“It Doesn’t Seem That Long Ago”: Luke Combs Takes Fans Back To 2012 With Unseen Photo From His Very First Gig

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“It Doesn’t Seem That Long Ago”: Luke Combs Takes Fans Back To 2012 With Unseen Photo From His Very First Gig

14 years ago today, a country superstar was born.

Luke Combs is of course now a global country music sensation, who racks up #1 single after #1 single, sells out venues all over the world, right up there with Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan, he’s the biggest thing in the business. But he got his start in the college town of Boone, North Carolina, when he was in college at Appalachian State University back around 2011-ish. That’s when he met his now close friend, local musician Adam Church (who was featured in his ‘Doin’ This’ music video), and they stared playing as a duo around town.

The rest, as they say, is history, and Combs’ first few projects he self released were his 2014 EP The Way She Rides, which includes songs in the title track, “I Know She Ain’t Ready” and “Let the Moonshine.” I still think “I Know She Ain’t Ready” is one of his best songs, but I digress…

During a recent media day at the Barstool Sports Chicago office a while back, Luke appeared on The Dog Walk podcast, where he talked about his time in college and what makes Boone so special, putting it perfectly by saying “it feels like it’s the only place in the world when you’re there.”

As an App State alum myself, I say amen to that, Luke:

“It’s a vibe. It really is, man. It’s a special place… you’re just tucked into this little valley on top of these mountains, and it feels like it’s the only place in the world when you’re there.

It’s very safe feeling I would say, which is a weird thing to be cool about going to college. There’s nothing else to do but have a good time, really.”

Luke moved to Nashville in 2014, and released his now hit song “Hurricane” in 2015, when it initially charted and it gained traction on iTunes organically. A year later, in 2016, Luke’s label re-released it and in 2017, “Hurricane” peaked at the top of the Billboard Country Airplay chart, becoming his first #1 single. It kicked off a run of around 20 straight #1 singles at country radio.

His move to Nashville happened only a couple of years after he played his first show in Boone in 2012 at a restaurant and bar that is now closed called Parthenon Cafe, which was a small bar that was probably not up to any sort of regulation, and according to an Instagram post about it, “rumor had it the owner was in witness protection and sold cocaine out the back.”

Lovingly referred to as Pnon, the owner, Nick, was known to wear pajamas, and it was an incredibly unique place and honestly, a very important piece of country music history. I started school in Boone in 2015, so the glory days of Parthenon were pretty much over, but I certainly remember it being a staple in Boone that sadly closed in 2016.

As you’ll see in the photo below, it was a modest, simple place with great food and a great reputation among college students for being a great time, and it’s really so sad that it had to close because it was legendary for many reasons, with the lore of Luke Combs being one of them:

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During my sophomore year, that’s when Parthenon closed, and I remember everyone being very sad and you would hear “RIP Parthenon” quite often around town… in fact, I think one of my friends left a comment on Luke’s post below that says just that.

In many ways, it looks like the same Luke Combs the world now knows and loves, but obviously the venues he’s in now are much bigger, but it all started right here:

“My first ever show was 14 years ago tomorrow at Parthenon Cafe in Boone, NC. It doesn’t seem that long ago but I guess time flies when you’re having fun!”

Luke previously spoke about playing his first show there during an appearance on the Dale Jr. Download in 2024, saying:

“The owner of Parthenon was awesome, he was a total wildcard, just kind of whatever… just whatever happens he was down with. And I asked him the next week, ‘Hey man, can I play a gig here?’

He was like ‘Yeah, whatever, just go over to the calendar and put it on there.’ Like that was how my first show happened, you know? I wish it was that easy to book shows the rest of the time after that.”

He picked a date, the owner charged $1 cover and gave Luke some free and he wound up borrowing a guitar and some other equipment from some friends. 200 people came to the show, where he played mostly country covers, and Luke made $200 during first show.

The photo below is a capture of that exact moment in time, which was the birth of one of modern country music’s biggest and most successful stars who has certainly come a long way from Boone, North Carolina:

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Luke is gearing up to release his fifth studio album The Way I Am on March 30th, and he put out “Sleepless in a Hotel Room” several weeks ago:

“Sleepless in a Hotel Room”

And they’re certainly not the Parthenon cafe, but Luke will play some pretty cool venues on his 2026 My Kinda Saturday Night tour which kicks off in March: