Luke Bryan Notices Holes in 'Idol' Contestant's Boots, Takes Off His Own and Hands Them Over
We first met country singer and guitar player Colby Swift when Luke Bryan called the young man a “tall drink of water” during his “American Idol” audition.
“A prayer got me here,” Swift told the judges that day. The young man has been through so much. He even shared that his mom left on his sister’s birthday nine years ago.
Even with the pain he’s faced, Swift explained his father has always been supportive. “It’s emotional for me when I hear Colby sing, because he’s gone through so much in his life.” Justin, Colby’s dad, said.
We have to admit, we got a bit emotional too when the 19-year-old from Midfield, Texas shared his story. You could even call it love at first sight.
His authentic country voice landed him a spot in Hollywood, of course. From his first audition, we could already see the chemistry between Swift and Luke Bryan as they joked around.
While the judges all agreed Swift needed work and that his act was unpolished, they knew there was just something special about the Texan that they wanted to see again.
Now Hollywood week on “American Idol” season 17 has begun. We’ve witnessed a long line of up stars in the making, and Swift is one of them.
When he walked out on that Hollywood stage he certainly looked much more polished and even completed his ensemble with a cowboy hat and boots.
You’d never know his boots had holes in them for how well Swift carries himself. We certainly see a country singing career in his future.
As he sang Freddy Fender’s “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” — in both English and Spanish — we wanted to give him a standing ovation.
Thankfully, the audience did that for us. What we didn’t expect is for Luke Bryan to give Swift an unexpected gift.
The teen was brought to tears after he walked off stage. “I never thought I’d get a standing ovation,” he said. “To have Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie stand for me, that’s a blessing, man.”
Another blessing followed that one when Luke Bryan took the boots off of his own two feet and gave them to Swift. Everyone clapped and cheered during the exchange.
We are just in awe of this season! With every new episode, we are touched by the stories of the contestants and the compassion of the judges. “We love you #ColbySwift,” Bryan tweeted.
We love him too and can’t wait to see what he does next. Though Swift was voted off during the group round of the show, we still have high hopes we’ll see him in the spotlight again one day soon.
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