CMHOFM To Open ‘Luke Combs: The Man I Am’ Exhibit In July

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The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum plans to open a new exhibit, “Luke Combs: The Man I Am,” on July 11. On display until June 2025, the exhibit will explore Combs’ life and career—from singing with his school choir in North Carolina to headlining stadiums around the world.

“Few artists have experienced the kind of meteoric rise and sustained success Luke Combs has since signing his first recording contract just two years after moving to Nashville,” says Kyle Young, CMHOFM CEO. “He has earned a career-defining string of No. 1 singles, set new benchmarks on the music charts, won more than a dozen major country music industry awards since 2016 and sold out stadiums around the world.”

Included with museum admission, “Luke Combs: The Man I Am” will consist of stage wear, tour memorabilia, manuscripts, set lists, instruments, photographs, posters, childhood memorabilia and more. Featured items include: the Martin GPCPA4 Sapele acoustic guitar that Combs used extensively during his early performances in 2012–2014, which he later gifted to his friend and fellow performer Adam Church; the playbill from his high school’s rendition of the musical Guys And Dolls, in which the multi-Platinum artist played the leading role of Nathan Detroit; CD-R of the three songs recorded for Combs’ debut EP, The Way She Rides, signed by the hitmaker and Church that was given to Church’s parents; the Columbia PFG shirt and Swamp Assassin baseball cap that Combs wore in the 2016 music video for “Hurricane”; the manuscript of “Six Feet Apart,” co-written by Combs, Brent Cobb and Rob Snyder on April 14, 2020; the Dale Earnhardt commemorative leather jacket Combs wore in honor of the late stock car racer and team owner when he performed at Daytona International Speedway prior to the start of the Nascar Daytona 500 on Feb. 14, 2021; his high school football jersey; a dollar bill Combs kept as a memento from his first paying gig at Boone’s Parthenon Café, where the cover charge was one dollar; and the Crosley Dansette portable record player he used to share his recording of “Beautiful Crazy” with his now wife, Nicole, for the first time.

“Once I decided I wanted to do music as a career, it didn’t matter if it was for 100 people or 1,000 people, I just wanted to be playing country music for anyone who would listen,” shares Combs. “If I could have enough fans to call it a job, I was set. Other than that, I never dreamed of being featured in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, much less having my own exhibit; that was beyond my wildest dreams. But honestly, it’s all a credit to my fans, family, songwriters and team. I have only made it to where I am today because of them, and this honor is one of my most humbling yet. At my core I love country music and this exhibit is as prestigious of an honor as it gets.”

In support of the exhibit, the country star and collaborators Ray Fulcher, James McNair, Drew Parker and Rob Williford will share stories and perform some of the tunes they’ve written together during a songwriters round in the museum’s CMA Theater on July 11. Tickets will be available this Friday (May 17) at 10 a.m. CT. For more information, click here.

Liza Anderson
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