“He's One Of My Heroes”: Niko Moon Pays Homage to Kenny Chesney and Teases New Summer Album

With the bleak, frosty Winter that has hit many parts of the US and UK, it's safe to say we've been leaning on gloriously summery, vacation-oriented country tunes to keep us going.

The two figureheads of this beach-ready, island-inspired wave have always been Jimmy Buffett and Kenny Chesney, with the latter's No Shoes Nation fanbase priding themselves on their ability to sustain a glass-half-full, summer outlook all-year-round.

In recent years, however, it's become apparent that Tropical Country's flag-bearer-in-waiting is Niko Moon, who marries the sun-soaked storytelling of Jimmy Buffett and Kenny Chesney with sleek, 808-fuelled instrumentals and trap-infused beats.

As a result, fans of Niko Moon are often also Kenny Chesney aficionados, with listeners clamouring for this almost mythical collaboration ever since the former stormed onto the scene with his infectious party anthem, ‘GOOD TIME’, back in 2021.

Speaking to Holler ahead of his debut performance in London at C2C Festival 2025, Niko Moon paid tribute to Kenny Chesney's influence on both his sound and his mentality.

In response to a question regarding when we can expect this long-awaited collaboration, the Texas native quipped, “Whenever Kenny's ready to! I'm always here for a collab with him...” before highlighting Chesney's deep-seated impact on him, “He's one of my heroes and that's a big bucket list for me, and I'm gonna make it happen”.

Niko Moon went on to reflect on how the music of Buffett and Chesney enable him find a form of escapism during the hostility of the Winter months - an outlet that, aptly, Moon's own music now serves as for his rapidly burgeoning army of listeners.

Niko Moon warmly explained, “Honestly, summer music is a big help for me, it's like a tool I can pull out of my tool-belt to keep my mind in the right frame of mind. Because back in [Nashville], it's been a pretty rough Winter too, and so music like Jimmy Buffett and Kenny Chesney, that keeps the sun shining when it's cloudy”.

The beauty of Niko Moon's breezy, good-times-only brand of music is that it can provide a dual purpose. You can lean on motivational earworms such as ‘KEEP A LIGHT ON’, ‘BETTER DAYS’ and ‘ALL WE NEED’ when feeling down and in need of some levity. On the flip-side, heaters such as ‘BACK NINE’, ‘MONEY CAN'T BUY’ and ‘NIGHT'S STILL YOUNG’ act as the perfect soundtrack to a carefree Friday night.

“Honestly, I think both times of life are valuable for writing that kind of music”, Moon muses, “We're all going to have some highs and lows on this ride we're on. A song like ‘KEEP A LIGHT ON’ might happen when I'm in a little bit of a low moment, and I need that redemption feeling, to help me remember there are better days ahead. Then, on the beautiful days, it'll be a song like ‘GOOD TIME’, where we're celebrating the moment and wanting to submit memories in the mind of those good times”.

Excitingly, after dropping two uplifting EPs - THESE ARE THE DAYS and THESE ARE THE NIGHTS - towards the second half of 2024, Niko Moon is now hard at work on his third record.

Moon confirms, “I'm working on the album right now. It's brand new and it's going to come out this summer, and it's a full-on vacation album to the beach. I'm picking up that tiki torch fully, and planting it down in the sand, following in the footsteps of Jimmy and Kenny. I can't wait for everybody to hear it. I think it's my best album I've ever made, and I'm super pumped for everybody to go on vacation with me on it”.

The forthcoming record, undoubtedly, will embody the Happy Cowboy spirit that Niko Moon laces into his music, with this cri-de-coeur becoming the cornerstone of his music.

Epitomising this approach to life is Moon's Happy Cowboy Foundation, which seeks to provide affordable resources and therapy access to those struggling with their mental health.

“I'm so grateful for the positive conversations I've been able to have in life to help me untangle that knot in my mind, which I had a difficult time doing on my own. Like we were talking about earlier, about being on that ride, we all have moments where we're going to have difficulty navigating life. Positive music is a beautiful thing, and it's so helpful, but sometimes we need a positive conversation”.

The ‘IT'S ALL GOOD’ crooner expands, “For a long time, I couldn't afford to have that, because it can be a little expensive to get therapy, and so I really want to make sure that anyone who's looking to find that peace of mind is able to get it, and finances shouldn't be a barrier for that. So The Happy Cowboy Foundation helps anybody that's looking to get therapy, but can't afford it to get that help they need”.

Alongside these transformational and cathartic conversations, endearingly, Niko Moon cites his daughter, Lily Anne, as a pivotal part of his journey to become the greatest version of himself, “It's the absolute best experience of my life. My daughter is finally getting to the age - she's two now - where we're able to have real conversations for the first time, and it's opening up my mind as to the person I want to be in life. I feel like I had this bar as the man that I wanted to be for myself, but now, having my little girl is raising that bar on the human being that I want to be in life, because she deserves a higher level than I've set out for myself”.

Moon movingly concludes, “I think getting to be a father has been the absolute best thing I could've done for myself...Every day I'm constantly being inspired by parenthood”.

As we eagerly look forward to hearing the self-professed Happy Cowboy's third studio album, we'll be greeting the Spring sunshine that has thankfully started filtering through by doubling-down on our headphone-holiday-trio of Moon, Chesney and Buffett. Maybe Moon was right when he triumphantly declared on his 2024 ode, ‘SUMMER DON'T GO’, that the season is a state of mind, “All this salt in the air / All this ain't-got-a-care / Has got me thinking summer don't go / Summer don't go nowhere”. When listening to his jubilant battle-cries, we can't help but agree.

For more on Niko Moon, see below: