The Way I Am (Luke Combs album)

The Way I Am
Studio album by
Luke Combs
ReleasedMarch 20, 2026 (2026-03-20)
GenreCountry
Length73:13
Labels
Producers
Luke Combs chronology
Fathers & Sons
(2024)		 The Way I Am
(2026)
Singles from The Way I Am
  1. "Back in the Saddle"
    Released: July 28, 2025
  2. "Days Like These"
    Released: November 10, 2025
  3. "Sleepless in a Hotel Room"
    Released: January 26, 2026
  4. "Be By You"
    Released: May 5, 2026
  5. "Rethink Some Things"
    Released: July 13, 2026

The Way I Am is the sixth studio album by American country music singer Luke Combs. It was released on March 20, 2026, through Sony Music Nashville and Seven Ridges Records. Combs co-produced the album alongside Chip Matthews and Jonathan Singleton, who both have worked with Combs since his 2019 album, What You See Is What You Get.[1]

The album was preceded by the release of the singles "Back in the Saddle", which became Combs' 19th Billboard Country Airplay number one, "Days Like These", and "Sleepless in a Hotel Room", which became his 20th Billboard Country Airplay number one. "Be By You" was shipped to radio in May after the album's release. "Rethink Some Things" was released to country radio in July as the fifth single.[2] It reached the top ten in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, United States, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, and Norway.

Release and promotion

Combs released the debut single, "Back in the Saddle", on July 25, 2025, along with the accompanying music video, which was directed by Tyler Adams. The music video features NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Richard Petty.[3] In a short Instagram video posted the same day by Combs promoting this release, he teased "so much more music coming up".[4]

On September 30, 2025, Combs announced the release of "The Prequel", featuring three new songs from the new album, including the album's second single, "Days Like These", to be released on October 3, 2025. Combs confirmed these songs would be on his upcoming album to be released in early 2026 and also teased a new tour, which would be named after his song, "My Kinda Saturday Night".[5] On October 9, 2025, Combs officially announced his My Kinda Saturday Night Tour, which began on March 21, 2026, in Paradise, Nevada, at Allegiant Stadium and is set to conclude on August 2, 2026, in London, at Wembley Stadium.[6][7]

On December 5, 2025, Combs released a new promotional single titled "Giving Her Away".[8]

Combs officially announced The Way I Am and its March 20, 2026 release date on January 7, 2026, alongside the release of a promotional single, "Sleepless in a Hotel Room".[9][10]

"Be By You" was released on February 13, 2026, as the seventh promotional single from the album, which was sent to country radio on May 5, 2026, as the album's fourth single.[11] Alongside the song's release in February, Combs announced the album's track list.[12] On March 13, 2026, one week before the album's release, "I Ain't No Cowboy", the album's eighth promotional single, was released.[13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic70/100[14]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarHalf star[15]
Country Central8.4/10[16]
Hot Press7.5/10[17]
The Irish TimesStarStar[18]
MojoStarStarStar[19]
PasteC+[20]
Pitchfork7/10[21]
Rolling StoneStarStarStarHalf star[22]
StereoboardStarStarStar[23]
Uncut9/10[24]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, The Way I Am received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 from 6 critic scores.[14]

James Christopher Monger of AllMusic gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five as he described the album as one that "crystallizes that primal need for grounding via an assured set of songs rooted in themes of family, gratitude, mental health, and retaining authenticity amid the chaos of fame," while highlighting notable tracks like "Days Like These", "Sleepless in a Hotel Room", and "Back in the Saddle".[15] Aishwarya Rajan of Country Central rated the album 8.4 out of ten, calling The Way I Am "deeply personal" and "worth listening to over and over again".[16] Elaine Rand of Hot Press praised Combs' ability to be an "everyman", specifically mentioning his ability to portray himself as "every man, such as a husband-to-be at the alter, a jilted ex, a new father, [and] an inmate behind bards".[17]

