Happy Birthday Luke Combs! ICYMI: #226 - Luke Combs on the Guy Who Told Him He'd Never Be An Artist  + Why He Hid Money in Bank Bags

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Speaker 1: Everybody. It's Luke combs birthday today. So we wanted to share this episode of the Bobby Cast that you might have missed back from twenty twenty, right before the world shut down. I mean, I remember Luke being at my house and sitting there, chatted it up, and right before we get record, We're like, man, nothing I'll ever stop us. But it did. But this is right before then. This is Luke. He just had come off SNL and his SNL debut. He talks about finding out he was a musical guest, I mean just a week and a half out and the guy at a record label who told him he needed to go back and write better songs, so let's do it. Luke Combs also stories behind his first seven songs. It all went number one. Happy birthday, Luke Combs. Here's Luke Combs a little incase you missed it, episode two sixty six of the Bobby Cast. All right, welcome to episode two twenty six with Luke Combs. Good to see it, Mikewise. I know you've been home in a while, so I appreciate I got a text from me, like I didn't know it's gonna take an hour to get here. Yeah, yeah, so he gets a decent way because you text me. I finished working out and I was like, oh, Luke, Luke's gonna be here, and like so I was throwing on clothes. You're like, he's gonna be here in like underwear's wet because I was tell off all the way and then I didn't realize you live so far away? Yeah, yeah, when did that happen for you? Did you? We actually able to buy some landing and yeah, it was probably just about a year ago. So I've been in my house just over a year now. So does it feel like home? It does? It does now for sure. It definitely didn't when we moved there, you know, just because it was, you know, so far and from town and all our friends you know, still living town, and it's it's just it took a little bit of getting used to, man, but I wouldn't want to be anywhere else now. Isn't Furniture the worst? Yes, because you just don't expect it to be that expensive. Not only that, but you think that like, Okay, well, if I'm gonna spend X amount on this couch, which I think is an insane amount, there should just be one that's there like, you have one in the store and it's gonna take you six months to get one to my house. Like, I just don't understand, especially for a nice one. Right. If you would think they could move the next one, right, you would think they would just be like, oh, let's just make this tomorrow. The things that I buy that are frustrating to me are furniture. Yeah, and again, I live in a pretty nice house for now, and but to fill it up with crap. I'm not even in most of my rooms, right, it's a lot if you are you in most of your owns? Nope, not at all. And I don't want to leave them empty because I'm OCD about that stuff. Right. And then they're like, this is how much a bad costs? Yeah, you can't. Refrigerators suck. Refrigerators are mine just broke recently, which was great. Car tires, it's something else that you go. You gotta have good ones. You get what you pay for. Oh, I've got a vehicle that's getting I'm they're now giving me a new vehicle because it's it's broken like four times since I've had it. Did you get a lemon like lemon law? That's the thing right where they just are like, Okay, well we're just gonna take the loss and just give you a new one. So the car that you bought been broken four times? Yeah, I mean it works, but it's just kind of user error. No, it's not a user error. No, it's it's great, and it's just every time, and it always happens right when I get right when I get home from like a long period of not being here and I haven't been a where to drive, and then I get in it like at the airport, and then it breaks like on the way home, Like you're just trying to get home, right, My TV does that with Netflix? Like, I already just get home. I've been I've been out forever. The only time I need to use it, it didn't work. So right, what's the office and just chilling in? It doesn't connect? Yes, So I don't want them to fix it anymore. Just just either send me a new one or give me a refund or something. So you did the last couple of days, You're in New York doing doing SNL. Well what was that like for you? Get in the call and I'm not sure how that call works. Yeah, do you go? I'd like to be on SNL think about us or not really. You know, it was like it was super last minute, and I think it always is. I think it's like because they booked the hosts. I mean, I'm not certain, but I feel like they booked the hosts three weeks out and then the musical act. I mean it was like a week and a half, so you didn't know for three or four months that you were going to be on SNL. Yeah. No, No, it was like I got called and it was like, Hey, we're doing SNL. That's in the week and a a half. And I was like, oh, okay. So we had to rehearsals scheduled, like we had rented out the space and like all the crews they're setting everything up and the band guys had already rehearsed a couple of days and then they had to up and go to New York like super last minutes. That's pretty cool though, right. It was awesome, man, it was really awesome. It was. It was definitely the coolest, coolest like filming saying experience that I've had. What's it like walking into that space for the first time, Because you do you rehearse pre a day before a couple of days. So we went in I mean two or three days. We were in New York for four days, and I can't imagine how long JJ was there. He was probably there for at least a week, maybe even the writing meetings. He was in all the writing meetings and changing the skits and everything like that. So it was really cool because I grew up watching sl with my dad and and so it was really neat. It was very surreal to be there and like see the set because it's so iconic, you know, and it was awesome. Man. I was you know, definitely do it again? Do you do the first because the first show they do is full, and then they'll end up moving and cutting sketches a bit, and then they just go again and do it again live. Yes, when you do the first one, you do the same two songs as you do. You run it just as you were going to run it. And how did you feel after basically the super address rehearsal. I felt really good about it. I mean, you know, Lauren came in and was like, hey, you're holding the mic too high on the first song and we can because of cameras. Yeah, and you can't because normally I'm holding it up here and he's like, well, I can't see your face if you're holding it up here, so you gotta just kind up. But that was the only note that he had. But other than that, it was great. Who did you ask to take pictures with? I didn't really ask. I'm not a big like, I'm not a big like take the picture backstage guy, you know, unless it kind of happens naturally. Obviously me and Jay J got a picture, but I mean, obviously I wanted a picture with Lauren because I've been a fan of his for a long time, and but that was it. You know. I've never been huge into the like unless it's a natural thing that happens, you know, Like I'm not a big like pop in the dressing room and be like what's up? You know. I mean I don't mind that at all. I actually love when people do that. But sometimes I just feel uncomfortable about it, you know, because you don't really know, Like I didn't know JJ was gonna be like super nice, awesome guy, you know. I mean I've never met him, so he might have been like, who's this guy? You know? What was Lauren Michael's like? He was awesome, man, he was super nice. He's definitely a boss. You can definitely tell he runs the show, but he was. He was very nice man, very normal, um and just had some great stories, you know. And then JJ, you know, obviously he's massive. My experience of the NFL players is they look big on TV, but then when you meet them, you're like, oh my god, they're so big like that. To me, yes, they're so much bigger. They look big on TV, but everyone on TV's big on the games, you know, so you don't really like if there's a guy that looks bigger than the rest of the guys, that guy's really big and so standing beside JJ, it was. It was definitely weird. I'm not a small guy, but he was just massive six ft. So when you did the promos, I was watching some of those promos because that's those are the iconic thing where they have Yeah, one of the cast members, the host and the musical artist. Like, as far as what I was able to see, that was one of the coolest things I got to see you do because I've just seen so many cool people do that over the years. Yeah, it was neat and they put eighty Brian on a like an Apple box because she was because she was like, I mean, she looked like a child, you know, beside us. They