For the second straight summer, country music superstar Kenny Chesney has postponed his scheduled visit to Heinz Field due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a statement released to his website on Sunday, Chesney said that he’s postponing his entire 18-date 2021 tour, and that all cities and venues currently scheduled to have a concert this summer will instead get one in 2022.
Chesney’s visit for Pittsburgh had been scheduled for June 12. The dates for the re-scheduled tour in 2022 have not yet been announced. Chesney said that tickets for the 2021 tour will be honored in 2022, and that fans that wish to request a refund may do so.
“We have waited for so long, I can’t play knowing I would disappoint a portion of No Shoes Nation who wouldn’t be able to get into the stadiums and the amphitheaters,” Chesney said in the statement. “There’s no way around that this year. As much I hate postponing further, I would hate telling people who waited we won’t be able to let them come due to capacity restrictions. That’s just not fair.”
Beginning on April 4, Pennsylvania will allow outdoor venues to operate at 50% of total capacity, as long as attendees and workers are able to maintain six feet of social distancing. Mask wearing will also still be required.
“Pennsylvanians have stepped up and done their part of help curb the spread of COVID-19,” Governor Wolf said when announcing the upcoming changes on March 15. “Our case counts continue to go down, hospitalizations are declining, and the percent positivity rate gets lower every week – all very positive signs. The number of people getting vaccinated increases daily and we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel. It’s time to allow our restaurants, bars and other service businesses to get back to more normal operations.”
Heinz Field seats 68,400 for football and has held over 75,000 for concerts. It’s not clear what the stadium’s capacity will be under the new capacity and distancing guidelines.
The venue does not have any other events scheduled this summer, with the next post on its calendar Pitt’s 2021 home opener against UMass on Sept. 4.