Lane Pittman: Life On The Road With Luke Combs

Now, it’s not every day a 17-year-old goes on tour with Luke Combs (and Cody Johnson); most are sitting at home studying for a test or sitting at a school desk. I’ve been on the wildest ride of my life on this tour and want to give you a look behind the curtain and an insight into my thought process behind certain songs in my set.

I came into the tour with little to no expectations about what it was going to be like, and anything I had thought was blown out of the water. Walking into Spark Arena in Auckland (the first stop on the tour and my first time overseas) was definitely an out-of-body experience. It was at that moment it really sank in that I was on this tour, and in five hours, it was happening, so I’d better be ready. After our band huddle, we walked out to the side of the stage, the band walked on, and the lights went down.

As soon as I hit that stage, a sense of calm rushed over me. I felt like I belonged on the stage - obviously, there were nerves, which are to be expected when playing in an arena for the first time. I came out with a cover of Tate Stevens’ Holler If You’re With Me, which is a bit more rocking than the rest of the set; at a show of this magnitude, for an opener, I think it's important to grab the audience's attention right off the bat otherwise you risk not getting them at all.

Another stand out of our set was the acoustic ballad, Ain’t Too Much To Ask. This was the song in the set where I asked the audience to get out their torches on their phones; every night, it got brighter. Seeing the audience connect so much to a song that hasn’t even been released yet is an indescribable feeling.

We ended off the set with the new single Love In A Country Town and made sure to leave the audience with something to remember. After introducing my band, I’d throw out a few guitar picks and signed stubby coolers, as well as hand out a signed set list and a pair of signed drumsticks. 

The best part of the tour was, without a doubt, meeting all the people that work behind the scenes and making some long-lasting connections. I met Luke for the first time by chance; we both walked out of our dressing rooms at the same time and locked eyes. He walked over, and we started talking. I thanked him for the opportunity to tour with him and how grateful not only myself but my band was as well.

We met up again later in the tour and got to talk some more. I let my curiosity get the better of me and asked how he heard my audition tape for The Voice; he said, “I think it was [Chris] Kappy (Luke’s Manager) who played it for me one night after I’d got off stage, and I really liked it”. Hearing a man of that calibre say he liked my rendition of his song enough to play it on National Television was an honour for me. 

Both Cody and Luke’s entire bands and crews were nothing but loving and welcoming to my band, my mum and myself. I had the best three weeks of my life so far out on the road with these boys. This was only the beginning, and I’m super excited for what’s to come!

Lane Pittman’s latest single, Love In A Country Town, is available everywhere now.