Kenny Chesney is one of country's brightest stars, but before he started touring the world and selling millions of records, he had to get a day job. And that day job took a nosedive because of a pesky clown.

When Chesney first moved to Nashville, he got a job at Houndogs, a hot dog stand on Music Row. He was hired to sell the dogs, and the owner, named Flash, told the singer that only one thing would get him fired: The stand had trash cans with clown heads on top, from one of Jim Varney's Earnest movies, and if he didn't lock up the clown heads at the end of the night, he was done.

Unfortunately, Chesney seemed to forget that little rule. He admits that one week after he started working there, he left the clown heads out, and sure enough, Flash fired him.

Here's another fun fact, though: Chesney also played on a small stage next to the stand -- a place where several country stars got their start, including Tim McGraw. Check out the video above, from Taste of Country‘s You Think You Know Country? series, to learn more about Chesney's rise to fame.

Kenny Chesney Through the Years

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