had her up on an apple box just so she was like in the frame, you know what I mean. It was. It was pretty wild. As you're doing the musical performance, are you at all able to just think about it? Like, can you get comfortably in place you're singing? You can be super present? Yeah? You were? I was, yeah, because I was like, we were only doing two songs, you know, and they're one at a time, and it's broken up, so I guess you really never get in like a groove like you would at a show. But I mean I've sang beer, you know, million times, so it's I was definitely comfortable doing that one. Loving on You was the song that they picked. You know, they were like, hey, we want we're looking for this out of it, so they picked that tune. How do you feel about that? It was great? I mean that was the one I was I guess least comfortable with, you know what I said. I mean, I'm sanging that one a thousand times too, But it was you always get that thought like because I never really think about it when we're doing the show. I'm not like, oh, what if I mess up or what if I do this? And then I was like, you know, there's a chance that I could just blow it, you know, like I mean, I usually don't think that way, but S and L is kind of a huge opportunity. So I was like, and wouldn't it just be ironic, you know, if I just got too comfortable and then on the biggest TV thing that I've done today, I just let my guard down a little bit too much. But luckily that didn't happen. So, yeah, we get in one of these settings that's really big or cool and it's just the sound just isn't working right, like maybe an ears out or you're like, god, dang, I gotta you just have to go, and not really know until you look back at the feedback at hout went. So my stage right guitar players ears were out for beer, and so they were great the whole time, you know, for every I mean we must have ran it five or six times over the course of a few days, you know, and after as we were doing rehearsals and stuff and sound checks, and the ears were really really great. And then for some reason during beer, which was the second song, so we had already done one of the songs on television where his ears were working and they just didn't work. So it sounded good though, So did you have floor monitors and ears or just ears just ears? Yeah? If he has no ears, he has nothing. Yeah, So what then is he looking at visual cues? I mean, how is this working where a guitar player with no ears is still able to play guitar? I guess it would just be muscle memory at that point, you know, I mean, because you know, you just played it so many times that you know what's going on and and and you know, luckily you killed it so well. Congratulations, thank you. It was very cool. Are you able to kind of see what's happening to your career or is it moving so fast that sometimes you're able to take a peek? Like what is it that you're able to Yeah, it's it's hard to understand, you know, because you know, I spend most of my time, you know, at home. If I'm not doing something like SNL, you know, it's like I just try to not think about it because it can be really overwhelming to under like try to understand the scope of it. So I just try to not I guess not not think about it, but I try to not bathe in it, you know, as much as I guess I could. But it's it's crazy, you know. I I don't think I really fully understand. Honestly, it's been quite rapid even to watch it happen for you and know you as is happening. It's it's been rapid to watch, you know, the ascension of Luke Combs whatever that is at this point. Yeah, And so you know, as I'm watching kind of one hit after another, and it's not even about the hits. It's also the people, the fan base that that grows at the same time, because I've seen a lot of people with hits, Yeah, but they're not selling out arenas. Yeah, what do you credit that too? I mean, we try to, you know, do everything we can to to make sure we take care of the people that come to the shows. Um, you know, and I'm sure everybody says that, you know, but our fan club is free, always has been, always will be. Um. You know, I I don't see really any real need to monetize that, you know. I think, you know, letting those people know that you appreciate them enough to to do something like that form and give them for the first chance of tickets and give them the chance to do that without charging them to do that. I think can invoke a little bit of loyalty as well, because they're like, oh, this guy's not trying to get something out of me at every step, you know. You know, the t shirts are as reasonably priced as they can possibly be. They're still expensive in my opinion, but there's not really there's not I can't go any lower. So we we're constantly doing things like that. The tickets to the tour. They're the last tour where the cheapest ticket was twenty five dollars and the most expensive ticket was one hundred dollars, And so I think keeping ticket prices were reasonable. Obviously that you know, we do the Ticketmaster Verified program, which I don't think anybody in the genre besides Church does, to screen to make sure that it's actual fans getting the tickets. And then we have to go back and provoke tickets for people who we think are scalpers, and and there is a form they can fill out if their tickets are revoked, and they can kind of prove that they're actually a fan and get their tickets back and we can resell those tickets to actual fans. Sure, the Luke Combs tattoo, they do the picture of my inner thigh tattoos. Yes, Luke Combs, they have to show the tattoos. Yeah, and uh but no we I think it's just little things. It's a lot of little things that require a lot of work from a lot of people. But it's paid off. You know. As I talked about how rapidly you've risen, it's it's been a bit odd to have you blow up so quick where I feel like a lot of people don't know young you yeause you it happened so fast. You didn't have a lot of time to tell your full story all the time before it was like you got so big where you couldn't put yourself everywhere. Yeah, yeah, definitely. It's it has just been insane, you know. And it's it's felt that way since the start, like everything just kind of happened in such quick succession, and it was always I guess things were always just trending upwards. You know. I think a lot of the times when people start out and I can't speak from experience, I guess I'm just going off my buddies have told me. But you start going up and something great happens, and then you kind of hit a plateau for a year or two years, and then you start and then you get a song that kind of gets you back on the elevator, the escalator back up, and then you plateau for a little bit, and then that kind of keeps going until you're ultimately at the top of the thing. So mine just seemed to go like that the whole time. You know, I'm not really sure why. It's just the way that the chips fell. I guess what were you like as a kid. Let's go back to like seven or eight years old? Yeah, because I felt like even knowing you early on in this run, we didn't get to a lot of like what was Holmes like as a kid? But what was home like? At six, seven, eight years old? Home was really great. I was living in Charlotte at that time. I went to Huntersville Elementary School. I was an only child. Both my parents worked full time. My mom worked as a mortgage processing officer, so she wasn't a mortgage officer, but she was kind of like the assistant to all the mortgage officers within a certain branch of at that at that time. It was First Union is where she worked at that time. And your dad and my dad, um back then he was he was kind of owned his own like landscaping business. And I don't mean like a cool, big landscaping business. I mean like it was just him and his tools and then he would mow your grass and weed eat and stuff like that, and that's kind. And he also did maintenance at a at a different bank in downtown Charlotte, and that's what he did when we moved to Ashville as well. Did you learn a lot from your dad as far as if he's using his hands and you know, mowing weed eating, which is what I did for many of those times? Like yeah, could you go and do that now? And do you do that now on your land? And like you could you could actually use your hands, and because I don't, you know, I would I would like to light everybody and say that I'm you know then I'm out there, you know, cutting down trees with an axe, but I'm not, Um, I don't have the time right now to do those? Could I could teach you? Yeah? Yeah, how to how to string a weed eater? Yes? I mean I grew up, you know, doing all those things out of necessity, you know, because there were a lot of times when you know, Dad had something even more you know, annoyingly necessary to do than mow the grass or weed eat. So