Luke Combs has canceled his appearance at Friday’s Madden Bowl concert at San Francisco’s Chase Center to commemorate this weekend’s Super Bowl, as his wife Nicole is pregnant with the couple’s third child.
‘So sorry to miss y’all at Madden Bowl, but family always comes first,’ Luke Combs, who is father to sons Tex, three, and Beau, two, with Nicole, 33, said in an Instagram Stories post Thursday.
The Forever After All singer urged fans to ‘have a great time’ at the show.
EA Sports, which is sponsoring the Madden Bowl show, released a statement on Instagram indicating the 35-year-old North Carolina native would not be taking the stage Friday.
The company said on Instagram, ‘Update: Luke has to hold it down at home with a new one on the way.’
Among the other entertainers who are slated to perform at the show on Friday include Zach Bryan, Teddy Swims, Stephen Wilson Jr., Gavin Adcock and LARussell, the company said.
EA Sports added, ‘All love for Luke and his family – and we can’t wait to put on an unforgettable #MaddenBowl with @zachlanebryan leading an incredible night of music and football for the fans.’
The concert falls two days ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl, which pits the New England Patriots against the Seattle Seahawks.
Nicole last fall revealed that she and the vocalist were expecting their third child.
She said in an Instagram post, ‘Third time’s a charm,’ adding, ‘Baby #3 coming this winter.’
The pair have been linked since 2014 and wed in August of 2020 in Florida.
They welcomed their first children in 2022, and 2023.
Combs’ move comes less than three years after he missed the birth of son Beau in August of 2023 while touring Australia.
‘I haven’t really told anybody that,’ Combs said in an Apple Music 1 interview in 2024. ‘I’ll never forget the craziest day, probably, in my life … close to it.
‘One of the best and one of the worst days in my life at the same time was, interestingly enough, and it’s so hard to wrap my mind around it.’
Luke Combs in August told Us Weekly that he loved to ‘just be dad for a bit’ as he spent time with his young sons.
‘Honestly, my favorite moments this summer were getting to spend some quiet time with my family,’ the musician told the magazine. ‘Taking the boys fishing, watching their faces light up. It doesn’t get any better.’
At the time he committed to the show, Luke Combs spoke about his fandom of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, saying the team had ‘been a staple in’ his life since he ‘was a kid.’
He added of the Madden video game, ‘Playing Madden has been something I’ve always done – still do to this day on tour.’
Luke Combs said that ‘getting the invite from EA Sports to be a part of the Madden Bowl at the biggest football game in the world – the Super Bowl, was a no-brainer.
‘I can’t wait and I’m still holding out hope my Panthers will be there too.’ (The team made the playoffs but lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card game.)
In the chat with US Weekly, Combs explained what he was striving for in making music: ‘My biggest hope is that the songs I play hit people in a real place.
‘Whether they’re singing at the top of their lungs to a song that reminds them of a good time, or getting a little emotional over a track that tells a piece of their own story, I just want people to feel connected.’
The singer said his concerts ‘are about letting loose, forgetting your troubles and just being a part of something bigger for a night, hopefully with a Miller Lite in hand.’