One of the coolest stories in country music in 2023 was that Luke Combs covered Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car,” and the cover became the biggest country-crossover hits of the year. Luke’s version was everywhere, not just country radio – pop stations played it endlessly, and his cover sparked a renewed interest in Chapman’s music. While there was some drama, Chapman actually made a rare public statement in support of Combs, congratulating him on his success and his cover. Chapman got paid in a big way because of Combs’ cover – she is the sole author of “Fast Car,” which means that she got (easily) $500K in royalties just from Combs’ cover alone. Well, now it looks like Luke Combs managed to do the impossible: he’s getting Tracy Chapman to leave her house and perform on stage with him at the Grammys.

Tracy Chapman, who has not performed in public in years, will return into the spotlight to perform a duet of “Fast Car” with Luke Combs at the Grammys on Sunday night, sources tell Variety.

Combs, who had a massive hit with his cover version of “Fast Car” last year, was already announced as a performer on the show. Chapman’s appearance comes as a significant surprise, as she has only performed for the cameras three times since wrapping up her last tour in 2009, and the singer had thus far resisted the popular demand to take advantage of the resurgence of “Fast Car” as an international phenomenon.

Representatives for the Recording Academy could not be reached for comment.

Combs’ version of “Fast Car” was ranked as the fifth biggest song of the year in the U.S. for 2023 when Variety published its annual Hitmakers list in late November, coming in ahead of smashes like Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero.” It was a multi-format crossover hit for the country superstar, topping Billboard’s Radio Songs chart for four weeks, making it to No. 1 on the adult pop and country formats for two weeks each, and topping out at an impressive No. 6 at Top 40 radio and No. 2 on the Hot 100.

Chapman’s original version came out in 1988 and peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100, not really a reflection of how massive it was across demographics at the time. It reached the top 5 in the U.K. twice, once in 1988 and then again 23 years later in 2011.

[From Variety]

Ordinarily, I don’t look forward to the Grammys in general, and most Grammy collabs feel awkward and uncomfortable. But this is very cool and I genuinely can’t wait to see Tracy on stage. You know people in the room will be so happy to see her and I hope they honor her properly. From what I’ve seen, Luke always treated Chapman and her song with the utmost respect (he didn’t even change the “checkout girl” lyric) and I hope he knows what a big deal this is! He got Chapman on stage for the first time in fifteen years!!

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.