Luke Combs: The country star's career highlights so far
From winning awards to getting married and everything in between
Luke Combs has had a meteoric rise to fame, and is now considered one of the biggest and most influential country music stars on the planet. After releasing his breakout single, 'Hurricane', back in 2015, the sky has been the limit for this singer-songwriter from North Carolina.
From Grammy Award nominations to chart-topping singles and Platinum-selling albums, Luke Combs has quickly become the new face of modern country music. Want to brush up on your knowledge of the country star? Read on for our handy timeline of Luke Combs' career highlights so far...
Career highlights: How did Luke Combs get famous?
Career beginnings
While attending Appalachian State University, Luke Combs played his first country music show at the Parthenon Cafe. While at college, Luke tried out for the popular TV show, The Voice, in an attempt to secure a record deal. Despite making it through multiple rounds of auditions, Luke didn't make it through to the live shows because, in his words, he wasn't "interesting enough." Luke dropped out of college, just a month before the end of his senior year, and moved to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue his dream of a career in country music.
2014: First EP release
After the release of his EPs 'The Way She Rides' (2014), 'Can I Get an Outlaw' (2014) and 'This One's For You' (2015), Luke was signed to Sony Music Nashville. His debut single 'Hurricane' reached Number 1 on the Country Radio Airplay Chart in 2017 and introduced Luke to a wider audience.
2017: Debut album 'This One's for You’
In 2017, Luke released his debut album 'This One's for You' which debuted at Number 5 on the US Billboard 200 and Number 1 on the US Top Country Album chart. Five of the album's singles went on to reach Number 1 on the Billboard Country Chart including 'When It Rains It Pours' and 'Beautiful Crazy'. Later that year he won the 'New Artist of the Year' award at the 2017 Country Music Association Awards.
2019: Second album 'What You See Is What You Get'
Following on from the success of his debut album, Luke's second album 'What You See Is What You Get' was released in November 2019. The album's singles, 'Beer Never Broke My Heart', 'Even Though I'm Leaving', 'Does to Me' and 'Lovin' on You' have all reached Number 1 on the US Country chart.
2019: Grand Ole Opry
In 2019, Luke was inducted into the country music institution, the Grand Ole Opry, which has been showcasing the best country music artists since 1925. Luke, who first visited the iconic venue as a fan in 2013 to see Ashley Monroe perform, said of the award, 'Here I am on stage with people I grew up listening to and people who have shaped me as an artist. I just want to say thank you to you guys, thank you to the Grand Ole Opry, and thank you to the fans. Without you all, there is no country music, there is no Grand Ole Opry.'
2019: Grammy Award
Also in 2019, Luke Combs was nominated for a Grammy Awards for Best New Artist, won two awards at the 55th ACM Awards and three awards at the 2020 Billboard Music Awards including Top Country Male Artist and Top Country Album.
2020: CMA Awards and second album
In 2020, Luke Combs won awards for Male Vocalist of the Year and Album of the Year at the Country Music Association Awards and Male Artist of the Year at the ACM awards. He also gained his second Grammy Award nomination for Best Country Group Performance for the single 'Brand New Man', which he performed with country duo, Brooks & Dunn.
After the release of his single 'Forever After All' in October 2020, Luke Combs made history by becoming the first country artist ever to reach Number 1 on the Rolling Stone's Top 200 Albums chart, Top 100 Songs chart and Artists 500 chart during the same week. Luke also set the record for the longest reign at the top of that chart by a male artist after his second album 'What You See Is What You Get' topped the chart 25 times and his 2017 debut album, 'This One's For You', spent 50 non-consecutive weeks at Number 1. Luke began his 'What You See Is What You Get' Tour in 2020, with dates continuing into 2021.
In October 2020, Luke released a deluxe version of his second album, titled 'What You See Ain't Always What You Get', and it featured five brand new tracks - with 'Forever After All' setting streaming records in country music!
2020: Marriage
Luke Combs married his girlfriend, Nicola Hocking, on 1st August 2020 at their beach house in Southern Florida after dating for four years. They met in 2016 while attending a singer-songwriter festival in Key West, Florida. Nicola is the inspiration behind several of Luke's songs, including 'Forever After All' and 'Crazy Beautiful', and she joins him whenever he tours the US.
2022: Third album and his first son
Finishing his 'What You See Is What You Get' Tour in 2021, it seems Luke was very busy writing new music, with him releasing his third album 'Growin' Up' on 24th June 2022. The album included tracks such as 'Doin' This', 'Going, Going, Gone' and 'The Kind of Love We Make', and hit the Number 1 spot in the UK Country Albums chart, as well as Number 9 in the UK Albums chart.
2022 also saw Luke welcome his first child into the world, with him and wife Nicola announcing the arrival of their first son, Tex, who was born in June of that year.
2023: Ed Sheeran and ACM Awards
In 2023, it came as no surprise that Luke was nominated for a number of awards - including Entertainer of The Year at the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards, in the first year the award saw five nominees increase to seven. Despite losing out on the win to 'Say Something' country singer Chris Stapleton, it was a fantastic night for Luke, with him taking to stage with none other than 'Shape Of You' legend Ed Sheeran. The pair performed Ed's track 'Life Goes On' together.
Watch Ed Sheeran and Luke Combs' performance here on YouTube.
2023: Fourth studio album, World Tour and Grammy nomination
2023 proved to be an incredible year for the country singer, with him also releasing his fourth studio album 'Gettin' Old'. The album spawned singles such as 'Love you Anyway' and 'Growin' Up and Gettin' Old'. Luke actually recorded the album at the same time as his third studio release 'Growin' Up', however decided release them as two separate albums.
With the album also including his hit cover of Tracey Chapman's 'Fast Car', as well as Luke co-writing 15 of the 18 tracks, it came as no surprise that it was a hit with fans. The album hit the Number 1 spot on the UK Country Albums chart, as well as Number 5 on the UK Albums chart. Thanks to the incredible album and storming success, Luke bagged his third ever Grammy nomination, and a nomination for the Best Country Album gong at the 2023 ceremony.
'Gettin' Old' was released on 24th March 2023, and just one day after the release Luke embarked on his World Tour. The tour saw him travel through 16 countries, across three continents. His World Tour saw him reach the UK in October 2023, playing shows in Belfast, Glasgow, Manchester and London from 14th - 20th. The tour was Luke's most successful to date, with him smashing global records and immediately selling out 37 out of the 39 shows.
2023: CMA Awards success at the 2023 ceremony
Luke was nominated for a total of four awards at the CMA Awards 2023, bagging the win for one of the nominations. Up for Entertainer of the Year, Album of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year, Luke picked up the win for Single of the Year - for his cover of the track 'Fast Car'.
'Fast Car' was originally released by Tracy Chapman back in 1988, with Luke's cover of the song featuring on his fourth album. After Luke's cover saw the song gain a new lease of life, at the CMA Awards 2023 Tracy won the award for Song of the Year, having written the track 35 years prior. By winning the award, Tracy became the first Black artist to win an award in that category at the CMAs.
2024: Grammys performance with Tracy Chapman
The Grammy Awards ceremony 2024 brought a very special performance, with Luke joining reclusive music icon Tracy Chapman on stage for a rare live performance of her seminal anthem 'Fast Car'. The performance marked almost exactly 35 years since she first performed 'Fast Car' at The Grammys.
Luke's music video for 'Fast Car' then bagged a nomination for Male Video of The Year at the CMT Awards 2024.
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