sorry, that's my phone? Oh is that many cool? No? I have the is it? While? Yeah, you know the tile is so I have one in my wallet, so it's probably just I probably I don't know what that. What's the tile? It's like a thing. So I keep on in my wall. Show you here. So I got my wallet, handy dandy wallet. Your wallet zips. It zips because somebody stole my credit card one time. So this is one of those like r F I D things. So it's this guy, right. It just looks like a credit card, but it's kind I don't like a find my iPhone for my wallet. So but if I press this, then I should it. Then I know where my phone is. And this this looks like a credit card, but you push it, yeah, and then it makes your phone ring, yeah, and so like, but I can also if I if I get on my app, I can make my wallet ring with this, so they can find each other. Yes, and I lose your stuff a lot with this, No, I just I've done. I like, I have one in my passport, I have one on my car keys, um and just various like I keep I keep them in my guitar cases too, And so everyone that has one of these, this thing is constantly on bluetooth. So if I were to lose it and you had one and you were near it, it would say, hey, this thing just picked up Bluetooth on this guy's phone, and so they're I'd be like, oh, well, it's over there somewhere. It's close to where that guy was, and so it would report every step that it's made on its journey of like going by people who picked it up. So I originally got them from my guitars. So I was like, well, if someone ever steals my guitar, I would at least have some way to like track it, because there it would be, is hidden in the case, you know, so I don't steal my guitars if you're out there. It just it was nothing huge. It was like, you know, my business manager was like, hey, did you spend eight hundred dollars at Ace Hardware in Iowa or something? And I was like no, And so essentially I was just somewhere and people have those skimmers. And actually it was in New York City. I was I went to the Nike store in New York City probably last year, and then I went to the Adidas store. And my business manager was like, Hey, did you just buy six hundred dollars worth of shoes at the Nike store and then six hundred dollars worth of shoes at the Adidas store? And I didn't. I didn't buy anything at the stores. But someone in the store had skimmed my wallet while I was in there, and then they were in there buying shit, like literally when I was in there. So they skimmed your walt You didn't stick your card in a skimmer. They they somehow magnetize it. They can magnetize it without even touching it. Now they can just I've never heard of that. Yeah, it's pretty wild. And so because of them, you have a zip wallet. Yeah, so this thing has stuff all in the wallet to keep the magnetic stuff from being able to go through it. Is your WiFi protected at your house? Like super? Oh yeah, man, when where did this all come from? But I mean, by the way, great and healthy Amy, my coach's husband is you know, super military, Like, hey, you don't know what they're like, he's don't cover your whole Yeah, he's that guy. I'm not that necessarily that he's that guy because he's seen it and you better cover everything. It does happen though, And I think you know, like when you're dealing in intellectual property, you know, which is whether you're writing songs or composing things or writing a book or you know, if someone were to have access to your Internet, I mean, they could steal all of your songs, your writings, whatever you're keeping on your in your cloud or whatever it is. I'm not really sure how that stuff works. But who tipped you off to do that? Or did something bad happen to you? Nothing bad happened to me to get tipped off about it. I had just been like, well, hey, man, like I can afford to do that, so like I should probably do it, Like that would be a safe thing to just to do it. And it's not insanely expensive or anything. Um, it's just like a series of firewalls. I'm just saying firewalls, Like I know what that is, by the way, and we're just question that just sounds like the thing that it should be. So and they sound scary. So I was talking to Ronnie Dunne. Him and I become pretty good buzz in the last six months or so. Yeah, and he and I didn't know this story, but he credits you with pretty much making that whole reboot album for them happen. Yeah, I've heard that. So here is a little bit of a brand New Man with Luke and Brooks and done. Here you go. So how did this come together? In your mind? The story I've heard is, so their manager, Clarence Spalding is friends with my manager, Cappy, the guy that cried on the show, and we were at a show I believe it was at Joe's Bar in Chicago, probably three years ago or so. We had a show there and Clarence had come or he was in town or something, and it had linked up with Cappy. Cappy was there and he came and watched the show and stuff, and we did that cover a Brand New Man, and I talked about in the set how much Brooks and Doune meant to me and how much they had influenced my career. And I had no idea what Clarence was there, but I had just been doing that every night, like, hey, I grew up listen to these guys. They really shaped the music that I want to make and things that I want to do. And I guess that kind of sparked the idea within him, like, hey, there's probably a lot out of other artists around my age that grew up listening to Brooks and dunn Um which is you know which happened to be the truth. If you were to Mount Rushmore artists, which is four and we'll do we'll do fun, we'll do five total, five of your life, they have to country. They can they can be freaking any they can be Mozart anyone. Yeah, you get to Mount Rushmore because and as you think, I'll just kind of walk you that would put Garth John Mayer on mine. I'd put Ben Folds, I put so it can be, it can be from wherever you want. Okay, So who would be the first artist on your Mount Rushmore? Like of like influence or like you just you raw taln there no, not raw talent, but influence you your favorite? Probably Elton John, Okay, was where I would go first, for sure, Elton John. All Right, Billy Joel, are you a piano player? I'm not? Those are your first two. Yeah, they're so keys. There's there's just like just the songs are so great. I've always loved keys. I'm not smart enough to play piano, I don't think. Um, I've just been honest with myself about that. I've tried and it's just not there. You know, I'm not a big technical musician, um, which is why I'm just able to strum enough chords to write songs and play a couple of them at the show. But it would definitely be those guys, you know, Tom Petty, Tom Petty for sure, Brooks and Dunn would be on there for me. One spot left. That's tough. That's tough, man. That's hard, you know, because I you know, I did go four spots really quick. Um, I'm trying to think of who I just I mean, there were so many different phases of my music listening since since that age. UM. I would, Man, it's hard for me to go against an edge hearing at this at this stage, I just think the amount of work that he does, the size of the tours that he does, the quality of everything he puts out in the volume is just pretty staggering, and there's not really anybody doing much like that. Have you met. Let's just kind of go back to your first people. Have you met Elton John I have not. I'm gonna a low key flex here. He kissed me on the mouth once. That's awesome. It was the greatest. That's so cool. I was sitting next to him at a charity event. He was showing me pictures of his kid. He had just adopted this kid. Yeah, and he's like these in pictures some more and he's going up to play. It's like two hundred people there, and he's like all right, and he goes out the plane. He grabs in my head and just planting on my face. I was like, that's freaking amaze. You're like whatever, I'm in. I am, I'm in whatever you want whatever, Yeah, I'm in. I would have done the same thing. Have you Billy Joel? I have not meant Billy Joel Favorite Billy Joel song scenes from an Italian restaurant. Nice. Wow, that's my favorite Bility. That's how you know you're a hardcore Billy Joel fan. Yes, that because that song is it's all over the place. I mean, I feel like it's I feel like it was three different songs that he just kind of I think I think I've heard that story, but maybe I mean, I may be making that up. Don't quote me on that, but I've not meant Billy Joel. I would like to. I have a lot of friends that are big Billy Joel fans, and most of them picked this as their favorite. Now me, I'm a middle of the road. I've seen him through a four times sure, and I would always go with Listen if you if piano manage your favorite, which is one of mine, you're not as hardcore? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I love piano man, I love it. Yeah, but you're a hardcore. Like if you come to me and you say your favorite John Mayer song is Daughters, I'm like, you're not a hardcore m exactly. Like you can be a middle of the road John Mayoric exactly, But no real John Mayer fan picks Daughters or or bubble Dum tongue does not find you pick as Okay, So those two. Um, Tom Petty, have you seen the five hour documentary? I have not, dude, and I want to see it. You can't watch it in one setting obviously, And just have this like thing that hurts my hard a little bit about Tom Petty because I know we hated country music and that hurts me a lot. So somebody was in recently talking about oh Ronnie Dunn talking about him and Tom Petty because Tom Petty was like a was like a punk guy. Yeah. He talks about Tom Petty when he met him as being a guy guy who was playing punk music. Yeah. But I just think there is a a misunderstanding to a lot of people at what country music means, certainly because I think Tom Petty would be a country artist now. I agree with that statement, yes, because it's such a broad term now, and and to dislike something artistic because of a taste you have of it, I believe is unfair. It's like saying you don't like bread. It's such a huge thing. There's so many different car cheese, you know, which I'm currently vegan, which is horrible. But what do you mean current into that currently vegan. It's odd that someone just goes for a minute, I lost a bet. I lost a bet. It's it's a whole thing going I lost a bet and I'm given a charity a lot. You know, it's like a lifestyle. It is a thing. I mean, it's like it'll definitely be beneficial. You know who did you bet with my keys player? And what was your side of the bet? Though? Head? Okay, so it's it's this is the oddest, very oddest seed into a bet. So I'm a big Carolina Panthers fan, huge die hard. I was living in Charlotte, where was I in nineteen ninety six, cheering for the Panthers in the first year. Yeah, and he's a big Atlanta Falcons fan. So we played each other twice a year in the same division. Obviously, there's a lot of pride involved. At the time of the bet being made, the Panthers were five and two. I don't think they won another game. Was this pre Cam getting hurt? No, this is Kyle Allen had won three straight I think Cam was out in the second game or first game. Um. But Kyle Allen came in won three or four straight games. Um. And then I was like, oh, we're gonna smash the Falcons because they were two and eleven by the time we played them. They were two and eleven and and so I was like, and the Falcons just absolutely destroyed, like dismantled the Anthers, like beat us. I think it was like thirty four to seven or something. But of all the terms of a bet, he picked you being vegan if he won. Yes, yes, well I hadn't made that bet previously with Cappy. So with Panthers played the Cowboys and the Panthers won and Cappy had to shave his beard off or I had to go vegan. Luckily I won the vet the bet. But it's like to me, it's like there's nothing like really fun about like betting money on stuff. You know, why is everybody picking you to go vegan? Like that's two different people with the same bet. I think they see me in there, like this guy loves eating red meat and going hunting and doing which is a true statement, but I think it's something that like people think that I can't do, you know, like they're like, no way he can do that, And I'm like a super prideful guy. So I'm on, I'm only on day three. I'm having how long dift to go? Three months? Oh? You bet three months on a single game? Yeah? And what was his life if? Okay, so he cut off? What's happening here this bet? Well? So so he's balda but he has he can grow like the I call it the pap hap this circle the circle, so he keeps his head shaved and wears a hat. His bat was he had to grow his hair out for three months and couldn't wear a hat. So it was a very extreme. So it had to be like he had to match that with something that he felt was equally as extreme and better on one game, better on one game. We almost doubled down on the second game, which I'm glad we didn't because we lost that game too. Then what happened? You don't eat for three months, I just would have been gandhi and nothing. I think it would have been six months a vegan at that point. And have you noticed your body being any different? It's only been three days. I'm definitely not as tired sitting watch you become a vegan like like Rick Rubin vegan. That happened. That happened to my, uh my utility player. Are you just eating no vegan or you no belts you live in the lifestyle or what? No, I'm not living the lifestyle. I'm not living the like. No, like I'm I would go hunt tomorrow if it was hunting season, for sure. I'm definitely not buying into the like. You know, we usually send everybody home with the rack of ribs, but I guess we'll just man. You could do like a rack of like lentil or something like that would be great. I don't so we got on that front a funny bet though we went Tom Petty to veganism. Yeah, and again, if Tom Petty were around now and making new music, he would be on that rock getry Cusp definitely. And I think had you know as a kid, when you were singing songs, was it country music for you or was it a mix of a little like what was it in your mind that you wanted to sing because you were singing? I was singing, and it was when I was living in Charlotte, it was country and that was it was country, and like my parents were listening. So like my mom loved like Tom Petty, John Mellencamp, that kind of was the kind of stuff my mom loved. My dad loved led Zepp when the who I mean those were classic rock on the radio type live Yeah, but mostly listening to country radio, okay at that because my mom loved country too, she grew up listening to that as well. And so at that time, I was, you know, you mostly go around with your mom. When you're a young child, you know dad's working or he's out doing something on the weekend to make extra money. Kind of think that's what my dad was doing. So I spent a lot of time in the car with my mom, and so she was listening to country radio. So I listened to Vince Gill. I mean that. I mean that cassette tape was burned through a thousand times. Hard working Man Brooks and Dunne Tracy Chapman album from like I think it's from like nineteen eighty eight, is that, like give me one reason? Tracy Chapman No Fast Car, the first first album. And listen to that all the time with my dad. That's what kind of went me and my dad would listen. My dad has never been a huge country fan, except for Dwight Yoakum. Listened to a ton of Dwight Yoakum with my dad and and I was listening. And then when we moved from Charlotte to Asheville, it just kind of stopped, Like I just my mom just stopped listening to country music for whatever reason. That was. So when you're eight, you really don't have your own taste in or for music. Yet you're just kind of like, whatever's on is what I'm listening to. You're not going and buying albums and finding stuff that you like. You're just kind of listening to what your parents are listening to. And so my mom was just she stopped listening to country radio at that time. I'm not exactly sure why. And so I didn't really listen from then until my freshman year of college. I mean, so there was ten years where I just I didn't listen to country like at all. As you're a kid, what is a you're singing? Do you have an eight year old rath? Or did? When? Did it? Like when you no? I was, I was. I had a really high voice when I was little, So I was. I mean I was and Vince Gill, you know, I mean killing that stuff. Uh. And then I just got in I always liked singing. I always getting trouble in class for humming or you know, talking or or I was just constantly making noise. Uh. And then and then I found a you know, a channel for that through chorus class. And like the sixth grade, they made us they made us take every elective in the sixth grade, So you took like art and homeck and jim and and and chorus and band, and you took all of those classes U and then so when I went to pick my electives for the next year, I picked all my electives were always gim and chorus class. That was it. When you started singing, Was it duck to water for you? It was, But I didn't know it at the time. It was just kind of like I just liked doing it. But I didn't think. I thought it was just you don't understand that there's I just never thought of doing something like this, you know. It wasn't like I was the kid that was like, I'm gonna go be Garth Brooks, I'm gonna do this or that. I never had that intention in mind at a young age. And I know a lot of people who do you know they heard at Tricia Yearwood song and went, I'm gonna be Tricia Yearwood. That's what I want to do. I just