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Kenny Chesney will close out the CMT Music Awards, debuting a new band lineup ahead of his 2022 tour

By Carena Liptak Apr 8, 2022 | 10:00 AM


Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Stagecoach

Kenny Chesney has been announced as a performer at the 2022 CMT Music Awards, and that’s not all: It’ll be a special performance previewing the live show he’s got planned for his 2022 Here and Now Tour.

The live music legend’s got a new band lineup in tow, featuring new drummer Nick Buda and new guitarist Danny Rader. Fresh off of tour rehearsals, the newly reconfigured band will perform “Beer in Mexico,” Kenny’s smash hit from 2007.

It’ll be something of a homecoming for Kenny, who’s returning to the CMT Awards stage for the first time in seven years. It was this awards show that gave him his first-ever top award, Video of the Year, for the music video for his song, “Young.”

“When you do video right, it’s a lot like hitting the stage with everything you’ve got,” Kenny says, reflecting on the impact of music videos on his career. “You can give people so much more than a song or a record; you can show them the power and the emotion that’s driving what’s inside the songs. So, for us to come be a part of this Monday, it’s bringing who we are during concerts to a place where people have seen so many of these videos.”

The 2022 CMT Awards airs Monday, April 11 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. Meanwhile, Kenny’s Here and Now Tour kicks off in late April.

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