Caroline Bryan stops by to talk with Bobby about the different aspects of her life and how she approaches raising her kids as famous parents. Caroline shares all the details behind how she and Luke met, broke up and got married. She shares stories on Luke’s rise to fame, how it affected their family and the one thing in Luke’s career that shook her. We also get to know more about her love for animals, her clothing line @BestBadInfluce, and orginazations @BrettsBarn and @BrightforBrett.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hey, welcome to episode three thirty five. Caroline Brian, who
you know asn't a song writer, but as extremely interesting
and has been, you know, in the music world in
a different capacity. So she's doing a lot to give back,
and that's really the reason we brought her on. But
there's so much interesting stuff about her life, about Luke's life,
things that I didn't even know, so that was pretty cool. Uh.
(00:25):
Caroline Brian went to Georgia Southern University, which we talked
about here, you're actually here, we go where'd you go
to school? So I'm only saying this afterward because now
I know her dad was a social specialist, her mom
worked as an operator and an insurance company, and you know,
Caroline went to school and had her own career going.
And she talks about for a while when Luke was
starting out, she was supporting Luke and it's interesting, you know,
(00:47):
you're in a marriage and at times, at different times,
both people have to kind of step up and help
in different ways. And you know, it's just a look
at her if you haven't spent any time getting to
know her, and also maybe a different look at Luke.
And the one thing in this that Luke told her
that kind of shook her and she was like, wow,
like of all the things Luke said, I'm doing this,
and I was. I guess I wasn't surprised, and I
(01:08):
won't say what it is here, but I was, Um,
I wasn't I guess that that was so impactful. Was
surprising that it was kind of later. Yeah, I thought
it would be something early on same you know, like
Luke wins is first Entertainer of the Year or but
it was something later that I wouldn't have considered from
(01:30):
where I sit to be that big of a deal.
I thought it. I felt a little more normal at
that point. Yeah, but then when she said it, I
was like, yeah, I guess you're right. That kind of
came out of nowhere. So you'll hear her talk about that.
Just love this. I think you'll love it too. And
Caroline Brian Luke Brian's wife, but so much more than that,
and that's why we had her on. So enjoy the episode.
Here you go, Caroline, good to see you again. I
(01:56):
was on your Instagram story the other day. I saw
that you had gotten your maybe SUV your car stuck
in a bunch of mud. What what happened. I was
flipping through so fast, but it looked like the tire
was so deep into the mud that it almost seemed
like you should have known there was mud. It wasn't
like surprised mud. It wasn't a surprised mud. I didn't know.
(02:16):
So first of all, I um, I bought this big
van because all I do is car pool, you know,
with a bunch of So it's a big van. It's
not like just a MANI van. It's a big van.
And it's been raining a ton. And so I told
T and I said, let's go check on Brett's barn
to see if it's flooded, because we've been flooded today,
(02:39):
like we've She's been transporting animals all day. So I
went to take a turn to go check on the
big horses, and I just I got stuck, and I said, baby,
we're welcome back to the house. I'm sorry. And so
how did you get the van out of the mud.
Did someone come and pull it out? Oh? Absolutely, did
(03:00):
have that truck at your house to pull it out?
Got it? Do you feel like a little bit you
live too? Completely different lives at the same time, meaning
and knowing. Luke now more than just in a professional
relationship myself and then knowing you a little bit as well.
(03:20):
There is this the life that you guys live that
is very front facing. There's a bit of fame, notoriety, um,
the success of Luke and now your success, like that's
all the thing and like wow. But then also at
home it just feels like that doesn't exist and you
(03:40):
have mud in a barn, and it just feels like
two different lives and not in a good way or
a bad way. But if they're so different to me,
do you feel that way? I do and I don't.
I think they're both. So I think that's why people
can kind of connect with us, because yeah, I mean
(04:02):
Luke is so big. He is, and but when we're
home my favorite thing, like on a Saturday or a Sunday,
if I'm home, I'm at the bar and I'm feeding
the animals. You know, animals are climbing all over me,
I'm stepping in poop and but it's so but people
like that to you know, not not everything is fancy,
(04:24):
and but you're not doing it for them to like that,
I guess, is my point. It's just us though, because
there are other brother sisters, siblings of stars who if
they had and they do have the ability, and they're
just like, why would I ever clean up after an animal?
