This Hit Kenny Chesney Single Came From One of His Biggest Heartbreaks

One of Kenny Chesney‘s biggest hits also came from one of his biggest heartaches. In 2005, Chesney married actress Renée Zellweger, announcing just four months later that they were having their marriage annulled. 

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Sad as it was for Chesney, it did inspire “I’m Alive“. The song, which he wrote with Dean Dillon and Mark Tamburino, was first recorded by Willie Nelson for Nelson’s 2008 Moment Of Forever record. That same year, Chesney also recorded “I’m Alive” with Dave Matthews, for Chesney’s Lucky Old Sun album. One year later, Chesney also included it on his Greatest Hits II project, releasing it as a single. “I’m Alive”. The song peaked inside the Top 10.

When Chesney’s brief marriage ended, the actress cited “fraud” as the reason, later clarifying it was just a legal term. Chesney admits he is largely to blame for the relationship not working out.

“I panicked,” Chesney concedes (via the Today Show). “I look at my life as a box. … So everything that I put in — learn how to play guitar, put that in the box. The friends I made. I put that in the box, and my career grew. That box I built grew into this wonderful house… And you protect everything and all the relationships and all the people that helped you build that house.”

“I’m Alive” says, “It’d be easy to add up all the pain / And all the dreams you sat and watched go up in flames / Dwell on the wreckage as it smolders in the rain / But not me, I’m alive / And today, you know that’s good enough for me / Breathing in and out’s a blessing, can’t you see? / Today’s the first day of the rest of my life / And I’m alive and well / Yeah, I’m alive and well.”

What Kenny Chesney Says About Writing “I’m Alive”

Chesney calls “I’m Alive” the most personal song on Greatest Hits II, and with good reason. Notoriously quiet about his private life, Chesney recalls the moment he felt inspired to write the positive track.

“I wrote ‘I’m Alive’ after my breakup with Renée,” he tells The Boot. “I woke up one day and realized, even though I’m going through all this stuff and don’t feel good about it, the outer shell of my life is really great. I’m alive. I get to make music. I’ve got a lot of great friends. That’s the message of the song.”

In Chesney’s Heart Life Music memoir, he recalls where he was and how he was feeling when he wrote “I’m Alive”.

“Dean Dillon, Mark Tamburino, and I wrote this one down in the islands when I was wore out,” Chesney shares. “And [I], looking at the clouds over the ocean, that as exhausted as I was, I still had so much to be grateful for.”

Photo by Jemal Countess/WireImage