Particle Data Platform
Popcast

Luke Combs Interview! On Politics in Country Music, Body Image & Following Up ‘Fast Car’

2/26/20261 hr 16 min

The country superstar Luke Combs sits down with Joe and Jon ahead of the release of his sixth album, “The Way I Am.” Combs opens up about his journey to Nashville success (including “healthy competition” with Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan) and his mission to make huge hits again after spending the past couple years away from the spotlight. 

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Clips

Not Racist, Not Liberal
My Hardest Fight: Weight
Drunk at Ed’s, World Ends
Running My Own Race
Six Months Grammy Uncertainty
Pretty Womanned at Rolex Store

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Speaker 00:00

    We gave Times employees a preview of Crossplay from New York Times Games, and here's what they had to say. I can finally play with other people.

  2. John Caramanica· Host0:08

    I'm pretty competitive. It's fun to beat friends and coworkers.

  3. Speaker 00:11

    I have a J for 10 points.

  4. Joe Coscarelli· Host0:14

    I'm guessing Tanga is not a word. Let's see. Tanga is a word. Oh.

  5. Speaker 00:19

    As an English as a second language speaker, I like to learn new words. New York Times Game subscribers get full access to Crossplay, our first two-player word game. Subscribe now for a special offer on all of our games.

  6. Luke Combs· Guest0:32

    Dude, take a beer on the photo shoot. It'll be cool, dude. Like, you're out on the sidewalk, have seven or eight beers before you come on here. [laughs] You know what I mean? And then ask him, like, "Hey, what do you think about this other guy?"

  7. John Caramanica· Host0:41

    Yeah. Yeah.

  8. Luke Combs· Guest0:41

    Like, dude, don't do that to me.

  9. John Caramanica· Host0:42

    Yeah.

  10. Luke Combs· Guest0:42

    Man, I hate that so much.

  11. John Caramanica· Host0:43

    Yeah.

  12. Speaker 4· Soundbite0:44

    [singing] I've been gone for a little too long.

  13. John Caramanica· Host0:48

    Hey, guys.

  14. Luke Combs· Guest0:50

    Sure.

  15. John Caramanica· Host0:50

    Hi, everyone.

  16. Luke Combs· Guest0:51

    Hello.

  17. John Caramanica· Host0:51

    Welcome.

  18. Speaker 4· Soundbite0:52

    [singing] 'Cause I'm back in the saddle like some old cowboy. Don't worry where I've been. I'm back in the saddle again.

  19. John Caramanica· Host1:04

    Welcome to the New York Times Popcast, your Cherry Coke Zero never broke my heart of weekly cultural review. I'm John Caramonica and I'm the critic.

  20. Joe Coscarelli· Host1:11

    I'm Joe Coscarelli and I'm the reporter.

  21. Luke Combs· Guest1:14

    I'm Luke Combs and I'm on Popcast.

  22. John Caramanica· Host1:16

    Damn right.

  23. Joe Coscarelli· Host1:17

    [laughs] Luke Combs is here.

  24. Luke Combs· Guest1:19

    I'm here.

  25. John Caramanica· Host1:19

    Damn right.

  26. Joe Coscarelli· Host1:20

    You really are. Uh, Luke, thank you for being with us. Uh- Of course.

  27. Luke Combs· Guest1:23

    Thanks for having me.

  28. Joe Coscarelli· Host1:23

    Luke is the stadium filling country singer, uh, back after a quiet year-

We value your privacy

We use cookies to understand how you use our platform and to improve your experience. Click "Accept All" to consent, or "Decline non-essential" to opt out of non-essential cookies. Read our Privacy Policy.