Luke Combs is one of the biggest names in country music today. He has plenty of awards to back that up, including ACM Awards, CMA Awards, and multiple Grammy nominations.
But at the end of the day, he’s human just like anyone else and faces personal struggles too. For Luke, one of those struggles has been dealing with body image issues.
On Tuesday, February 24, the “Hurricane” singer appeared on The New York Times’ Podcast podcast, where he opened up about parts of his life he doesn’t usually talk about.
During the conversation, Luke got honest about his insecurities surrounding his appearance, specifically his weight, and revealed that he has worried that it could cost him certain opportunities.
“One of my biggest fears is like, man, maybe I don’t get a shot just ‘cause of the way I look,” Combs said. “You know what I mean? And like, that was a hard pill to swallow, because you can’t really change the way you look.”
He explained that the pressure to lose weight hadn’t come from anyone in his inner circle, even as his fame grew. It’s just something he deals with personally.
“I have always struggled with my weight. It bugs me a lot that I can’t figure it out,” Luke admitted, adding that he doesn’t want “life to be this life of like, ease and like, everything’s easy. I like when stuff’s hard.”
That’s why he’s never chosen to use weight loss medications like GLP-1 to slim down. For him, that simply isn’t an option he wants to pursue.
“That stuff scares me more than I would enjoy the benefits,” he said.
Then, he shared something that might surprise many fans. The singer admitted that he doesn’t feel like he’s ever truly done anything hard in his life.
“Like, I’m not out digging ditches, man,” Luke said. “It’s not that hard of a job,” he added refferring to his career as a country music star.
So, he doesn’t want to take any shortcuts when it comes to working through his body image issues. But, he also made it clear that he doesn’t judge anyone who chooses to go that route.
“No matter how hard I try, it’s just been like this impossible nut to crack for me. And I will [lose the weight], but I’m not going to do it the short way. And not that there’s anything wrong with that. That’s personal for you. I need to win, like, I need to beat myself.”
And to give him credit, Luke has lost weight over the years by changing his eating habits. In 2024, he told ABC News that he decided to go gluten-free.
He joked that it was “the least country thing I’ve ever said.”
When it comes down to it, Luke’s main goal is to be around as long as possible for his family. He wants to be healthy enough for his wife, Nicole, and their three sons: Tex, Beau, and their newest addition, Chet.
“Longevity is the goal,” he added. “Every day you get to spend with those guys is really fun and tough, and you need to be your best self to take care of them the way that you feel like they deserve to be taken care of.”