Kenny Chesney's Pittsburgh concert on May 30 is on despite Mayor saying it's 'impossible' amid coronavirus
In a growing list of artists who are canceling or postponing tours and live events during the coronavirus pandemic, there are still those opting to keep their shows running. Kenny Chesney's concert in Pittsburgh is one of them as it has not been canceled. The country singer has canceled every concert up to May 28, but his May 30 show at Heinz Field seems to be on schedule. People can still buy tickets for the concert.
Chesney has repeatedly toured Heinz Field and performed for more than 50,000 people, according to PennLive. Pittsburgh is the county seat of Allegheny County, which is currently in the yellow phase of Pennsylvania's plan to ease Covid-19 restrictions. The yellow phase, which allows most (but not all) businesses to reopen and puts limitations on social gatherings (no more than 25 people), is part of a three-colored system that Governor Tom Wolf has put in place for the reopening of businesses during the pandemic, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. No county in the state of Pennsylvania has moved to the green phase yet. Typically, transitions to different phases are announced a week before they come into effect. Health Department Secretary Dr Rachel Levine said on May 13 that the state is yet to develop a guideline for moving counties from the yellow to the green phase.
At present, there are 1,526 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 127 deaths in Allegheny County alone, according to PennLive.
On May 6, Chesney said, "I think we're cautiously optimistic — but like I said, cautiously — about playing music this year," when thinking about his 2020 Chillaxification Tour, which was originally set to kick off on April 18, according to Taste of Country. "But honestly, we play a lot of the venues that the NFL play. We're just kind of watching what happens with that, and we'll see," he said.
According to WPXI, Mayor Bill Peduto’s communications director spoke about Chesney's upcoming concert and said it is "impossible to hold it" because of the yellow phase limitations of no more than 25 people at social gatherings. Any updates on Chesney's concert will come from the tour organizers directly, and those updates are expected by the end of the week.
The Rolling Stones have already postponed their concert, which was set to be held at the same venue a month later on June 23. Fans were advised to hold onto their original tickets and await further information.