never thought of that as an option. I was playing sports. I was horrible at sports, but I was playing sports. I like doing that, and I was just singing because it was something to do that I liked to do, you know. I was just I mean, at that point in time, truly just living my life. You know. I wasn't playing for the future at that time, and I didn't really know I was any good until like ninth grade, probably until I went to high school and my course teacher was like, hey, you're pretty good, you know, And I was like, cool, that's good because I like I like doing it, so it's cool that I'm good at it, you know, And then I sang. I was in course class every day of high school from ninth grade to time I graduated. You play football horribly? I was horrible? Really? Yeah? And what position do you play in? Defensive tackle? Did you like hitting? Loved hitting? Um? I didn't have I didn't really have the quickness, per se or the aggression. I wasn't like an aggressive guy, so but I loved hitting people. You weren't singing Vince Gill like I wasn't singing Vince Gill in high school in line, No, I wasn't. Um. I always you know, It's funny. I played rugby in college, which I was good at and I did enjoy a lot, But I loved I always wanted to. I was like a running back stuck in a offensive guards body. You know what I mean, like I always wanted to have the ball and run with the ball, but that was never an option. And the and my my high school team we ran we were one of the first teams to run the spread. And so obviously there's your high school football team. Yeah, you ran the spread, and for you in two thousand and probably five four or five. And you gotta you gotta be able to move if you're running the spread. Yeah, no doubt every musician, because even even the lineman, you got to get up and go. And so I wasn't in like in shape enough to be you know, I didn't have the endurance to to run with the offense because we had we had two running backs that ran sub for three forties. I mean they were just lightning fast, and so we were up and down the field a lot, I mean, thirty forty yard play. It was not something that was out of the ordinary for us. And so yeah, I was just not cut out for that either. You know, in a lot of teams we were playing, we're playing we're you know, we're running the wing tea and like the super antiquated offenses and stuff like that. So yeah, I was just I was just not cut out for that particular thing. Now, looking back in time, I would have I would have loved to play offensive line. It's one of my favorite most intriguing positions now and I think I would have been very good at that. Actually, Um but I was just I was just not because I didn't play when I was little. I started playing in high school. So all of my all of my teammates had been playing since they were seven or eight years old, you know. So by the time I was a senior, it was like there were guys who had been playing football for fourteen for fifteen years, and I had only been playing for three. So I was way behind the curve of you know, strength training and learning the game. And I just wanted to hit people. That was it. You go to Appalachian State and as you leave high school and you go to college. In your mind at that point, why are you going to college? I just thought that was what you did because I didn't want to go to work, I think, you know, but I had went to I actually went to a chorus camp at app in probably maybe eighth grade or ninth grade or something like that. For the summer. I was like one of those two week you go and stay in the dorms, and there's kids from all the different schools and everything. And I just fell in love with that place, you know, because I grew up in the mountains already, but that was way I mean, that's way in them as much in the mountains as you can be in North Carolina, kind of nestled in this little valley thing, and I just fell in love with the campus, and like the and the weather, you know, I like the cold, you know, I'm fine with being cold, and it's very cold and it snows a lot there, and I just I absolutely was enamored with that place. And ever since I went to that camp, I was like, that's where I'm going to go to college. I'm gonna go to school there. And I was not a very good student in high school. I've always been interested in learning things. I really enjoy that. I just was never interested in learning things that people wanted me to learn. So what were you doing in college for the most part, If obviously you're getting through because you didn't leave until and you left right before you graduated, right, which is so, and we'll get to that, But what were you doing in school? Were you just keeping the grades up so you could keep singing or where like why what was your motivating? It was like it was College was a big time for me of like, okay, how do you be three hundred pounds and get a girlfriend? That was what I spent most of my time trying to figure out. Did you have girls in college? No? No, I was definitely not a ladies man, you know, not because I didn't want to be. But in high school you don't exactly get judged on your great personality. So those were interesting times for me. But I mean that was what I did in college. Man. I hung out, I drank with my buddies. I didn't go to class a lot. I played rugby. I sang in an acapella group. My first year and a half of school, I pledged a fraternity and ended up quitting doing that before I became an initiated member. I did a bunch of stuff. Man, I just tried a bunch of stuff, you know. And I think that's what I'm thankful for in the college experience, because that's where I found out that this is what I was supposed to be doing. And you left early like you were closer graduating, right, Well, I was there for five years, so I didn't leave early, but you left right. I stayed late and I didn't graduate. Yeah. How many hours you think you need? Not even semester and a half yeah, not even four year? Yeah, but I could have done like a summer and a semester. But the problem was I always hated math and I always hated science. Um, I'm not good at not good at science, not good at math, um, And so I never What happened was I loved I was a major, and I changed my major from business. I started out at business and I was like, wait, I hate math, Why am I doing that? That's just something that I was like, Oh, you could probably get a good job doing business things, you know. So I tried that for like a year, and then I switched my major to criminal justice because do what in criminal justice? Near mind? I wanted to be a homicide detective is what I wanted to do. Still am very interested in that, and so I went balls to the wall in that major, and I really enjoyed that. So I'd liked go into my you know, forensic science class and my this and this and this class. But the things that I the twenty one hours I was short were all my math classes. All my science classes, so like basic, like your freshman year stuff. Never took any of them. I never took Stats one in Stats two, and then I never took chemistry or biology because I was like, this is just I don't want to do any of this stuff, you know. And so by the time I got to the end of my major, I kind of ran into this huge roadblock because I had two or three classes that I needed for my major and they were like, well, you can't take this class unless you have Stats one in Stats two, and you can't take them at the same time. So that's at least a year of school to take two classes. So I'd had to do Stats one Stats to biology or Chemistry one in biology or Chemistry two, and those were both prerequisites, and then I would have had to take the classes for the end of my major, and then I would have had to do my internship because I couldn't do my internship until I did the classes for the end of my major. And you've already done five years and I had already done yeah, it's like four Yeah, I'd already done like four and a half years. So I was like, I'm not staying here for another two and a half years in school. At least. I ended up living in Boone until I was twenty four before I moved to Nashville. But I was just like, man, I just I don't you know at that By that time, I was already playing music. Were you going back and forth from Boone to Nashville or did you when you came to Nashville? Was it you came to Nashville the first. I came to Nashville twice in those years, and that was two thousand and at the end of two thousand and thirteen, and then the summer of two thousand and fourteen when you came to the first time. Did you know you wanted to stay? Yeah? Oh yeah, because I had written a few songs, and so I came at the end of twenty thirteen and recorded the songs, and then I met had you know, through the internet, had met a couple of people. I was like, oh, I write songs with these