Sixteen-year-old Lane Pittman rose to fame in May 2022, when he performed on the talent competition The Voice Australia, singing Even Though I'm Leaving by Luke Combs.

Lane successfully made it through to the semi-finals on Team Keith (Urban) before exiting the show, however said his biggest success had followed after the show aired when he was contacted by Luke Combs' promotions team.

"His team liked the video on socials of me singing his song, then in mid-August I received an email from Luke's team asking me if I would be interested in joining him on tour," Lane said.

"You can ask any of my friends or family, I read the first line of the email and dropped to the floor. I thought the email was a prank at first, until I looked into it further and realised it was serious.

"I jumped at the opportunity, you'd be a bit silly if you didn't. I still feel like it is a day-dream moment."

Lane will join US country music artist Cody Johnson, who will both open for Luke Combs in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide and Auckland in October 2023.

Lane said this was easily the highlight of his career and he was not surprised when tickets sold out within minutes.

"There is a mixture of emotions of excitement and nerves. These will be the biggest shows I have ever performed, but I am excited to get out and perform in front of a lot of people and build some more fans," he said.

"In preparation, I have been doing a lot of songwriting to get some original songs out. I've also been gigging a lot to build some more confidence in becoming a better performer.

"When his tour comes up next year, it will have been four years since he was last in Australia, I am not surprised his shows sold out so quickly. Since COVID-19 everyone is looking forward to playing live music again."

Lane said Luke Combs was one of his biggest inspirations in the industry.

"He is doing everything at the highest level in the industry, a great songwriter, great performer; a lot of the stuff he does is outstanding.

"I am just happy to be there and if anything comes out of this experience it will be a bonus. New fans are the hope and getting people to listen to my music; but I would love to talk to Luke and Cody and get some advice on how to navigate the industry.

"It's like I have come full circle from performing his song on The Voice and now I'll be opening for his concerts."

Lane said he plans to have new music released before the end of the year.

READ ALSO:

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: