Kenny Chesney to Duet with Pink on New Album

In recent years, Kenny Chesney's female singing partner of choice has been roots rocker Grace Potter, who loaned her versatile voice that typically commands the Nocturnals to the chart-topping singles "Wild Child" and "You and Tequila." For his forthcoming album Some Town Somewhere, Chesney will change things up by enlisting pop singer Pink as his feminine foil.

Pink guests on a track called "Setting the World on Fire," which Chesney describes in a release as a "song of being." The two initially became friends while Chesney was spending time in California, and he asked her to sing on the track. Both singers have a successful history with collaborative performances: Pink enjoyed a massive hit in 2013 with "Just Give Me a Reason," a duet she performed with fun. singer Nate Ruess.

Chesney's new album Some Town Somewhere was initially scheduled to be released on July 8th, but will instead bow on October 28th. The album's first single "Noise," which was written by Chesney with Shane McAnally, Jon Nite and Ross Copperman, deals with information addiction in the age of constant online access and is currently trending toward the top 5 of Billboard's Country Airplay chart.

Kenny Chesney Switches Gears for 'Cosmic Hallelujah' Album

Kenny Chesney's Some Town Somewhere album was originally scheduled to hit stores today (July 8th), with release day celebrations kicking off on ABC's Good Morning America. Instead, he announced to the show's packed Central Park audience a new set of plans: The LP is now called Cosmic Hallelujah, and will be out October 28th.

"We moved it for several reasons, but the main one was because my friend Pink agreed to do this song with me and it turned out really great. I'm very proud of it. It's gonna come in a couple of weeks, I think," he said, referring to the collaborative track called "Setting the World on Fire." "And now with the energy that the new music is bringing, we even changed the album title. People have asked me what it feels like, and it feels like a cosmic hallelujah."

Chesney's live television announcement of the new album title was news even to his own team. He indicated that the decision was made just this morning. Later, he wrote in a statement that the switch was done to really encapsulate the feeling of the new music as a whole. "There sure is a lot of Some Town Somewhere for sure," he writes, "but really when I pulled back and listened, these songs are all about taking The Big Revival to the next level; that level is Cosmic Hallelujah."

This is at least the second major curveball Chesney has thrown at his new album's launch. His record label had already chosen the project's first single when he came to them with a brand-new song he'd penned called "Noise," which laments all of the things that distract us from the beauty of life, whether it's a cell phone, a politician or a wrecking ball. Chesney's whole team felt so strongly about the timely tune that they scrapped all the work they'd done on the other song and made "Noise" the LP's kickoff.

"I feel like in my own life that I've lost a bit of human connection," Chesney tells Rolling Stone Country of his deep connection to "Noise." "We communicate in such a fast pace, and there's this addiction to communication with all the devices we have. I notice it with my friends in our social time: if you have five seconds to yourself, you're looking at your phone to see if someone texted.

"We're not preaching to anyone, we're just making a statement about the way we live," the singer continues, explaining the song's intent. "The message is to try to be mindful of it. If you love someone, tell them you love them. Don't text it to them! There is so much life to be lived outside our phones."

Chesney co-wrote "Noise" with Shane McAnally, Jon Nite and Ross Copperman. Joining them on Cosmic Hallelujah's songwriting credits is Matraca Berg, who co-wrote Chesney's "You and Tequila" duet with Grace Potter and lends her "Jesus & Elvis" to the new album. Other collaborators include Hayes Carll, Allison Moorer, Josh Osborne and David Lee Murphy.