“Her Voice Is Perfect for the Emotion”: Kenny Chesney on His New Megan Moroney Duet, ‘It Just Got Weird’
By Maxim Mower
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During his new conversation with Holly Gleason on TalkShopLive, Kenny Chesney reflects on how a number of songs came together on his new album, Silver Sands Marina. The keenly anticipated project arrives on Friday, September 25th.
Towards the end of the interview with Gleason, who co-wrote Chesney's 2025 book, HEART*LIFE*MUSIC, the ‘No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems’ hitmaker touches on the story behind his new collaboration with Megan Moroney, ‘It Just Got Weird’.
It marks the second time the two former tour-mates have joined forces, following the CMA-nominated ‘You Had To Be There’ in 2025. Chesney playfully remarks that Moroney “damn near insisted” that she appear on the duet, before underlining that he's incredibly glad that she did, because her voice is “perfect” for it.
Chesney begins by admitting he's had ‘It Just Got Weird’ in his computer for a while now, “A lot like ‘Carry On’, I've had ‘It Just Got Weird’ in that song folder of stuff I love for almost five years. I really have. And it never fit. My friend Jessie Jo Dillon and [Donovan Woods] wrote ‘It Just Got Weird’. And when I heard it, I knew I loved it five years ago, but you know, a lot of life happens in five years, you know what I mean? In your own life or whatever. So when you listen now, you listen with a different perspective. And the thing that drew me to it is I had never heard that said. It's just about two people where everything seems to be great”.
The Knoxville native goes on, “But somebody says something...or something happens, and it doesn't have to be a big thing, it could just be laying there...and the other person goes, ‘Hmm...this just got weird’. And they don't say that to the other person, it's just what this person is thinking in their brain...I've done it. I said that. I went, ‘Hmm...this just got weird’. And not only did it just get weird, it's past the point of no return...Everything changes, and nothing really happened other than the fact that what they said or somebody...the way they acted or the way they treated someone...you realise, this is weird now...I think everybody's been there”.
As for why Moroney felt like the idea duet partner for this particular song, Chesney explains, “Well, I knew she would attack the song the way I wanted it. There's something about her voice...I mean, just in the title, and just in what we were talking about, there's a certain angst and a certain energy between the two people. And it had to be the perfect voice to do that, and I don't know, sometimes when Megan sings, she sounds like she's been up all night...in a great way”.
He then jokes about how the ‘Tennessee Orange’ crooner didn't really give him a choice, “Actually, before I sent her the song, because she's friends with Jessie Jo, Megan called me and she goes, ‘I hear you cut a song called ‘It Just Got Weird’, and she goes, ‘And I want to sing on it!’...She volunteered. Well, she damn near insisted”.
Chesney stresses, though, that he's immensely pleased that Moroney was so keen to be a part of ‘It Just Got Weird’, “But I'm very happy she did, because her voice is perfect for the emotion and the angst of that song, because there is, like I said...a moment where you just know that it's over...No matter how old you are, you know?”
‘It Just Got Weird’ joins the recently released ‘Burn My Boat’, ‘Carry On’ and the nostalgic title-track on Chesney's new album, Silver Sands Marina, alongside never-heard-before offerings such as ‘Talkin’ Dirt’, ‘Sad Casino’ and ‘Remember Me That Way’.
As well as featuring an appearance from Moroney, Silver Sands Marina also sees Chesney teaming up with Lily Meola (‘Goldfish’) and Colbie Caillat (‘What We Got Going On’).
