Luke Combs vows to help sick fan sued over conterfeit merchandise
Luke Combs has pledged to send money to a sick fan who was fined $250,000 for selling fake merchandise bearing his likeness and insisted he was horrified by her plight.
Luke Combs has pledged to send money to a sick fan who was fined $250,000 for selling fake merchandise bearing his likeness.
The 33-year-old singer was left feeling "sick to [his] stomach" when he heard about the plight of Nicol Harness, who was unaware she had been served with a lawsuit by a company employed by the country star because it went to a spam mailbox and only found out when she was told she owed the 'Fast Car' hitmaker $250,000 and all future sales from her Amazon store would go to Luke until she paid the bill.
But Luke insisted he was horrified by what had happened to Nicole - who had only sold 18 tumblers bearing his likeness, making just $360 - when he was made aware of the lawsuit.
He said: "I woke up to use the restroom, and the first thing I saw was this. I’ve spent the last two hours trying to make this right … because I was completely and utterly unaware of this.
“We do have a company that goes after folks — only, supposedly, large corporations operating internationally that make millions and millions of dollars — making counterfeit T-shirts, things of that nature, running illegal businesses.
“And apparently this woman, Nicol, has somehow gotten wrapped into that, and that makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.”
The 'Forever After All' singer said he had personally called Nicole - who was recently hospitalised due to congestive heart failure - and pledged to sent her $11,000 to meet her immediate needs, double the amount currently locked in her Amazon store account, and also vowed to sell his own tumbler through his official merchandise store, with the proceeds going towards his fan's medical bills.
He added: "She told me that she was absolutely shocked by this.
"I’m so apologetic. ... It makes me sick, honestly, that this would happen, especially at the holidays. I can’t imagine being in her shoes.
"She was never supposed to be involved in anything like this. No fan should ever have to be involved in anything like this."
Luke is also keen to apologise to Nicol in person.
He added: "I invited Nicol and her family out to a show this year so I can give her a hug and say sorry in person. It makes me sick for anybody to be thinking that I’m this kind of person, because I’m the farthest thing from it.
"Love you guys, and I’ll keep you posted."
Hours later, he confirmed the tumbler was available for pre-order.
Sharing a link on X, he wrote: "Tumbler pre-order is live. All proceeds from this product will be donated to Nicol Harness and her family."
The listing for the item confirmed it is unlikely to be ready to ship until February.