guys. So I wrote a couple of songs when I was there, and then I got back and I was like, man, like, I got to play another trip. So I played another trip, wrote some more songs, and then on that trip and probably aprilish May of twenty fourteen is when I recorded she got the best to me? Can I get an outlaw and share if you want to? And then at that time after that, those came out in June, and I moved in September of that year of twenty fourteen. The tweet you posted what you said, I think the topic was tell me something about yourself that no one believe. And the gt of it was that you came to town and you had some songs and people were like, hey, they weren't good. And your old thing was don't let anyone let you stop chasing your dreams. Yeah, those meetings where you were rejected, are they vivid to you? The early meetings definitely. The one in the meeting in particular was with somebody It was, you know, they have like the artist like writer reps at like b and I. So I had a friend that had a rep there and I went in and I was like very excited because I had just moved to Nashville at this time and I didn't know anybody, you know, I knew a couple of writing buddies and was going out and playing a few writers rounds and writing songs every day. And because by that time. I was living off of those songs that I had put out the previous year, and I went in and it was kind of like this this person was like, we'll play me three songs. And I was like, oh cool, Like this person's gonna be like I'm gonna play these three songs and like they're gonna walk me into the best publishing thing and they're gonna be like this guy's great, Like how could you not love this guy? Give him a publishing deal? So I played Hurricane When It Rains in one Number Away, which were my first three number ones, and they were like, Okay, here's the deal. You gotta get better a songwright and you gotta write better songs and you're never gonna be an artist. So that's it. And I was like, and I wasn't like mad, do you know who said it? Yeah, but I'm not gonna I'm not gonna say it. I would never ask you to say it, but I'm just asking if you know who's that? Oh? I know? Yeah? Have you seen them since? Yeah? I've ran into them awkwardly at actually the bm My Awards. Do you think they remember telling you that? Or do you don't get it? Just someone that was coming through the churney to the system. I don't think so at all, which is fine, you know I have I have nothing against that person, you know what, because I get it. Man. I mean it's it's like if you look at it, would I would, I would equate it to at that level, you know, because you're not even screened at all. At that level, like any Tom Dick or Harry can walk in off the street pretty much to be am I and get one of those meetings. So I can't imagine the pressure of like, Okay, well, I've got six kids that moved to town yesterday that want to come in and they all think they're awesome, and I've got to be able to figure out which ones I think are good enough to go on to the next thing. And so I wasn't mad about it at all. I'm actually very thankful for that meeting because I did go out and feel like I wrote some of the best songs that I had ever written, because I was like, man, I gotta I gotta write more and do better, Like I'm not even close to as good as I need to be. And so I just kept my head down and I went and wrote a ton of songs, and then the kind of the rest is just kind of fell into place. I mean, I know that's, you know, summarizing a big chain of events, but that's kind of how it felt like. Got a few minutes left her. I wanted to run a couple of other things about you that I heard. First of all, a lot of folks come in myself included that worked retail because we kind of had to. Yep, you gotta pay the bills somehow as you're chasing your creative endeavor. Yes, and I worked at hobby lobby. Mike who was in Michael Hobby from Thousand Horses worked at the Buckle. Okay, you worked at isod I did? I did? How'd that go? I was not a great fit at izod um, but I had you know, I had as much fun with it as you could possibly have folding people's golf sweaters, you know. Um. It was in an outlet mall, like one of those like Tanger outlets or whatever they call it. They had one in Blowing Rock, which is right down the road from Boone, So it was I mean, it was pretty pretty miserable. If how long did you do that? I probably worked there for I mean close to a year, probably, I would think. And whenever you are walking past a table of shirts that are messy, does it bother you? And will you refold a shirt? No chance, no chance. But I'll tell you what I do. I do fold a mean shirt, you know, when I'm when I'm doing the laundry at home, which I'm sure people are spied. Do do laundry my fiance. It does handle the brunt of the laundry, um, but I do. I do chip in quite a bit, and you know, help fold stuff. And you know I'm not I'm not afraid to do laundry. I don't. I don't mind it at all. But you separate it, or do I If I wasn't in a committed relationship, I would throw it on. Yeah, But I do separate it now just because that's what. But now it's like her stuff's in there, which is the thing. Like mine are just old, like gross t shirts and jeans really, so I'm not too worried about them like shrinking or like. But now there's this whole like don't wash this thing with that thing, and don't dry this thing, but it's gotta be tumble dried, but don't put it in with this thing that has to be high heat and then some stuff is like cold water, and so it's I mean, it gets pretty matthey to me, you know. And we know you don't like, I don't left school because you didn't even take a laundry that was like year three and that was year three and I skipped aundry class, that's for sure. The bank bag I'm curious about to use to save the money in yep. So you went and bought one of those bank bags at Zips, Like it's kind of your wallet with the lock on it. Yeah, so what was that about? And where was this money coming from? You were sticking in the bag. So I had I had started playing shows and when Cappy moved to town after he started managing me, he had never managed anybody before. Um, you know, he kind of blew through his life savings like trying to build my career, and so he made a promise to me. He was like, hey, man, I'm not gonna take a commission until you're actually making enough money to like live off of. And so at the time, you know, the gigs were I mean, they could have been two hundred and fifty dollars a night. They could have been a thousand dollars a night, and those were a thousand dollars was really good, you know. And so we would go and do those gigs and excuse me, I would take, you know, t shirt money, whatever was left over. And and Cappy was great because he would always go settle the show. You know, he would run me through the statement every night and they here's what we got, and here's what we did, and here's the tickets and this and and there would always we were we were selling out everything, you know at that time, which is great on those club gigs because usually they'll they'll kick you back a pretty like sweet bonus and it's always cash. And so that's where the money was coming from, was that these sellout bonuses on these club shows. And so I would I was like, I remember getting to thinking I had like five or six thousand dollars in my apartment, you know, and I was like, man like, so I could just walk in here and like take this if they wanted to. So I had like a folder's can, and instead of putting just the money in there, I put it in the bank bag and then rolled the bank back up and put it in there. It's a back like behind my microwave on my counter. My microwave kind of sat like in a corner, so it was kind of there was that space behind it, yeah, because it was diagonal. Yeah, and so that's what that's what that's where the money was coming from. And that's what I did with it. That time I saw Cappy, he was in the Delta Lounge. I was walking through. I wasn't going of the Delta Lounge. We know kevin't know each other obviously, and he was on the phone and I just touched his show. I was like just saying high to him, not pulling off his phone, and he and he was talking about, um, some of your technology. He's on the phone talking about the shore. He's like yeah, he's like, and he goes, I'll call you back to him hang this, hangs up on him and just like how you doing, man? And I was like, you don't have to hang up a phone call. But it's such a testament to like how present minded that he always wants to be, Yeah, definitely, and just how giving of his time. And we sat there and talking and I was like, happy, why don't you get back on the phone and handle your business. I'm gonna go get like a one of these little fancy Delta chocolate bars, right, and then someone else