In one of the more negative reviews, Ed Power of The Irish Times rated the album two stars out of five as he compared the project to the soulless inner workings of an AI bot while stating his music "feels about as authentic as a cowboy hat bought at the airport duty-free".[18] In a similar vein, Andy Fyfe of Mojo gave the album three stars out of five and criticized some of the tracks for verging on the edge of "pure [porn]".[19] Ethan Beck of Paste gave the album a C+ and praised Combs for not having any bad songs, but heavily criticized the album's 22-track length, stating "The Way I Am is a reminder of how helpful an editor can be. It is simply too much Luke Combs to know what to do with".[20]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Pitchfork gave the album a seven out of ten, and while he critiqued the album's length, he also stated that "it seems churlish to complain about too much of a good thing". He also praised that any given song is "sharply crafted and unpretentious" and that The Way I Am isn't a comeback, but more of a demonstration of his strengths.[21] Jonathan Bernstein of Rolling Stone gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five and praised Combs' ability to deliver many different facets of his music.[22] Jack Press of Stereoboard gave the same score as Rolling Stone, and like Beck of Paste, criticized the album's lack of editing and length, but praised the number of catchy tracks.[23]

Melinda Newman and Jessica Nicholson of Billboard ranked "Miss You Here" as the album's worst song, and the lead single, "Back in the Saddle", as the album's best song.[25]

Commercial performance

The Way I Am debuted atop the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and number two on the Billboard 200 for the week dated April 4, 2026,[26] with 101,000 equivalent album units earned in the United States.[27] The album also featured 14 entries on the Billboard Hot Country Songs, including all of the album's already released songs, with the highest new song, "Rethink Some Things", reaching number 11.[27]

The Way I Am marked Combs' seventh top-ten record on the Billboard 200 chart.[28]

Track listing

The Way I Am track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Back in the Saddle"
3:33
2."My Kinda Saturday Night"
2:45
3."Days Like These"
3:41
4."15 Minutes"
  • Combs
  • Trey Pendley
  • Rob Pennington
  • Grant Vogel
3:35
5."Alcohol of Fame"
  • Combs
  • Dalton Dover
  • D. Isbell
  • Reid Isbell
3:25
6."Daytona 499"
3:03
7."The Way I Am"
4:08
8."Wish Upon a Whiskey"
  • Combs
  • D. Isbell
  • Parker
3:51
9."Soon As I Get Home"
3:29
10."Rethink Some Things"
2:45
11."Giving Her Away"
  • Gary Garris
  • Josh Mirenda
  • Josh Phillips
3:33
12."Seeing Someone"
3:27
13."Sleepless in a Hotel Room"
  • Combs
  • Montana
  • Singleton
2:57
14."I Ain't No Cowboy"
3:13
15."Ever Mine" (featuring Alison Krauss)
3:38
16."Can't Tell Me I'm Wrong"
  • Combs
  • Fulcher
  • Pete Good
  • Lydia Vaughan
3:09
17."Miss You Here"
  • Combs
  • Thomas Archer
  • D. Isbell
  • Ben Stennis
3:04
18."Tell 'Em About Tonight"
  • Combs
  • Dylan
  • Fulcher
  • James McNair
3:41
19."Be By You"
  • Dan Alley
  • Sam Banks
  • Nick Walsh
3:17
20."The Me Part of You"
  • Combs
  • Jason Gantt
  • D. Isbell
  • R. Isbell
3:14
21."Rich Man"
3:11
22."A Man Was Born"
  • Combs
  • Archer
  • Fulcher
  • Jordan Rowe
  • Tyler
2:34
Total length:73:13

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[29]

