Luke Combs Shares Message For Wife After Forgetting To Thank Her At CMA Awards: ‘You Know I Love You’
As the 55th Annual CMA Awards came to a close on Wednesday evening, a visibly shocked Luke Combs took to…

Luke Combs and Nicole Hocking; Photo Courtesy CMA
As the 55th Annual CMA Awards came to a close on Wednesday evening, a visibly shocked Luke Combs took to the stage to accept the night’s highest honor: Entertainer of the Year.
During his acceptance speech, the North Carolina native admitted he was “at a loss for words” after being presented with the trophy from one of his musical heroes, Alan Jackson.
Luuuuuke! Watch as @LukeCombs accepts the #CMAawards trophy for ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR for the first time! pic.twitter.com/1v3TOmShc8
— CMA Country Music (@CountryMusic) November 11, 2021
He went on to thank fans, his fellow artists and his team, but one person noticeably missing from his speech was his wife, Nicole Hocking Combs.
“I just want to thank everybody in this room,” he said while on stage. “The fans, every artist in this room. Every single person that was nominated for this award this year and every year before deserves to win this. I don’t deserve to win it, but I’m sure as hell glad that I did.”

Following the show, the Grand Ole Opry member reacted to forgetting to mention Nicole in an interview with Access.
“I did forget to thank my wife out there which, babe, I love you, you know I love you. I don’t even have to say it, you know I love you,” he gushed.
Combs admitted that he doesn’t pre-write his speeches. Instead, he prefers to live in the moment.
“I like the moment, like you wanna’ say just whatever comes to mind up there and I know that sometimes you probably say something stupid, laughable up there but like just like the genuine bewilderment for me up there,” he explained.

Combs shared that he had zero expectations to win the night’s top honor and gushed over his fellow nominees.
“I mean, everybody in that category is somebody that’s like Idol status, you know what I mean,” he said. “Like, you look up to a guy like Eric [Church], man, and his ability to hold a crowd and write a song and Chris [Stapleton], just one of the best songwriters of all time, and Carrie [Underwood]’s like the best voice ever and Miranda [Lambert]’s the most badass person on the planet.”
The fact that he’s the one who took home the honor is still mind-blowing.
“It just doesn’t make any sense to me. So, it’s just unreal,” the chart-topping star shared.

Prior to his big win, Combs debuted his new song, “Doin’ This.” Following the live debut, the track was released to streaming platforms worldwide.
“This song means a lot to me personally. Not to recite the lyrics, but for me, it’s truly about playing country music for a crowd, whether that’s 70 people or 70,000 people, and playing country music with my buddies in the band,” he shared in a statement. “It really doesn’t matter where we’re playing or how many people we’re playing for because it isn’t about the fame, the fortune, the name, or the glory. It’s about getting to make and play country music.”
The official “Doin’ This” music video also made its debut on Wednesday evening. Check it out HERE.
Lauren Jo Black, a University of Central Florida graduate, has immersed herself in the world of country music for over 15 years. In 2008, she co-founded CountryMusicIsLove, eventually selling it to a major record label in 2015. Following the rebranding of the website to Sounds Like Nashville, Black served as Editor-in-Chief for two and a half years. Currently, she assumes the role of Editor-in-Chief at Country Now and oversees Country Now’s content and digital footprint. Her extensive experience also encompasses her previous role as a Country Music Expert Writer for Answers.com and her work being featured on Forbes.com. She’s been spotlighted among Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. Black also spent time in front of the camera as host of Country Now Live, which brought live music directly to fans in 2021 when the majority of concerts were halted due to the pandemic. During this time, she hosted 24 weeks of live concerts via Country Now Live on Twitch with special guests such as Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Jordan Davis, Brett Young, and Jon Pardi. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of conducting interviews with some of the industry’s most prominent stars, including Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, and many others. Lauren Jo Black is a longtime member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.