'Check Your Ego': Kenny Chesney Blasts Celebrities Who Preach Politics to Fans After Taylor Swift's Kamala Harris Endorsement Backfired
Kenny Chesney revealed he doesn't think it's his 'place' to preach politics to fans.
June 23 2026, Published 4:20 p.m. ET
Country music legend Kenny Chesney revealed why he's never publicly endorsed a political candidate, taking aim at celebrities who use their fame to lecture fans about politics, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Chesney, 58, made the comments during a June 22 appearance on Bill Maher's Club Random podcast, where the Real Time host noted that Taylor Swift's public push for 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris did little to help her bid against Donald Trump.
Chesney said stars need do 'check' their 'ego' to think their political beliefs make a difference with fans.
"I've just never felt like it was my place," Chesney said about making his political preferences known and pushing them on fans.
"And there's a certain ego, I think, that lives in there and a certain box inside your head and your soul that you have to check for some reason to think that you can make a difference," he added.
Maher told the Summertime singer, "I think they've actually studied this when celebrities talk, I think it has the opposite effect," to which Chesney noted, "I agree."
Kenny Chesney 'Never Saw It' As His Place to 'Tell People How to Vote'
Chesney said people come to him for music and to escape politics.
"They were all waiting, by the way, for Taylor Swift in 2024. If Kamala just had Taylor's vote," Maher said about fans wanting to know who the pop superstar was going to support for president.
"It didn't help, and they think it hurt," the HBO personality pointed out about how Swift publicly endorsed then-Vice President Harris, 61, in September 2024 after watching a presidential debate against Trump, 80.
Chesney shared, "I've never saw it to be my place to use my stage or platform, no matter where I'm playing, to tell people how to think or how to vote."
He added, "Like they hear that. They get that everywhere else. Everywhere on every device. Every network. They're there as an escape from all that stuff," referring to fans who just want to hear his music and not political beliefs.
Taylor Swift Proudly Endorsed Kamala Harris Over Donald Trump in 2024 Election
Swift said she was voting for Harris because she 'fights for the rights and causes' that she believed in.
Swift publicly announced she would be voting for Harris in a lengthy Instagram post.
"I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I'm voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them," the 14-time Grammy winner revealed.
"I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader, and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos," the Anti-Hero singer continued. "I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades."
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Donald Trump Bashes Taylor Swift Over Her Kamala Harris Endorsement
Donald Trump lashed out at Swift after her endorsement of Harris.
Swift didn't expressly tell her massive legion of fans to follow her lead in voting for Harris, instead sharing, "I've done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make."
The Pennsylvania native disabled the comments to her post, but Trump fired back in an interview with Fox News, claiming, "I was not a Taylor Swift fan," and going on to rant on Truth Social, "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!"
The Commander-in-Chief went on to secure a second term in a massive victory over Harris in November 2024, winning the popular vote, the Electoral College, and all seven key swing states.
