Country music star Mark Chesnutt was hospitalized unexpectedly on Thursday evening, just before he was due to perform.
The 62-year-old singer, known for his Texas roots, was preparing to open for the band Alabama at the Raising Cane’s River Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when he suddenly experienced a health issue, according to a report by WBRZ.
The River Center’s representatives announced that Chesnutt’s band would proceed with the performance in his absence, citing that he had been taken to a nearby hospital for undisclosed medical reasons.
Despite this setback, Chesnutt’s tour dates across the United States remain unchanged for now.
Chesnutt rose to fame in the 1990s with chart-topping hits such as “Brother Jukebox,” “I’ll Think Of Something,” and “It Sure Is Monday,” each reaching number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
In recent years, Chesnutt has battled several health challenges, including undergoing emergency heart surgery in June 2024.
Country singer Mark Chesnutt was rushed to the hospital before he was set to take the stage on Thursday evening; pictured in October 2015
Chesnutt is famous for his ’90s hits Brother Jukebox, I’ll Think Of Something and It Sure Is Monday, all three of which made it to number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart; pictured in October 1994
Earlier this year, he said his heart issues were not the first time he nearly lost his life.
After having quadruple bypass surgery and beating the odds, he decided to go back on the road and tour, and opened up about another harrowing near-death experience during his alcoholism battle.
Chestnutt recalled how he was dealing with the chronic pain from a fractured spine injury for many years, with the worsening back issues necessitating spinal surgery in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He was recovering from back surgery and quarantining when he picked up a drinking habit that crept up on him and took over his life.
‘It was getting worse and worse, and my surgery was a major, major one,’ he told American Songwriter in a candid interview, which was published in April.
‘I couldn’t work. I was laid up, didn’t drive, couldn’t walk, couldn’t do anything,’ he explained before adding that he ‘drank all day, every day.’
‘I’d get up in the middle of the night and drink,’ he continued. ‘I’d never stop.’
Chesnutt noted that he grew up during a time when ‘it was normal for everybody to drink all the time’ but he ‘just took it to the extreme and it about killed me.’
The Texas-born hitmaker, 62, was getting ready to open for the band Alabama at the Raising Cane’s River Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when he suddenly fell ill, per a WBRZ report; pictured in October 2015
He recalled one instance when his wife had to call an ambulance to help him.
‘I knew I was dying,’ Chestnutt said.
The singer recalled how he was hospitalized and was given four blood transfusions. He said he was diagnosed with esophageal varices, a result of cirrhosis.
‘Esophageal varices are enlarged veins in the esophagus, the tube that connects the throat and stomach. Esophageal varices most often happen in people with serious liver diseases,’ according to the Mayo Clinic, whereas ‘cirrhosis is advanced scarring of the liver caused by many diseases and conditions, including hepatitis or alcohol-use disorder.’
At the time, the doctors told Chestnutt that he was experiencing multiple organ failure, and they said his heart was on the brink of cardiac arrest.
He recalled how the doctors told him that if his wife had not called when she did, he likely would not have survived another two days.
‘I was bleeding out from my inside,’ Chesnutt explained. ‘They basically told me they were gonna get me over this, and I was going to be fine, and they could fix everything wrong with me.’
‘But if they discharged me and I went home and I started drinking again, I’d be back in a matter of days, and I might not leave alive,’ he said. ‘I had to quit drinking or die.’
Representatives of the River Center shared a notice explaining that Chestnutt was admitted to a local hospital for unspecified medical reasons. He has faced multiple health issues in past years and even underwent emergency heart surgery in June 2024; pictured in November 1995
Chestnutt said that he has been sober since taking his last drink on November 1, 2023.
In 2024, he dealt with the heart issues again and had to undergo that emergency surgery.
Earlier this year, Chestnutt announced his Redemption Tour. In a press release he said he was ready to get back on the road amid his successful health and sobriety journey.
‘My diet is better. I’m more active, and I feel better than I did in my 30s,’ he said in a press release in late April.
‘I’m excited about the whole process of going on the road. I’m excited every night to go onstage. I have the energy I wish I had throughout the 90s,’ he added.
Chestnutt is set to perform in Shipshewana, Indiana, on October 22, and in Clarksburg, West Virginia, the following day. On October 25, he is scheduled to take the stage in New Philadelphia, Ohio.
