The Chairman/CEO of Sony Music Nashville sums it up: “He’s the everyman, and that’s powerful.” And Randy Goodman knows what sells. He’s worked with Maren Morris, Miranda Lambert, and Chris Young, too. But, his biggest success story may be the college dropout from North Carolina who is winning big awards and selling out big venues all over the world.
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Luke Combs doesn’t look like the typical dashing young country singer, but that’s not stopping him from resonating with listeners—in fact, it’s helping in that arena. What’s more, it’s not just country music fans. Combs is having the kind of success that draws people from all different backgrounds. Country fans like his songs, but people who don’t think of themselves as country fans are also getting hooked.
At this point, it’s easier to list his singles that didn’t hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. He became the first country artist to have seven No. 1 songs on one album. And in 2019, he was asked to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Let’s take a look at five more fascinating facts about Luke Combs.
1. Law Enforcement
Early on, Combs wanted to be a police officer. “I wanted to be a homicide detective,” he told Jimmy Kimmel. He laughed as he admitted he didn’t actually have the physical build of a police officer. Kimmel encouraged him with the idea that he could work undercover.
“I think it was like solving the puzzle was the intriguing part to me,” the singer continued, “which is what I love so much about writing songs. It’s a puzzle that has no pieces. So, you make the pieces, and then you have to put them together.”
2. “Day Drinking”
Combs was taking classes at Appalachian State and working as a bouncer at a bar. At the same time, he started writing songs and performing. One of the first songs Combs wrote was called “Day Drinking.” He admitted that it was a terrible song, and was quickly discarded. But, shortly after, Little Big Town had a huge country hit with a different song that used the same title. This encouraged Combs. He felt he was on the right track with the title, and it inspired him to continue his pursuit of a music career. He dropped out of school and eventually moved to Nashville.
3. “Hurricane”
Three months after moving to Music City, Combs wrote “Hurricane” with Thomas Archer and Taylor Phillips along with some other tunes. Producer Scott Moffatt was encouraged by the six songs they recorded together, and he mentioned something about mastering them. Combs had not previously mastered any of his recordings; he never had the money to do that extra step. But this time he rounded up enough to master one song. He chose “Hurricane” and released it as a single on iTunes. It sold 15,000 copies in the first week and reached No. 46 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Needless to say, Combs figured out a way to have the rest of his songs mastered.
4. ”Beautiful Crazy”
In 2016, Combs wrote ”Beautiful Crazy” with Wyatt Durrette and Robert Williford. He posted a video on Facebook of him simply singing the song with an acoustic guitar. The post still went viral, which meant Combs had to add it to his live shows. The studio version of the tune eventually went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and became just the sixth country song to go Diamond (10 million in sales).
[RELATED: Luke Combs’ “Beautiful Crazy” Is Certified Diamond]
What’s even more perfect is that Combs’ best-selling single was also written about his best girl, Nicole Hocking. They were dating when the song came out, and a year after it won Song of the Year at the CMAs, they were married.
5. Anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Fans may have already known that Combs deals with some mental health issues when he appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience in early 2023. But Combs went into further detail on the show, saying, “I suffer from really bad—like really, really bad OCD.”
He went on to explain that it was “obsessional” OCD rather than the more severe version many think of when they hear the term “obsessive compulsive disorder.” Combs doesn’t wash his hands 100 times a day or close and lock the front door 17 times before he can head to the studio. But he does have trouble with excessive rumination and intrusive thoughts becoming so all-consuming as to be debilitating.
Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images