  • Luke Combs – lead vocals, production
  • Chip Matthews – production, mixing, digital editing (all tracks); background vocals (tracks 1–14, 16–22), additional engineering (1, 2, 4–22),percussion (1, 2, 4, 5, 8–14, 17–21), electric guitar (1, 4, 10, 11, 13, 18, 19); acoustic guitar, engineering (3); baritone guitar (10)
  • Jonathan Singleton – production (all tracks), background vocals (1–14, 16–22), electric guitar (1, 2, 10, 12, 13, 18–20, 22), percussion (1, 19), acoustic guitar (3)
  • Steve Blackmon – engineering (1, 2, 4–22), digital editing (all tracks)
  • Chris Vanoverberghe – engineering assistance (1, 2, 4–22)
  • Michael Proctor – digital editing
  • Benny Quinn – mastering
  • Jerry Roe – drums (1, 2, 4–22), percussion (1, 2, 4–8, 10, 11, 20, 21)
  • Steve Mackey – bass (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9–19)
  • Rob McNelley – electric guitar (1, 2, 4–22), baritone guitar (14)
  • Sol Philcox-Littlefield – electric guitar (1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 12, 16)
  • Todd Lombardo – resonator guitar (1), acoustic guitar (2, 5–10, 12, 14, 16, 20–22), 12-string guitar (21)
  • Dave Cohen – organ, piano (1, 2, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12); keyboards (16)
  • Bryan Sutton – acoustic guitar (4, 11, 13, 15, 17–19), resonator guitar (13); banjo, mandolin (15)
  • Jim "Moose" Brown – keyboards (4), organ (11, 13–15, 17–19), piano (14, 15, 19)
  • Bobby Terry – pedal steel guitar (4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 19, 21), electric guitar (17, 18, 20), slide guitar (17)
  • Matt Maxwell – bass (6, 8, 20–22)
  • Gordon Mote – organ (6, 8, 20–22), piano (6, 8, 21, 22), Wurlitzer piano (21)
  • Kurt Ozan – pedal steel guitar (7)
  • Joey Landreth – electric guitar (9)
  • Alison Krauss – background vocals, fiddle (15)
  • Rose Hutcheson – production management
  • Scott Johnson – production management

Charts

Chart performance for The Way I Am
Chart (2026) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[30] 3
Australian Country Albums (ARIA)[31] 1
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[32]57
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[33]156
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[34]2
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[35]18
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[36]77
Irish Albums (Official Charts)[37]8
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[38] 4
Norwegian Albums (IFPI Norge)[39] 10
Scottish Albums (Official Charts)[40]2
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[41] 46
UK Albums (Official Charts)[42]4
UK Country Albums (Official Charts)[43]1
US Billboard 200[44]2
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[45]1