walked in that I knew he did the same thing. It's really one of the sweetest guys. He is man and he um. He and I are very similar. I mean, people think he's my dad all the time. How'd you guys meet? We met? So his best friend from growing up. They went to high school together and then went to college together, joined the same fraternity as a guy by the name of Bradley Jordan uh And he books a ton of a ton of clubs in the Southeast as a promoter. He had a he used to own Peastree Tavern in Atlanta in the early like mid two thousands, like Luc Brian used to play there Swindel fgl That was kind of one of those big clubs where like when you went and played Atlanta and you were coming up you played Bradley's place U And when he eventually sold that, he started a company h called Peastree Entertainment, which he still runs, you know. And and so he books, you know, right now he's booking shows with like you know, Hardy Werega Wall and or Riley Green, like those kind of guys. And so Bradley was had booked me on one or two shows and then you know, obviously him having known Cappy his whole life, he knew that Cappy's ultimate goal was to always be a manager. He had just never found the right guy, or it wasn't the right time, or the stars didn't line up. And so he called Cappy and was like, hey, I got the guy. And so he showed up at my show at Zydeco in Birmingham and we talked and he was like, I live in Atlanta and all this, and I'm gonna move. And I was like, dude, this guy's fucking crazy, Like he's gonna like he's just gonna up and like walk away from his entire life to do this. And I was kind of like a little like apprehensive about it, you know, like I was like, am I getting involved with like some like sharky guy who's gonna come and like, because you always hear the stories like, well make sure who you do business with, because they're everyone in the music business is trying to you know, steal from you or get something out of you kind of thing. So I was like my thinking was like, man, you get one shot, you know, like, do I want to take my risk with this guy who I don't know, who's never managed anybody before, or do I want to try to get a proper management deal at a you know, at a big firm, or do this? And and so I met with a couple other managers, and you know, everybody had kind of passed on me in that situation too, And and Cappy's you know, we stayed in touch about things, and he sent me this huge email. I mean it was like five or six pages long, and I remember reading it. I was I was like reading it like in my car, and I had just come home from a ride or something. And and I remember and he had heard that I had met with some other manager type people, And essentially this was a six page letter of like why he was going to be the best manager, you know, for not only for me, but he wanted to become, you know, a great manager, and and this is how we're gonna do things, and this is why we're gonna do them, and this is why I believe in you, and this is why I'm willing to sacrifice everything for you, you know, to do this. And after I read it, I was like, man, there's nobody's going to care more about it than this guy, you know, so then it then it just we instant. I mean he up and moved. Like the next week was that. That was two thousand and fifteen, probably late fifteen. I would think I did fifteenth A great story, it is. Yeah, the last thing we're gonna do is walk through these number ones and just give me a couple of sentences about what they like when you hear them back, Like what was happening around the time that either you wrote it or number one? Like what story we'll start. We'll start with hurricane here you go? Here's that? When that plays? I mean, it just is a flood of like things were just really happening at that time, you know, And and that song was around it for you know, in my life at that time a long time. You know, it had been out for you know, by the time it went number one, it had been out for two years. And so I played that song in a lot of clubs, and and I just could I I can just feel the like the momentum when you play that song, because it's you know, I owe kind of everything to that song, you know, I mean, I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you, if it wasn't for that moment in time, you know. And I just remember, you know, playing all these shows and man, we're selling everything out and people were all these important you know, business people were coming out and we want to see the show and we want to talk to you about this, and and just excitement, I guess would be the word that I think of when that song comes to mind. All right, number two here is your second one one number away. That's just different, you know, it was. It was the most different thing that I had done at that time, especially when we wrote it. You know, I had never written to a track before, didn't know what that was, um, and it was just it was it was cool, man. It was kind of like I was like, man, this thing is just so cool. It's such a risk for me I felt at that time to put out, you know, and so made me and luckily it worked out. But that one is is definitely I would like risky, I think, is how I would felt. I felt about that one when it rains a poor yeah, man, I mean just I mean, I just think that's probably my It just makes me happy when I hear that song. Man. You know, I remember shooting the video and and uh and Charleston and uh, you know me and my uh you know now fiance had had just really got into the throes of our relationship at that time, and it was just really fun. That was just a really fun time for me. You know, that song brings back a lot of of really cool, fun memories for me. All Right, number four here she got the best of me? Why did you laugh right there? What what happened up there? Was? I mean, it's just that's full. It's like full circles the word I would use because I wrote that song in college. Um, I wrote it here in Nashville, but it was on one of my trips and it just the way it all came together was, um, you know, I wrote it with Rob Snyder and Channing Wilson at that time. They were both, you know, doing the revival thing together at Tin Roof, and a buddy of mine that I went to Nashville with had you know, kind of walked up to those guys and was like, Hey, let's write a song thing and and so they were like sure, man, you know, we're in town for a couple of days and they're like, oh, well, we can write tomorrow or whatever. Me and my buddy got super drunk that night at the Tin Roof and and you know, we played revival that night, and and so he called me in the morning and was like, hey, man, like, I'm too hungover to go to this right, will you go instead? And I was like sure, man, like I'll go right with these, you know, two complete stranger guys, you know. And so I went over to Rob's apartment. Me and Rob were kind of sitting there writing and this. I mean, Rob and Channing are both like big dudes. They're both taller than me, they're both even broader than I am. And and Channing walks out in this like bath towel, you know, He's got his long hair and his big beard and everything. And Rob was like, dude, come come get on this song with us. Man, I should come write this song with us. And he was like, man, I'm not feeling it, you know, And he said, well play, he said, dude, just just play him something. So I played night Moves on my guitar by Seeger and he was like, yeah, I'll come right with you, guys. And then so we wrote we wrote she Got the Best of Me that day and I ended up recording it in college when I'm still in college, putting it out, and then when it came time to record the deluxe version of the album, you know, Lynn was like, this song is just great and your fans love it at the shows, and I really think it deserves a chance to you know, to be recorded with the proper equipment and the proper proper band and and get a shot at being a single one. So it was definitely a full circle experience for that one, beautiful crazy. I mean definitely, my fiance comes to mind more than anything, and that song really just changed a lot for me. I mean it was seven week number one, which is crazy. I would have never imagine that that to you, that song to me put you on a whole different Like it's you have to have a massive song to actually make the jump. You can have eleven number one and sometimes you don't make the job, but if you get that one definer, yep, you can make a jump. I think for you, that's when it launched you up. And that's what I was thinking, is this is the one that took us from like, I mean, we had four number ones and things were awesome, and then it was all of a sudden, it was like next, it was the next gear after that song, you know. And you know, I think of obviously winning Song of the Year here recently, and you know, all the accolades