Kenny Chesney finally gets first Grammy nod

Chesney was nominated for Best Country Vocal Performance, Collaboration for Shiftwork with George Strait.

"I'm not gonna say that I gave up or didn't care about it," said Chesney, "because this is an award given by your peers in all genres of music...the people who make it. You get to a point where you realize you can't force it or get them to listen if they're not there because that's not how this works...and you just have to accept that. But that said, I'm really honored to finally be nominated."

Shiftwork was the third single from Chesney's nearly double platinum "Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates." "I think the trick is to keep it fresh without abandoning who you are," Chesney said. "The beauty of Shiftwork is that it celebrates the true country music fan - people who work so hard for their money - yet it has that Caribbean feel people expect from me. When you add in George, who's one of my heroes and friends, I just don't think it gets any better, so it's nice to see the people in rap, rock, pop and beyond recognize that, too." For Chesney, who got his first taste of playing football stadiums as part of the George Strait Country Festival Tours, singing with Strait was a thrill. "I learned so much about songs and singing and just being private in the spotlight from George... He defines, to me, what it means to be a modern country star: to keep a piece of your world for you, but to put your heart in the music. So, being nominated for my first Grammy with him is pretty great."