment. “This is the last day of school!” he shouted at the top. “Since we’re not going to be playing music for a while, since we’re all here together, we’re going to get our money’s worth!” He didn’t even need to explain why he spiked his July 3-4 shows at Sphere, amid widespread speculation out of New York that he attended his longtime friend Taylor Swift’s wedding to Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden. His whereabouts have not been confirmed by reps. All we can say is we hope he had a fine time and, like his No Boots Nation, got his money’s worth.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.