Country Music Fans

Who the hell is Kenny Chesney?!?!?!!?!

Kenny Chesney fans line up for tickets

By Adam Jones
Staff Writer
January 29, 2004
http://tuscaloosanews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040129/NEWS/401290362/1007


Jasper school teachers, standing from left, Michelle Kennedy and Barbara Banks, and sitting from left, Wendy Dutton and Monica Moon wave to motorists on University Boulevard outside the Jupiter Bar and Grill Wednesday as they wait to buy tickets to the Kenny Chesney concert on Friday night. The teachers were the first in line, arriving at 11 p.m. Tuesday. They missed their Wednesday classes so they could save their spot in line.
Staff photos | jason getz

Two girls sat on the sidewalk on 13th Avenue near The Strip on University Boulevard Wednesday. One sat in a lawn chair, the other on the ground.

Blankets, chairs, books, food, trash and newspapers lined the wall they were sitting against.

Jennifer Cox and Laurie Hicks were once part of a long line of people waiting to buy tickets to see country music star Kenny Chesney Friday night at the Jupiter Bar & Grill on University Boulevard.

Even though Wednesday was the first day the Jupiter could advertise the show, people knew about it long before through the Internet and word of mouth, owner Mark Moody said

The Jupiter got about 200 calls on Monday and close to 500 on Tuesday.

“This isn’t one of his regular stops, obviously," Moody said.

Chesney is touring several Southern college towns this week to prepare for his upcoming tour and to create buzz for his new album to be released Feb. 3.

All the money made from the $10 tickets will go the Boys & Girls Club of West Alabama.

The line wrapped from Jupiter’s door and turned down 14th Avenue. It snaked behind the building and turned toward University Boulevard on 13th Avenue. By the Crimson Café, it crossed 13th Avenue and continued down University Boulevard.

Nearly 300 tickets were sold in less than an hour. The tickets were supposed to go on sale at 5 p.m., but Moody had to sell early because the crowd was a hazard and slowing traffic.

“We’ve had some packed shows," Moody said. “We’ve never sold out this quick."

Shortly before 3 p.m., Chesney fans abandoned the single-file honor system and crammed next to the Jupiter, hoping to get tickets to the show.

Cox and Hicks were the only ones left on 13th Avenue.

“On my way to class we saw the line and thought, 'Oh my God,’ " said Cox, a senior from Tuscaloosa.

She let her friends rush to the door while she stayed behind to keep watch over belongings.

The length of the line took Cox and Hicks, a freshman from Clay, by surprise.

“We were going to come at 3 [p.m.], but a friend who worked for the news station told us to come down here," Cox said.

Hicks and Cox got in line at about 10:30 a.m., but they weren’t the first.

At the front of the line were four school teachers from Walker County -- Monica Moon, Barbara Banks, Wendy Dutton and Michelle Kennedy.

Having read about the Chesney concert on the Internet, they drove down Tuesday night and parked in front of the Jupiter at 11 p.m.

Each took turns sitting in line, braving a low of 28 degrees, while the others kept warm in their nearby SUV. They brought blankets, handwarmers and scarves.

“We have not slept," Dutton said.

Being first in line became something of a quest -- friends and family thought the working moms were all a little off.

“Everybody said 'Y’all won’t get tickets,’ " Moon said. “They said those 20-year-old gals will beat you out."

As of midday Wednesday, they’d also become minor celebrities. The quartet phoned in a radio interview, photographers snapped them and Tide Tanning offered them free sessions.

Chesney performed last year at Oak Mountain Amphitheater. But the Jupiter show will be open only to several hundred.

“This is going to be so much more intimate," Dutton said.

Candace Ingraham and Candace Cordell were near the end of the line at mid-afternoon.

“I love his music," Cordell said.

“I like his butt," Ingraham said. “He has a nice butt, but he needs to keep his hat on."

“Yeah, when he takes the hat off, it spoils the whole effect," Cordell said. [Chesney is balding]. “Nice butt; keep the hat on."

When tickets went on sale Tuscaloosa Police officers had to control how many people went in the door. Every few minutes an officer let about 10 people inside, and the crowd would crush against the door.

At times it was an unsafe situation, and a shaking puppy was lifted out of the crowd, apparently not as big of a fan as his owner.

Three women from Birmingham were among the first to get tickets. They came out of the Jupiter smiling, mini-heroes to the crowd next to them.

The women had seen him before, but they rushed to Tuscaloosa, getting in line about 7:45 a.m.

“We’ve never seen him as close as this, so we’re excited about it," Jennifer McLaughlin said.

An extra 100 tickets went on sale on the Internet at 5 p.m. Wednesday, and they sold out in 15 minutes.

In all, 600 people will get to see Chesney. Besides the donations, The Boys & Girls Club also received tickets.

Tony Bush, who works with the organization, said the money will go to programs for the children.

“It’s awesome, considering we didn’t know anything about this three weeks ago," Bush said.

At 3:35 p.m., a piece of paper was posted on the door reading “Sold Out."

Alisha Snelly, a Shelton State student from Tuscaloosa, got the last ticket.

“I almost got killed getting in," said Snelly, who got in line at 10:50 a.m.

Buying a ticket doesn’t guarantee being close to the stage Friday night, though.

But the four women from Walker County who were first in line know how to get close to Chesney.

“Elbows," Dutton said. “Pure determination."

I noticed this unusual line of people as I was passing by yesterday and this is what I find. I tell ya, some people down here are crazy. bamaslammer, you got some 'xplainin to do.

So who exactly is this guy?

Whoever he is, he's nice to donate.