Luke Combs will no longer be performing at the CMT Music Awards after testing positive for COVID-19.
A spokesperson confirmed the news on Wednesday to People, which noted that Combs was set to tape his scheduled spot on Thursday but was unable to do so as he was quarantining.
"He's bummed to miss seeing everyone!" a CMT spokesperson told the outlet.
Combs was scheduled to perform at Nashville's Municipal Auditorium alongside Miranda Lambert, Keith Urban, Maren Morris, and Ryan Hurd, Little Big Town, Kane Brown, Carly Pearce, Cole Swindell, and Lainey Wilson, Cody Johnson, and Kelsea Ballerini, with nearly all of the stars nominated for at least one prize heading into the ceremony.
One name that is notably absent from this year's event is Morgan Wallen, who was banned from competing in the CMT Awards last year following controversy over his use of the N-word in a video that was leaked.
Wallen was pulled from most radio stations, dropped from his label, and banned from awards shows but this did not stop fans from supporting the country music icon. Sales for Wallen's album "Dangerous: The Double Album," have been soaring despite the racial slur incident. Calculations showed an estimated $500,000 spike — money which Wallen said he would be giving to various Black-led organizations. Then, earlier this month, Wallen won Album of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards.
"When I started this album, I was a kid. By the time I put it out, I was a father," Wallen — who shares 20-month-old son Indigo Wilder with ex-girlfriend KT Smith — began in his acceptance speech, according to People.
"That's become more important to me than anything else," he continued. "To my son, this album and this award will signify that his daddy was a fighter, and he chased his dreams and worked hard to make them a reality."
Wallen went on to thank the people involved in the making of the album as well as "the good Lord and Savior Jesus Christ," his family, friends, fans, and "everyone who has shown me grace along the way."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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