Luke Combs Makes History

LUKE COMBS MAKES BILLBOARD TOP COUNTRY ALBUMS CHART HISTORY

FIRST ARTIST TO HAVE FIRST
TWO STUDIO ALBUMS SPEND 25 WEEKS OR MORE AT #1

            photo credit: David Bergman

July 14, 2020—ACM, CMA and CMT Award-winning artist Luke Combs makes history once again this week as the first artist ever to have their first two studio albums spend 25 weeks or more at #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart—breaking Taylor Swift’s previously held record at 24 weeks. The achievement comes as his acclaimed global #1 record, What You See Is What You Get, once again tops the chart this week, while his 2017 debut, This One’s For You, has spent 50 non-consecutive weeks at #1—tying the record for the longest reign atop the chart with Shania Twain’s Come On Over in 1997.

This accomplishment continues a series of groundbreaking and historic years for Combs, who is nominated in three categories at the 55th ACM Awards: Entertainer of the Year, Male Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for What You See Is What You Get. In celebration of the achievements, Combs will return to “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” this Thursday, July 16 performing his current single, “Lovin’ On You,” which is already top 20 and rising at country radio.

What You See Is What You Get—out now on River House Artists/Columbia Nashville (stream/purchase here)— debuted at #1 on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart as well as Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart this past November with 172,000 equivalent units sold and also enjoyed the largest streaming week ever for a country album with 74 million on-demand streams. It also achieved the biggest first week of album streams ever for a country artist on Apple Music and was the first country album ever to hit #1 on the platform’s U.S. overall albums chart, while also setting a new global record for first-week streams for a country album at Spotify and breaking the Amazon Music record for more first-week streams than any other country album debut. Continuing his record-breaking streak at country radio, Combs last single, “Does To Me” featuring Eric Church, recently spent two weeks at #1 on both the Billboard Country Airplay and Mediabase Country Aircheck charts making it his eighth-consecutive #1 single—a first on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.

Produced by Scott Moffatt, What You See Is What You Get features 17 songs including the five tracks previously released via The Prequel EP last summer. The EP debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart with all five tracks charting on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs Top 25—a feat not accomplished by any artist in 60 years since Johnny Cash in 1959. Adding to his landmark year, Combs’ debut album, This One’s For You, was recently certified RIAA Triple Platinum. The album was also the most-streamed country album of 2019. Moreover, several of Combs’ songs have also received RIAA certifications: 4x Platinum “Beautiful Crazy,” 4x Platinum “When It Rains It Pours,” 2x Platinum “She Got The Best of Me” and Platinum “Must’ve Never Met You.”

Additional notable achievements and recognitions:    

• Only country artist to perform on “Saturday Night Live” Season 45
• Awarded Male Vocalist of the Year and Song of the Year (“Beautiful Crazy”) at the
  53rd Annual CMA Awards
• Inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry last summer
• Awarded CMT Performance of the Year at the 2019 CMT Music Awards for his CMT
  Crossroads performance of “Beautiful Crazy” with Leon Bridges
• Awarded Top Country Artist, Top Country Male Artist and Top Country Album at the 2019 Billboard Music Awards
• Awarded New Male Artist of the Year at the 2019 ACM Awards
• Awarded Country Artist of the Year at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards
• Awarded New Artist of the Year at the 52nd Annual CMA Awards
• Nominated for Best New Artist at the 61st GRAMMY Awards
• Recipient of a CMA Triple Play Award for writing three #1 songs in a 12-month period
• First artist to simultaneously top all five Billboard country charts for multiple weeks: Top
  Country Albums, Hot Country Songs, Country Airplay, Country Streaming Songs and
  Country Digital Song Sales (dated March 9, March 30 and April 6)