Nearly fifteen months after he was supposed to launch his Proud to Be Right Here Tour, Luke Bryan is finally back onstage. 

While he admits unexpectedly being off the road during the warm months of 2020 ended up being “amazing,” since he “got to travel and do a lot of summer activities” with his family, the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year couldn’t be happier to be back face-to-face with fans.

“I can’t wait to stare my fans in the eyes and watch their smiles,” Luke tells ABC Audio, “and hopefully facilitate some normalcy.”

After kicking things off Thursday night in Syracuse, New York, he heads to Hershey, Pennsylvania tonight before playing Boston on Saturday night. 

This time around, Luke has a trick up his sleeve that was unheard of before the pandemic: he’s got a bunch of hit songs he’s never gotten to play live.

“The interesting part about this tour is there’s three or four songs that I’ve had to be #1 hits that I haven’t even had the opportunity to perform for my crowd,” he points out. “‘One Margarita’ will be one of those, ‘Down to One.’ I’ve really never even got to perform ‘Knockin’ Boots’ properly, and then my current single, ‘Waves’…”

Luke adds, “The main thing is, you know, they can count on me doing those big fun songs that make you want to come out and have fun in the summer.”  

Dylan Scott will be along for the fun the whole time, with Runaway June taking over for Caylee Hammack in August. Luke’s Proud to Be Right Here trek continues through mid-October, with his annual Farm Tour resuming in September.

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