We're rich now, yeah, and that's not us that right,
and that you have the the life of you are.
(04:46):
You can do what you want at this point because
of your family success. But yet you still, for lack
of a better term, keep it extremely real. Well that's
all that we know. Because we're both from small towns
in Georgia. You know, we didn't grow up with much.
I mean, you know, we weren't, you know, poor poor,
but we didn't grow up with much but um and life.
(05:07):
We've always said that life somehow has a way of
making you humble. So either you stay humble or or
life is going to do it for you. And you know,
we've had some knocks in life to where I don't
think we could ever even if we tried, I don't
think we could ever change how we are because you know,
Luke's Lucas Luke. He just wants to fish and hot, truly,
(05:28):
I mean, he loves being he loves being seen, that's
his thing. But no, I mean I can't imagine ever
having somebody doing everything for me that would drive me nuts.
How do you raise kids with again their dad and
now their mom? Uh? Famous? Famous? I mean, there's no
(05:51):
other way to say it, just famous and wildly successful.
And I asked that question and that you know, eventually
my wife and I are gonna have kids. And I
grew up in pretty extreme poverty. But my kids will
not grow up in poverty. They won't And so I
often wonder, like, how how the crap am I supposed
(06:12):
to do that? And how do I instill values because
they're not going to be instilled the same way they
were instilled into me because mine were forced into me,
but they kind of can be. So you were raised
a certain way, so you have a work ethic installed
in new that you can't take out, right, Yeah, but
how did they They're not going to have that because
they're they can you make them do chores and you
(06:35):
make them this is what I'm asking. If they want
a game, if they want this, I mean, you make
them work for it. And if they have their you know,
we always have their friends over it. That's just like
our house where all the boys come, but they all
get a trash bag and they clean up because you know,
I mean it can. It can become like a circus
(06:57):
with a bunch of kids. I make them go and
clean up everything. That's what they do, or they can't
do anything. And if they want a game, I'll make
takeo wash my car. So nothing comes for free. You know,
sometimes it's okay to go, y'all been good, so let's
go have ice cream. That that's okay, But because you
do want to spoil them a little bit because you
(07:20):
didn't have that, And like I'm an overbearing mom every
you know, I'm up every morning with the kids, making
them from breakfast because I didn't have, you know, a
mom my. Mom was fabulous, but she had to be
at work, so I've had to make mom breakfast and
this and this and this and so now I'm trying
(07:40):
to pull back some from from going here's your breakfast, sweetie,
here because I didn't have that, but I wanted it.
It sounds to me, as again not a parent myself yet,
that there's a line and you never quite walk it right,
and you're always trying to find it and you're trying
to stay as close to it all the time. You'll
never do anything right. It's just you just learned from
what you do wrong, which everybody knows. I've screwed up
(08:02):
a million times. But with a parent, you're not going
to do everything right. But they're going to know that
my mom and dad are there. They're going to know
that what was your hometown? Like very small, but it
was awesome? What's it called Sandersville, Georgia? Sandersville? And what's
in sanders if I'm driving up to it right now? Like,
(08:22):
what do I see in Sandersville? So we are the
Kaolan capital of the world. I don't know what kaola is?
Chalk chalk mines, Okay, So there are there a lot
of holes, yes, yes, and so that's where almost everybody
worked or somehow that's just how that was our town.
But a lot of chalk mines. So I grew up
(08:44):
in a town that we had a like a sawmill,
So we were known for me a huge sawmill. And
the industry in that town was everyone that worked in
the sawmill. Is that what the mines are like? There? Is?
Are there a lot of jobs created by the mind
still today almost everything? Yes? And you mean like school chalk,
so chalk is in I mean it's a medicine. I
(09:06):
have no idea You're going to teach me something right now,
it's in a ton of things and it gets shipped out.
We have trains, we have truck I mean, you know,
it's it's being shipped out everywhere. But eventually it's gonna
be mined out. So so my town, I don't know
what's gonna we We went through this in my town,
the saw mill shut down, and not that this is
(09:29):
what's gonna happen to your town, but a lot of
what's happened in my town is it's dying or dead.
And it sucks because there's no reason to go to
my town now because it was only built for the
sawmill and it struggles. And I do my part to
try to help and keep it afloat. But I understand
what it's like to have like a central industry in
(09:50):
the town that keeps it afloat. And you're a mining
town where your parents involved in the mining industry at all.
My mom um was a therapist and my but my
my father did work for the chalk mines. He did,
and that's just kind of how it was. And so
I'm just I didn't know there were so many uses
for chalk. I thought, basically you wrote three times three,
(10:12):
and there's a ton there's a ton of stuff which
I can't even explain at all. And I grew up there,
but there is all kinds of stuff. So in this town,
like geographically where is it? We are kind of in
the heart of Georgia. Were kind of in the middle
of everything. Um, we are an hour and a half
from Atlanta, an hour and a half from Athens, hour
(10:34):
and a half from States for two hours from Savannah.
So it sounds like you couldn't be any more Georgian
than where you're from. Your right in the middle of everything.
And so kind of kid are in high school? What
kind of student are you? I was a good kid, um.
I played sports, you know, I never Everybody now thinks,
oh she's so, she's naughty, but I was. I was
(10:56):
a really good kid. I didn't get into a ton
of trouble. I got into a little bit it. I
played sports, and I was just your typical kid. But
what was the dream in like tenth grade? You did
you want to graduate and leave town? Did you want
to like, did you have a future for you in
your mind? Tenth grade? I honestly thought that I would
be in my hometown forever. And I was fine with that,
(11:18):
and it's a great hometown. But that that was my
I never saw outside of that short term period. I
just didn't. So you finished high school and then what
my first week in college? I'm at Luke that quick?
That quick? Yeah, and you guys were at school where
Georgia Southern in Statesboro? And how did you meet Luke
(11:40):
your first week? It's some sort of freshman uh you
know everybody okay? So naturally, so the first time in
a bar? It was your first time in a bar?
Well it was, it was it was my third. But
I wasn't a drinker in high school, so I didn't,
you know, I didn't go to bars. And so I
(12:01):
went to a bar my first week in college and
I met Luke. Do you remember meeting Luke like that?
Not just like we I know we met it, but
do you remember the thoughts of hey, I see that guy,
or like how did how did you two start talking?
What was the approach? Well? He sent Okay, so I
walk into a bar. You know, I'm I'm a freshman.
(12:22):
I don't know anything. You know. Classes started the next day.
Was he a freshman too, or was the older he
was a senior? So I was. I was a freshman.
He was a senior, and you know, I'd only met
a hand, I didn't meet a ton of people. And
so I walked into a bar with my friends and
I keep seeing across the bar like just this these
(12:44):
white teeth. No, I'm not kidding, And I was like,
what is like this? This guy was smiling at me,
and I'm like, okay, I mean he he was adorable,
but I didn't think a thing about it. And then
he sent a friend over to say hey for him, yes,
which is not like Luke. But then eventually he came
(13:04):
over and he said hey, and we started talking and then, um,
we were friends. You're doing, I am, you can't see.
We were friends for two weeks and then you know
you started dating. Yes, So if he was a senior,
does that mean he graduated or left pretty soon after that? Uh? Well,
(13:26):
he stayed an extra year and a half. And when
you met him? Was he this guy Luke that you
met and he liked? Was he a guy that you
know had big dreams to be a country music artist? Like? Wow,
under what pretense did you meet him? Meaning? Hi, I'm Luke,
I do so? And so was it? Student? Was it
hopefully artist. Well, he was singing, So that's all with Luke.
(13:46):
That's all I've ever known. So um, I mean he
would go on Fridays and Saturdays to other colleges and
he would go sing and he'd play shows. So that's
all I ever knew with him still is. You know,
he was gone, but he never really talked a ton about,
you know, moving here in a town. I always knew
(14:08):
that if he wanted it, he could. I just knew
he could. But um, a year passes and he's he's
about to graduate and he's you know, Luke was Luke
was already a senior. He'd already dated girls. I hadn't
dated around. I just was innocent and you know, a prude,
which I still kind of am. But um, he was
(14:32):
talking about marriage and I freaked out and we I said,
we have to break up. We just do. Usually it's
the opposite where at least with my friends because because
dudes are like, oh, marriage, well you get scared though
if you're not ready, you just freak out and get scared.
While so you said, that's a little too serious for me.
(14:54):
Let's pump the brakes, or let's break it up. We
broke up. We did, and um he moved home, and
then eventually eight months after that he moved here in
a town and which I was so happy for him.
