Country superstar and American Idol host Luke Bryan is ringmaster for the six-episode Hulu docuseries It’s All Country, where he interviews and jams with artists who are all part of defining country music as it exists today. Executive produced by Bryan with his Country Music Awards hosting partner Peyton Manning, It’s All Country features Bryan in conversation and performance with Wynonna Judd, Sheryl Crow, Mickey Guyton, Kane Brown, Lady A, and in its first episode, another Luke on the country spectrum, “Doin’ This” and “Hurricane” singer Luke Combs.
Opening Shot: In a radio interview, Luke Bryan is talking about the unifying aspect of country music, and how there are so many different ways to make people feel at home. “To me it’s about storytelling,” he says. “So let’s dive into those stories.”
The Gist: Luke Combs still gushes over getting the opportunity to sing “Fast Car” with Tracy Chapman at the 2024 Grammys. It’s always been one of the country star’s favorite songs ever, even when he was growing up back in North Carolina. And in It’s All Country, Combs can’t say enough about being able to sing it with one of his idols, and to highlight Chapman’s contribution to the country music canon as a songwriter. But all of the lights and stars and exposure of music’s biggest night is a long way from where Combs started out back in 2012, as a bouncer in a bar where he longed to be singing on stage.
“At that time,” Combs tells Bryan, “guys like me were not artists.” It’s an interesting point, because it speaks to the authenticity that’s helped fuel the bearded, big-voiced Combs’ hitmaking rise as a two-time winner of the CMA’s Entertainer of the Year award. (In a cutaway roundtable interview, a group of Nashville music biz types readily agree, observing that in Combs, fans see themselves.) The younger Luke and older Luke also discuss the songwriting scene in Nashville, and how demos tend to migrate through all kinds of circles. Combs ended up cutting the Bryan-penned “Little Country Boys” for Fathers & Sons, his most recent album, and the singers put down their drinks to “do a little pickin’,” harmonizing on a few bars of the song as they’re accompanied by the guitarists from Combs’ band.
It’s All Country revolves mostly around its main profile, with Bryan and his big personality hanging out and playing music with Combs or Wynonna or Lady A. But the series also features mini-segments within episodes, with an aim to cast country’s net even wider. Like a piece on up-and-coming singer and songwriter Sierra Ferrell as she prepares to play Nashville’s legendary Ryman Auditorium for the first time – “I went from ramen to Ryman!” – a rite of passage Combs treasures from his own career, or later appearances in It’s All Country from Tenille Arts, Shaboozey, and Jamiee Harris.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood work to build a Nashville bar and entertainment venue in the Prime Video reality show Friends In Low Places. And in 2021, Luke Bryan gave himself the It’s All Country profile treatment with My Dirt Road Diary.
Our Take: A lot of the interview segments in It’s All Country have the same feel as those packaged sit-down interviews/profiles that run on NFL pregame shows. And that’s before Luke Bryan and Luke Combs start tossing the pigskin around on the field at the Tennessee Titans’ stadium. This is not to suggest the interviews are entirely fluff. But they’re not necessarily hard-hitting or revealing, either, and instead rely pretty heavily on Luke Bryan’s talky charm as he tosses up handfuls of soft, open-ended questions. You know, like “Where did it all begin for you?” or “What’s next for you?” Just like those profiles on the NFL pregame, It’s All Country is slickly produced. But also like those profiles, you could probably leave this thing on mute and glean the same amount of information.
Which is fine! Streamers are rife with entertainment that’s menu box clickable but only lightly watchable. It’s All Country still has its moments, especially when Bryan, as an industry vet, compares and contrasts his experiences in the country music industry with members of the generation coming up today. And the performances are always going to be a highlight, like the voices of Bryan and Combs finding an instant, natural harmony during an impromptu acoustic number.
Sex and Skin: Combs and Bryan have a few laughs about playing giant tours, and what it takes to try and look cool in front of 70,000 fans. Bryan, now 48, admits that he probably shouldn’t have made sexy dance moves as big a part of his act. And as for Combs – “If you haven’t noticed, I’m a larger gentleman” – he’s trying to make being sweaty onstage part of a whole new trend.
Parting Shot: Over a highlight reel from his latest stadium tour, Combs reflects on the success he’s found since he first arrived in Nashville back in the 2010s. “I just came to town to make a living doing music in any way the music business would allow me to make money. I didn’t know what that would be.”
Sleeper Star: The first round of It’s All Country also provides a little free advertising for Nashville’s name brand musician bar scene. While the Lukes Bryan and Combs do some day drinking at Bryan’s own 32 Bridge bar and restaurant on Broadway, they’re in the shadow of spots owned by Blake Shelton and Kid Rock, both across the street, and Garth Brooks’s place is a block away.
Most Pilot-y Line: Bryan’s transitional voiceovers go a little something like this. “Alright, enough day drinking. I want to understand how Luke Combs made his way to the next chapter, connecting with his fans and proving that the underdog was the top dog after all…”
Our Call: Stream It, but that doesn’t mean you gotta give It’s All Country your undivided attention. The docuseries offers some nice insight into the lives and work of a range of country artists. But it’s also kind of a glider, coasting in a prepackaged way on Luke Bryan’s name brand charm.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is an independent writer and editor living at large in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.
