Kenny Chesney Details 'Goldfish' Video

08-19-2026

(EBM) Kenny Chesney knew he'd not heard a song like it in a long time, if ever. So cutting the rambling "Goldfish" was an easy decision. Between the tumbling metaphor of his state of mind versus all the defining elements of a veritable zoo and the sound of how something so heartbreaking could deliver so much joy, the song by the double GRAMMY-winning Tia Sillers, two-time JUNO Award-winner Tenille Townes and ACM/CMA-Award winner Gordie Sampson begged for an equally ebullient video treatment.

Wanting to capitalize on the recording's lavish Hawaiian steel guitar, Chesney left his historic second residency at Las Vegas' Sphere and went straight to Maui with his band to create a video that evokes the pell-mell high jinks that marked the best of the Beatles' whimsy, as well as showcase the island at its most charming. Whether going upcountry to the Rodeo General Store or overlooking Ku'au Bay along the Hana Highway at Mama's Fish House, the vibe was loose and the scenery embodied everything on the track.

As Silver Sands Marina gets closer to its September 25 release date, the East Tennessee songwriter-superstar is readying this easy-going, postcard-perfect video for release alongside the August 28 grat track. A travelogue on steroids, Chesney and band mirror the song's euphoria.

"To hear something so creative, something that breaks all the rules and brings back that classic old school wordplay, you want a video that's just as much fun," Chesney says of the track. "Here's this guy going through so much heartache, sitting in a bar 'drunk as a skunk,' but the way the song tells it, it's so lighthearted you almost don't realize how much pain he's in. How do you capture that?

"And that's why we decided to do something really carefree, really innocent and just show the spirit of this band, kicking back and having fun together. Between the custom Western suits that're about that era of country music, the cardboard cut-out of (guitarist) Kenny Greenberg who couldn't make the trip that we dragged around with us and those locations, we matched all the joy this song is made of."

Whether hula dancers, breaking waves, sunsets and sunrises, straight to camera delivery and the band's unbridled friendship as they explore the island, there's plenty of choices for longtime collaborator Shaun Silva and Chesney to work with as they finish the edit. As Chesney says, "To have as much pure fun as we did shooting this, seeing the video coming together and really nailing the vibe and energy we had is pretty cool."

Having delivered some of country music's most iconic videos - including the good-timing "When the Sun Goes Down" with Uncle Kracker, freewheeling "American Kids," soulful "Spread The Love" with The Wailers, boardwalk wistfulness "Anything But Mine," breathtaking "Wild Child" and "You and Tequila," which both featured Grace Potter, as well as the heroic "The Boys of Fall" - the visual medium is somewhere Chesney not only excels, but amplifies the essence of what his music contains.

"To me, video should make the song more, take you places and make you feel something even deeper," says the man with both the most No. 1s and Top 10 songs on Billboard's Country Airplay chart. "It's a chance to take people places they might not get to go, but you always want to make sure you leave plenty of room for their own stories, their own feelings... Kick open their imagination, and let the song fly.