and and and things. There's so many really positive, you know memories. I mean, I wouldn't be you know, I probably. I mean, I would like to think I would still be with my fiance without that song. But I mean, this is the song that I played for her, you know, after we weren't even officially dating yet when I wrote this song about her, and I remember playing it for like two days after I wrote it, and I was like so nervous. That's vulnerable there, because I was like, man, what if she thinks I'm just a total creep, like you know, because it was like, I mean we're hanging out. We were hanging out a good amount at that time, but it was still like, man, it was such a risk in my mind, like to play her that What did she do? She was working at BMI, No, what did she do when you played the song? Did she get emotional or did she Well? I played it smart because her one of her friends was there, and so I had actually bought her a record player as a gift, like a Crosley record player with like the legs and like its own little speaker and stuff, and so it had an ox chord jack and I plugged my phone in and played the work tape and her friend was in there, and her friend was like, oh my god, like this is just wow, you know, And so I was like, I know, if I can like hook the friend and the friend thinks it's sweet, she at least has to pretend like she likes it so that I'm not in this awkward situation where both like, well, we'll just stop hanging out now, because do you think I'm super weird? So it was she, but no, she loved it. And I mean she obviously loves that tune. All right, Bear never broke my heart. I don't just feel the live show on that one. Yeah, I mean, it's just like it just feels like, you know, it just feel like I can imagine what the environment would have been like a an ACDC concert, you know, like and not that that song sounds anything like an ACDC song, but it's the most rock and thing that we have, you know. It has those heavy like chugging guitars and and just it just feels like an arena rock like anthem song, and that's what it feels like every time we play it. And I think that song, you know, if Beautiful Crazy was important, I think beer is just as important because we followed Beautiful Crazy up, which was this very vulnerable, like low you know, finnel like violin kind of acoustic thing, and then it just polar opposite is this song and this song. You know, I think this gave us a jump too, because you know, a lot of and like you said, we did have hits, but a lot of the hits we're kind of like mid tempo, e Like, there wasn't that like kick you in the teeth thing in the set, and I think that song brought that to the table for us. And the last one before we go, even though I'm leaving the seventh number one in a row as we record this right now, this is the one multi week number one. Yeah, when you wrote this, how do you feel, I've man, this was a crazy right. So actually one of the guys I wrote Beautiful Crazy with White Drette. This was the first song that we wrote together, and me and him and a good friend of ours, Ray Fulter, wrote this together and it was one of those things. I love to get into a rite and just not go until I feel like it's perfect, and I feel like sometimes the Nashville environment can be we got three hours, We're walking out with a song. I don't care if it's terrible. I don't care if it's the best song that anybody's ever written. I just want to get it done and turn it into my publisher and get on with my life. You know, which is great if that's what you want to do. And I understand that, and I enjoy that sometimes too, but I have to go into it with a different thing because I'm writing it as something that could potentially be a humongous part of my life forever. You know, that song is never gonna go away. It's never not gonna have been at number one. I'm never not gonna play it every night. And so I love to go in and make sure that if I'm going to record something and I'm going to put it out there for people, that it's something that has the stamp of approval. And so that was a rite that took probably eight hours, seven or eight hours and one day, and we were in the little like we were in like the little office rooms at Southern Ground in the studio. We weren't in the studio, but there's a little spot next door where there's like, you know, just a little fluorescent bulb like offices. And Whyatt's son at that time was you know, getting ready to you know, he was getting to the age where he was going to be graduating from high school very soon. And that was his only a child at that time, and he was like, man, I want to write my son a song and let him know that I'm gonna be there for him no matter what, you know, like just because he's not living at home, he doesn't I don't want him to feel like he can't still call me or he can't still you know, be my son or ask for help if he needs it. And so that's how that song started. Uh and uh, man, we had trouble getting through it. You know, I'm lucky enough to still have my my parents in my life and so I haven't you know, had to deal with that you know, horrible day yet. But we were all, you know, very emotional, like you didn't sing in the work tape, like got a little choked up. I was like, man, this is like and I knew, like if that's happening to me, Like that's going to happen to a lot of people with that song. So um, that song is just you know, it's it's really powerful for a lot of folks. All right. See what you see is what you get towards Ashington McBride and Drew Parker is happening lots of festival dates. You and Eric Church are headlining Rock to South. You're torn with McGraw. I don't even know how you have a minute. It's like every day on your calendar there there's something on it. You know. That's what I call music. Seventy three Yeah, holy crap, man, it's crazy man, you know, but it's it's I just think, you know, you only get this chance, you know once, if you ever get it. And you know, I don't want to look back when I'm you know, sixty years old, you know, and and go man, I could have done more. I should have done more. I wish I would have done that, or I wish I would have worked harder, you know, because I don't want to lose this. You know. It's it's it's a special feeling, you know, to go on, man, people are really loving me right now. I'm hitting some kind of I'm hitting some kind of vain somehow, some way that maybe somebody else isn't doing, and that's a neat feeling. So I don't, you know, I'm not prepared to lose that, and I know and inevitably will come. There will be a time when, you know, the next guy that's really awesome will come along and go, l Combs, that guy's old news. You know. I was talking with in the last few days, a plus plus artist, just we're hanging out a little bit, and he had brought you up because that he was a plus plus still is massive, yeah, and he was confident. He was like, you know what, it's Luke Combs the time. Now Yeah, He's like, I had my time, and he goes, it's Luke Holms the time. She said, I'm still gonna do massive shows. But now it's Luke's time, and Luke's gonna have his time, and then hopefully Luke will look at the next person to go, yeah, you know what, I'm still gonna play big shows. Yeah, he goes, that's just how this works. And the people who don't, who are miserable, who don't embrace what they have when they have it, and what they had when they had it and roots for the guys that are coming next. Yeah, and you got to man, you know, because I've had a lot of really great experiences with with people here in town, with other artists who've said, man, you know you're gonna do this, and everybody's thing is always enjoy it while it's here. You know, do the thing that you go to the after party that you're too tired to go to go, you know, hang out with Ed Sheering or you know, any a cool opportunity you should go do that because you're not always going to have those opportunities. So um, that's something that I've always taken to heart. Now, I do enjoy a good nap sometimes, you know, it's just hard to pass up on that sometimes. But so yeah, I'm just trying to I'm just trying to do it the best I can. And uh, and you know, enjoy it. Well it's here. Well listen, I appreciate time. Likewise, just a big fan of you. Thank you. I think over your artistry, Like I got to know you a little bit before you had a bunch of s. Yeah, I always liked your honesty when you came. Thanks man, and and it's very often, so area is Luke Combs Episode two twenty six. Um, this thing's gonna be listen to forever. The single right now is does to me, but this one's gonna be around for years and years of the podcast. So whatever. His ninety fourth number one, and we'll have to do another one, another one. Good to see him, My Friend, episode two twenty six, So Luke Combs, there we go.