Luke Combs Admits It Was ‘Tough’ Adjusting To Fame, Promises To Give His Children A ‘Normal Life’

Luke Combs is currently one of the biggest names among country music artists. Besides the fact that he has a massive world tour underway, he’s also an 8x CMA, 3x ACM and 3x Billboard Music Award-winner. When all the awards and fifteen No. 1 hits began racking up, it didn’t take long for the North Carolina native, who spent countless hours playing his music in locals bars, to rise to fame.

During an interview with Esquire, Combs revealed that being so public with so many aspects of his life was one of the most challenging shifts for him. Over the years, he has found ways to adjust so that he can keep his roots close and maintain at least some privacy.

“I think I’m finally at peace with it now,” he says. “It was tough for a few years—feeling like you couldn’t go anywhere, like you couldn’t do anything. That’s kind of going away. I just live my life, I go to the grocery store and go out to eat and whatever. I used to not even do that stuff, because it was overwhelming—it always felt like somebody was looking at you or watching you or something. But now I honestly forget about that whole part of it.”

After years of grappling with the fame, Combs shared that preserving as much normalcy as he can is especially important now that he’s a father. On June 19, 2022, he and his wife, Nicole Hocking Combs welcomed their first son, Tex Lawrence Combs, and they recently announced that they are expecting to introduce their second baby boy to the world in September. 

“I want my son—and eventually my children—to have as normal of a life as they deserve to have,” he continued, “to ride bikes, to have privacy, to go fishing. I don’t want them to be on jets all the time going all around the world—not that we wouldn’t go on vacation together….I want them to have the things that I didn’t have. But I also want them to have the things that I did have, which was a really fun, normal feeling childhood.”

Even though the success has allowed him to give his family the kind of life they want, there are still moments when he has a desire to return to the days before all the hits, even if it’s just for a moment. This fantasy is depicted throughout his fourth album, Gettin’ Old, which arrived Friday, March 24.

This project is a follow-up to his companion album, Growin’ Up. After hearing both projects, it’s clear that the overall theme of these records was to capture the current stage of Combs’ life, which finds him “In the middle of growin’ up, and gettin’ old,” as he sings in the title track. 

Even the album covers line up when placed side by side to represent the shift in Combs’ priorities. Growin’ Up represents his days in the bar scene, and Gettin’ Old showcases the current stage of his life, which includes being home with family.

His most recent collection features 18 tracks including his current single “Going, Going, Gone,” and previously released tunes “Joe,” “5 Leaf Clover,” and “Love You Anyway.” The album also marks the first time Combs brought in songs that he didn’t have any hand in writing. “My Song Will Never Die” and “Where The Wild Things Are” are two of the outside cuts that he incorporated into the project, along with his jaw-dropping cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.”

As his only cover on the project, “Fast Car” holds a sentimental meaning for Combs. Esquire reported that this 1988 hit is “one of the first songs Combs remembers hearing on cassette in his dad’s ‘1980-something, brown F-150 with a camper top.’”

Fans will get the chance to hear these incredibly autobiographical songs on Luke Combs’ massive world tour, which launched March 25 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. He will visit a total of three continents and 16 countries, hitting sold-out stadiums and arenas along the way. 

He’s slated to perform in 16 stadiums across North America before heading to Australia, New Zealand, U.K., Ireland, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, France and Belgium.

Riley Green, Lainey Wilson, Flatland Cavalry and Brent Cobb will serve as support on the North American tour date, while special guests on the Australian and New Zealand dates include Cody Johnson and Lane Pittman.