If there’s one thing that celebrities have in common with the rest of us, it’s that they love their pets. No matter how rich and famous you are, an animal’s love can be the best thing in the world.
Like country superstar Kenny Chesney, who was heartbroken after the death of his beloved dog Ruby. But now, he has a new single that’s not only a tribute to late his dog, but is raising money to help other animals in need.
On December 4, Chesney announced on Instagram that his rescue dog Ruby had passed away. He praised her as a calming presence in his life who loved unconditionally.
“Ruby lived her life never holding anything against anybody,” Chesney wrote. “She had an ancient, calming soul. She was honest and authentic, she was a protector, she took a warrior’s path in the journey of her life.”
“We loved you and thank you for teaching us how to love unconditionally. You were one heaven of a dog.”
But the country star decided to honor Ruby’s life, and pay it forward to other dogs like her, with a new charitable single.
Chesney had previously written and recorded a song about Rudy called “Da Ruba Girl,” which was a fan favorite on his SiriusXM channel No Shoes Radio but never released as a single or on an album.
After Ruby’s death, Chesney decided to finally release it as a single — with proceeds going to Stray Rescue of St. Louis.
Chesney says the song — with lyrics recalling Ruby’s days as a shelter dog, calling her “last in line, last cage at the rescue” — has resonated with fans because it’s a tribute not only to Ruby’s spirit and personality, but dogs like her everywhere.
“I wrote ‘Da Ruba Girl’ about Ruby, because she was this spirit who had so many different pieces to who she was,” Chesney told People. “People loved the song, I think, because they all knew a dog who had the same kind of spirit or heart, you know, the kind who was an underdog, who wasn’t the obvious choice.”
“No one had a bigger, bolder heart than Ruby,” he wrote on Twitter.
In supporting a charitable rescue with his song, Chesney hopes that other shelter dogs like Rudy will find their own happiness.
“They give so much love, so much joy and loyalty,” Chesney told People. “It’s one of the most wonderful things about the Stray Rescue of St. Louis shelter is the way they find the dogs people abandon and throw away, who may have been abused or just left somewhere and they heal them, then find them homes where all that love they have can be returned.”
“For every dog in the world like Ruby, I hope ‘Da Ruba Girl’ can bring them new homes, raise money for the shelter and remind people there’s a really profound love that happens when you adopt a rescue who truly needs a home.”
“They say we rescue them, but I know from experience we’re really the ones who are rescued,” Chesney wrote on his website. “And I also know some of the biggest angels on earth are the people who work in the shelters, healing these poor, abandoned, often abused babies. Ruby was everything good, and in her memory, this is her way of continuing to give and bring love where it’s most needed.”
The single is available on iTunes, and on all streaming platforms. All proceeds from the song will be donated, and fans can also make their own donation to Stray Rescue of St. Louis in honor of Ruby.
This isn’t the first time Chesney has used his fame to help animals in need. He previously helped relocate 1,400 cats and dogs to new homes during Hurricane Irma in 2018.
It’s always heartbreaking to lose a dog, but we’re glad that Kenny Chesney is paying such a sweet tribute to Ruby and raising money for such a good cause.
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