{"id":17586,"date":"2019-08-14T15:45:52","date_gmt":"2019-08-14T21:45:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/?p=1810346"},"modified":"2019-08-14T15:45:52","modified_gmt":"2019-08-14T21:45:52","slug":"a-dozen-years-of-luke-bryan-he-stayed-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/music-news\/a-dozen-years-of-luke-bryan-he-stayed-him\/","title":{"rendered":"A Dozen Years of Luke Bryan: He Stayed Him"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Alison Bonaguro<\/a><\/span> 17m ago<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n

When someone tells me that they love Luke Bryan, that they\u2019ve seen all his shows, and that they have downloaded all his songs, my first question is always, \u201cBut have you heard \u2019Tackle Box\u2019? Did you know he actually can<\/em> salt-cure a ham? And did you cry during \u2019The Car in Front of Me\u2019?\u201d To this day, I still know every song on his debut album I\u2019ll Stay Me<\/em> by heart. And I want every one of his fans to feel that way, too.<\/p>\n

Maybe I get a little carried away, but in the summer of 2007, my gut told me that this new guy was exactly what was missing in country music at the time.<\/p>\n

So when he tweeted on Wednesday (Aug. 14) that it was the 12th anniversary of the release of his debut album, asking his followers to retweet him if they remember that day as vividly as he does, I did just that. As did hundreds of his other nine million followers.<\/p>\n

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My first album, I\u2019ll Stay Me, came out 12 years ago today. Can\u2019t believe how much has happened since then. RT if you got it when it first came out. pic.twitter.com\/nF4kns4q93<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Luke Bryan (@LukeBryanOnline) August 14, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

When I look back on the 12 years since that release, it makes my heart happy to say that the album\u2019s title was true then and is still true today. He stayed him. I don\u2019t know any celebrity who is as genuine, good-hearted and egoless as Bryan. His crowds have multiplied. His stages have grown. His music has transcended the genre. And his trophy shelf has gotten a lot more crowded. But Bryan himself? Same as he ever was.<\/p>\n

To celebrate, we put together a virtual photo album full of some of our favorites \u2014 in mostly chronological order \u2014 from the last 12 years.<\/p>\n

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