When Luke Combs was vying for the coveted triple crown award having already won New Artist of the Year and Male Artist of the Year and scored his fourth nomination in the category for Entertainer of the Year at the 2023 Academy of Country Music Awards, he remembered Chris Stapleton’s historic moment at a different awards ceremony.
Folks will recall, Stapleton busted out his powerhouse vocals in 2015 alongside pop superstar Justin Timberlake on a version of “Tennessee Whiskey” at the CMA Awards. The iconic moment turned heads all over the country and served as a paradigm shift for Stapleton, who was already a successful songwriter in Nashville, Tenn, but hadn’t yet had a song on country radio.
Combs Credits Stapleton For Opening Doors For Other Artists
Since then, Stapleton has gone on to win numerous accolades and awards, including edging out Combs for the 2023 ACM Entertainer of the Year win. However, losing out to Stapleton didn’t bother Combs even the smallest bit. As a matter of fact, while looking back at his own career, Combs says he credits Stapleton for opening doors for many other artists – including him.
“When I moved to town, it was just the sound was different,” Combs, 33, reflected while speaking with Access on the red carpet of the 2023 ACM Awards. “Everybody was rocking different getups, and I just kind of did my thing.”
“I really think a guy like Chris Stapleton knocked a lot of doors down just for somebody different,” he added. “Bigger guy, beard, a burly kind of guy. That really kicked down the door for a lot of guys, I think, myself included.”
Combs scored five nominations heading into the 2023 ACM Awards in April, and when asked, “How surreal is that?”
He answered by saying, “It’s nuts. It’s crazy. You can never, like, prepare for it. It’s just here. You know what I mean? Like it’s nuts.”
Preparing For Baby No. 2
Another thing Combs can’t really prepare for is his baby number two on the way, which he says is “going to be an interesting time.”
“I have a 10-month-old at home, me and my wife, and so we’re doing the two under two thing,” he shared. “It’s going to be an interesting time coming up here pretty soon. Luckily, my best friend from high school lives ten minutes away from me. He had two under two and…. I call him a lot.”
Combs, who already shares a toddler son, Tex Lawrence, with his wife Nicole Combs, announced the married couple was expecting a second child earlier this year with an adorable post on Instagram.
The post features a touching video montage of the lovebirds holding Tex, who is wearing a cute shirt that reads the words “Big Brother” on the back.
“Joining the 2 under 2 club! Baby boy #2, coming this September!!” Combs writes alongside the post, revealing that their baby number two will be due in the fall of 2023.
Luke Combs is currently on the road as part of his massive 2023 World Tour. The trek kicked off on Saturday (March 25) following the release of his current album, Gettin’ Old. Combs’ tour is scheduled to wrap up on Oct. 19 at the O2 Arena in London and features a line of supporting acts, including Riley Green, Lainey Wilson, Flatland Cavalry, Brent Cobb, Cody Johnson, and Lane Pittman.
