2 country music legends planning to retire after this year

ALan Jackson and John Michael Montgomery are planning to retire after this year. Getty Images

Country music singers are kind of like pro wrestlers in that they never truly retire all the way.

Sure, they might cut back, but they always seem to have at least one more show in them. And that’s good news for the country music world, especially in the case of the guys listed below becuase they are legends. And they are legends who have announced intentions to retire from touring by the end of 2025.

So, chances to see them in person will likely be extremely rare, and … you never know, this may indeed be the last year you can see them at all.

Check out the legends with retirement plans this year below:

Alan Jackson

Alan Jackson announced last May that he was planning on wrapping up his career, and in early June he opened up about why that is.

The 66-year-old delivered the message to his fans via a video posted to his X, formerly Twitter, account.

“I’ve been touring for over 30 years, you know, played everywhere in the country and parts of the world,” Jackson said. “Have had a wonderful career, and getting into my twilight years, and all my daughters are grown, and I got one grandchild and one on the way. Enjoy spending more time at home, and don’t want to be away like I had to be in my younger days, and I don’t tour as much now as I did 10 years ago. But I think it’s getting time to start thinking about hanging it up full-time.” The tour, which is called “Last Call: One More for the Road,” is slated to begin on Aug. 2 and currently has 10 dates running through May 17, 2025.

Jackson revealed in 2021 that he has Charcot-Marie-Tooth, a chronic neuropathy condition that effects a person’s balance and ability to walk. He also addressed that in the video posted to his account.

“Most of my fans know I have a degenerative health condition that effects my legs and arms and my mobility that I got from my daddy and it’s getting worse,” he said. “So, it makes me more uncomfortable on stage, and I just have a hard time, and I just want to think about maybe calling it quits before I’m unable to do the job like I want to.”

Jackson still has some tour dates into 2025 so there’s still chance to see him.

John Michael Montgomery

John Michael Montgomery’s Facebook message on New Year’s Eve was pretty tame compared to that of a year ago.

“Happy New Year!” the country music star wrote. “We had a great 2024, thanks to everyone who came out to the shows. Looking forward to seeing you next year as I kick off my ROAD TO HOME farewell tour. Wishing you all a blessed 2025!”

That’s right. He is ready to head out on the road for the final time this year, but it wasn’t a surprise because that was the surprising message he had for fans on Facebook to start 2024.

“I have decided to wind down my touring career over this year and 2025,” he wrote back then. “It’s been a wonderful run for me from the beginning over 30 years ago in 1992 when my first song ‘Life’s A Dance’ was released to radio.”

Fans flooded his post this year with more than 3,000 comments, and it sounds like if he is going out, they are going to make it a point to see him one more time.

“Happy New Year,” one person responded. “Hope to see you one last time on your farewell tour.”

Others, though, are still trying to talk him out of it.

“Happy New Year!” one person wrote. “You’re too young for a farewell tour. Give it another 20 years and try again.”

The 59-year-old singer’s first three albums, 1992’s “Life’s A Dance,” 1994’s “Kickin’ It Up,” and 1995’s “John Michael Montgomery,” were all reportedly mutli-platinum selling albums. And he has reportedly sold more than 16 million albums in his career.

His Billboard number-one hits include: “I Love the Way You Love Me,” “I Swear,” and “I Can Love You Like That.”

Good news for fans of the artist is that while it sounds as though he is all but wrapping up his time on the road, he reportedly hasn’t ruled out the occasional appearance and it doesn’t sound like he is completely walking away from making music.

“I’m sure there will be some situations where I just need to do a show here and there because I’ll miss that too much,” he reportedly said in a statement. “But I just feel the time has come to say goodbye to the road life.”