Megan Moroney Shares What She's Learned from Kenny Chesney's Tour Routine: 'Ice Baths,' No Booze, and More (Exclusive)

Megan Moroney is proud to be a part of No Shoes Nation. 

The Georgia native, 26, is out on the road for Kenny Chesney’s Sun Goes Down tour this summer, and she tells PEOPLE that she’s soaking up every moment (and every bit of wisdom) that she can. 

“I literally watch his whole show every night— side stage— trying to learn from him. From everything he does on the stage to interacting with his fans, I'm trying to take note of every move he makes,” Moroney says. 

In addition to spending her summer learning from Chesney, Moroney's sophomore album Am I Okay? debuted July 12, and she says the songs feel “more grown up” than those on her first record, Lucky, which she released just over a year ago.

“This version of Megan has way less days off. I thought that last year's Megan was busy, and now it's like my whole entire life is planned out until 2026," she says. "I feel like everything has been taken up a notch."

That includes her tour schedule, which keeps her busy on the road through the end of August, and Moroney says she's picked up some stamina pointers from her headliner, too.

“Even off stage, the routine that [Kenny] sticks to? He hasn't drank this entire tour and he does ice baths and he has a very strict diet,” she says. “I've just been trying to absorb all of his knowledge because he obviously has so much of it."

In fact, in May, Chesney took the Sun Goes Down tour to Arlington, Texas, where he and Moroney played AT&T Stadium.

"It was his eighth time playing and selling out that stadium! I'm like, ‘That is insane. I need to learn everything I can,'" she says. "I think sometimes the openers will just go to their bus because you're obviously tired, but I'm like, ‘No, we're standing side stage and we're taking notes because he is a legend.’”

Chesney has more than 20 albums and has notched some 33 No. 1 hits over the course of his more than 30-year career in country music. Moroney still finds existing in his orbit hard to wrap her head around.

“When I go on stage with Kenny Chesney in a stadium and I sing with him? I grew up listening to him," she says. "And we sing 'You and Tequila' and ‘All the Pretty Girls’ together every night and those moments still surprise me every week. Or I'll be side stage and I literally turn around and I'm like, 'Holy crap, that's Kenny Chesney.' And I'm literally friends with him."

Moroney’s impressive rolodex also includes cross-genre peers Olivia Rodrigo and Lana Del Rey, the latter of whom recently performed Moroney’s No. 1 hit “Tennessee Orange” with her at Stagecoach in April. 

“I saw her at the artist backstage area at music festival, and she came running up to me and was complimenting me on my music and saying how much of a fan she was. And I was like, ‘Well, that's crazy because the feelings are extremely mutual.’ And then we just became friends,” Moroney says of the "A&W" singer. "She has such Disney princess energy and she's just very lovely to be around.”

The two exchanged phone numbers, and after realizing they were both going to be at Stagecoach, Moroney tossed out the idea of a collaboration. 

“I was like, 'Well, if you want, you should come sing "Tennessee Orange" with me.' And she was like, 'Absolutely.' It was a very cool moment. I've never sung 'Tennessee Orange' with anyone else before, so having Lana Del Rey be the first was definitely a moment that I won't forget," Moroney says.

As for Rodrigo, the mutual love story is similar. The "Vampire" singer came to see Moroney’s show in Los Angeles in October 2023, and Moroney plans to do the same for Rodrigo in Denver when she stops on there on her Guts tour.

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“She’s an angel. She's very supportive and just so sweet. I'm such a fan. She's brilliant, obviously. That's definitely a friendship where I'm like, 'That's kind of crazy.' I don't think anyone needs my help learning about Lana Del Rey or Olivia Rodrigo, but maybe some of their fans know who I am now,” Moroney says with a laugh.

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