Luke Combs

Luke Albert Combs was born on March 2, 1990, and grew up in Huntersville and Asheville, North Carolina. He is an only child, and his parents, Rhonda and Chester, instilled in him a strong work ethic and humble values. From a young age, Combs showed musical promise, performing in his school chorus, musicals, and even singing with his church choir at Carnegie Hall. Combs attended Appalachian State University, initially studying business before switching to criminal justice. However, his life trajectory shifted when he started performing country music at a bar where he worked as a bouncer. After teaching himself to play guitar at age 21, he dropped out of college, just 21 credit hours shy of a degree, to move to Nashville in 2014 and fully pursue music. He independently released EPs, quickly building a devoted following before signing a major label deal. In his personal life, he married Nicole Hocking in 2020, and they are now parents to two sons. In addition to his career, Combs is recognized for his active charity work. He is a dedicated supporter of the CMA Foundation and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, focusing on children's health, education, and music programs. A major philanthropic effort occurred when he and fellow North Carolina native Eric Church organized a massive benefit concert in Charlotte to aid residents recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Helene. This event and their ongoing relief efforts raised millions of dollars, leading them to be named co-recipients of the Artist Humanitarian Award in 2025.

Luke Combs' career is a rapid-fire success story built on his authentic, everyman persona and songwriting that blends traditional country grit with modern rock energy. After dropping out of Appalachian State University, he moved to Nashville, releasing his independently-produced breakout single "Hurricane" in 2015, which sold thousands of copies before he signed a major label deal. His 2017 debut album, This One's for You, immediately established his dominance, setting a record by placing five straight singles at number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, including "When It Rains It Pours" and "Beautiful Crazy." Subsequent albums like What You See Is What You Get and the two-part Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old continued this unprecedented run, with Combs accumulating nearly 20 number-one hits and earning two back-to-back CMA Entertainer of the Year awards (2021 and 2022). His faithful cover of Tracy Chapman’s "Fast Car" also became a massive crossover hit. Combs has quickly transitioned into a global touring force. His early success was cemented by tours like the "Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour" and the "What You See Is What You Get Tour." He scaled up dramatically for the "Luke Combs World Tour" (2023), which sold out massive stadiums internationally, and the ambitious "Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old Tour" (2024), where he played two different shows in the same city on back-to-back nights, breaking multiple attendance records across the country. He continues his stadium dominance with the announced "My Kinda Saturday Night Tour" for 2026.