Certifications and sales

Certifications for "The Way I Am"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[46] 2× Platinum 160,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[47] Silver 60,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ↑ Newman, Melinda (January 7, 2026). "Luke Combs Announces New Album The Way I Am: "I'm Really Proud of This Record"". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  2. ↑ "U.S. Radio Updater (@USRadioUpdater) on X". X (formerly Twitter). 2026-07-13. Retrieved 2026-07-14.
  3. ↑ Black, Lauren Jo (July 25, 2025). "Luke Combs Saddles Up for a Major Comeback with New Single "Back in the Saddle"". Country Now. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  4. ↑ Crabtree, Mary Claire (July 17, 2025). "Luke Combs Announces New Single "Back in the Saddle," Is Dropping Soon". Whiskey Riff. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  5. ↑ Hopkins, Megan (September 30, 2025). "Luke Combs My Kinda Saturday Night Tour Incoming". CountryTown. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  6. ↑ Sink, Lauryn (October 9, 2025). "Luke Combs Slates 2026 'My Kinda Saturday Night Tour'". MusicRow. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  7. ↑ Kaufman, Gil (October 9, 2025). "Luke Combs Announces 2026 Dates For My Kinda Saturday Night Stadium Tour". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  8. ↑ Stickler, Jon (December 5, 2025). "Luke Combs Releases New Song "Giving Her Away"". Stereoboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  9. ↑ Gawley, Paige (February 17, 2026). "Luke Combs Announces Release Date for New Album, The Way I Am". American Songwriter. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  10. ↑ Dukes, Billy (January 7, 2026). "Luke Combs Announces Album + "Sleepless in a Hotel Room"". Taste of Country. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Country Aircheck Weekly" (PDF). Country Aircheck (1009): 17. April 27, 2026. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  12. ↑ Sink, Lauryn (February 13, 2026). "Luke Combs Unveils The Way I Am Track List". MusicRow. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  13. ↑ Young, Casey (March 13, 2026). "Luke Combs Releases Long-Awaited "I Ain't No Cowboy," Co-Written By Cody Johnson". Whiskey Riff. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  14. 1 2 "The Way I Am by Luke Combs Reviews and Tracks – Metacritic". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. n.d. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  15. 1 2 Monger, James Christopher. "The Way I Am - Luke Combs : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  16. 1 2 Rajan, Aishwarya (March 20, 2026). "Luke Combs, The Way I Am – Album Review". Country Central. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  17. 1 2 Rand, Elaine (March 24, 2026). "Album Review: Luke Combs, The Way I Am". Hot Press. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  18. 1 2 Power, Ed (March 24, 2026). "Luke Combs: The Way I Am review – Everydude cliches mixed into the sorriest country-rock schmaltz". The Irish Times. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  19. 1 2 Fyfe, Andy (March 2026). "The Way I Am Review". Mojo. p. 86. Retrieved June 13, 2026 – via Metacritic.
  20. 1 2 Beck, Ethan (March 20, 2026). "Luke Combs' hit formula shows cracks on The Way I Am". Paste. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  21. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (March 20, 2026). "Luke Combs The Way I Am". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  22. 1 2 Bernstein, Jonathan (March 24, 2026). "Luke Combs Contains Multitudes on The Way I Am". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  23. 1 2 Press, Jack (March 25, 2026). "Luke Combs - The Way I Am (Album Review)". Stereoboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  24. ↑ Mueller, Andrrew (April 2026). "The Way I Am Review". Uncut. p. 29. Retrieved June 13, 2026 – via Metacritic.
  25. ↑ Newman, Melinda; Nicholson, Jessica (March 20, 2026). "Luke Combs' The Way I Am: All 22 Tracks Ranked". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  26. ↑ Sink, Lauryn (March 31, 2026). "Luke Combs' The Way I Am Debuts at No. 1 On Billboard Top Country Albums". MusicRow. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  27. 1 2 Punuell, Russ (March 31, 2026). "Luke Combs' The Way I Am Debuts at No. 1 on Top Country Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  28. ↑ Kelly, Brennan (March 30, 2026). "Luke Combs' The Way I Am Debuts at #1 On Billboard's Top Country Albums Chart, #2 All-Genre". Whiskey Riff. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  29. ↑ "The Way I Am / Luke Combs / Credits". Tidal. Retrieved March 19, 2026.
  30. ↑ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. March 30, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  31. ↑ "ARIA Top 40 Country Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. March 30, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  32. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Luke Combs – The Way I Am" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  33. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Luke Combs – The Way I Am" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  34. ↑ "Luke Combs Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 31, 2026.
  35. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Luke Combs – The Way I Am" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  36. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Luke Combs – The Way I Am" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  37. ↑ "Official Irish Albums Chart on 27/3/2026 – Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  38. ↑ "Official Top 40 Albums". Recorded Music NZ. March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  39. ↑ "Album 2026 uke 13". IFPI Norge. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  40. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 27/3/2026 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  41. ↑ "Veckolista Album, vecka 13, 2026" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  42. ↑ "Official Albums Chart on 27/3/2026 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  43. ↑ "Official Country Artists Albums Chart on 27/3/2026 – Top 20". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  44. ↑ "Luke Combs Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  45. ↑ "Luke Combs Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  46. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Luke Combs – The Way I Am". Music Canada. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  47. ↑ "British album certifications – Luke Combs – The Way I Am". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 8, 2026. Select albums in the Formats field. Type The Way I Am Luke Combs in the "Search:" field.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.