I mean, did you think it was over for about Yes,
(15:16):
you did. There was a point where you really thought
it was. So let's keep this about you for a second.
I mean, listen, I love Luke too, but I can
see Luke anytime, you know, I don't get to see
you a whole lot. So I want to know about
you a little bit. You are a freshman and sophomore
in college. Why are you going to school to learn
what to do? What business? With the thought of I
(15:38):
always thought that I would own a real estate company
and white real estate. I don't know, I just liked it.
I just loved the thought, which now here if I
owned one here now great. But yeah, but um, this
was back into lord m I just And what's weird
is that I had named it. I was gonna name
(15:59):
it red red Door. And now everything about us is
read because of you know, charities and our home and
his sisters. So that's really odd. But so I don't
think anything just happens for a reason. I think everything
is set in place for something, But yeah, I thought
I would own a real estate company. Did you like college? Ye?
(16:22):
Was which part appealed to you more, the higher learning
or the social There's no higher learning in me. I
felt college algebra twice. So you're having a good time
in school. And do you end up finishing at Georgia Southern?
I did, and Luke is here. And while you're in school,
(16:45):
do you guys get back together? At some point? We
kept in touch through email because this is pretexting, this
is pre Facebook. Instagram said. There was no texting when
I was in college, and we kept in touch sporadically
through email. And then he was always in touch with
my brother also, so we kept in touch. But if
(17:10):
I if he had a show in town, I would
go always, which is kind of messed up, but we
would always say hey and hug, but then we'd go
our separate ways. But when did you feel like, Okay,
maybe this isn't all the way over Because if you're
going to shows and listen, what do I know? But
(17:32):
if you're going to shows and it's an ex boyfriend,
I would have to think that some little tiny part
of you thinks possibly there's a chance. Well, I always knew,
and I always said that he was the greatest guy
that I would ever date. And I would say that
whether I had been drinking or whether I was sober
(17:53):
in college. Um, but one night I was working in
a town on and I go to a bar, did
not have a clue, but Luke was playing and we
locked eyes. And that's been it ever since. So it's
like everything changed within two minutes. So let me see
(18:15):
if I got the story straight. You met, you broke up,
you weren't going to get back together. But then you randomly,
even though you ran one of some of the shows
when he was in town, you randomly went to a
place he was playing. Had no clue he was playing.
Really truly, I wasn't on the front door on the
drive there. Um, I was with my brother and his friends,
(18:36):
and my brother goes, well, guess who's playing it? Blah
blah blah, And I was like who And I was
in work close. I did not look like a cute
college kid, but I was already out of college. He goes,
Luke's playing here tonight. Now what okay? All right? All right, well,
here here we go and here we go. I didn't
know what to do. Um, but he was on stage
(19:00):
and we saw each other and it was like it
was it was something different and then but ever since
then it's been and from that moment though, you guys
were together. Well, I probably shouldn't say this. Um Luke
had to leave the stage early for something. So I
thought he left the stage early because he was trying
(19:22):
to avoid me. So I left and uh, my phone
rang about two am, and he goes, where did you go?
He left, and you didn't see him after he left.
It wasn't like he left and came back. Well he did,
he did, but I thought he just left to avoid me.
So I got upset. It's like a three company episode.
(19:42):
Everybody's confused, I know. And I said Bow, just which
Bow is? My brother? I said, Bow, just take just
you know, I'll go home because I had to get
up at six am to work anyway, I said, just
take me home. And I cried the whole way and
I said, well, I ruined everything with the best guy
I'd ever dated. I fel sleep too am his his
(20:03):
room phone rings. I mean, we still don't have cell
phones really, and it was looking. He goes, where did
you go? And I said, I thought that you didn't
I want to see me, and he goes, no, I'll
explain later, and then yeah, you're exactly right, that's what happened.
So and I want to come back to this part
(20:23):
of the story. But I do want to go back,
and I want to talk about Brett's barn for a second.
And you you mentioned the animals. Where did this love
of animals come from with you personally? Like, when did
it start to be a calling for you that I
want a big part of my life to be in
helping animals. Oh well, I grew up having all kinds
of animals, so I've always loved them. I mean, there
(20:45):
was never a time when I didn't love dogs, cats.
I grew up with pet turkeys, which pet turkeys well
ironically want to attacked me. But um later in life.
But when when Brett passed, when well, when she was
a baby, I was kidding around with my with you know,
(21:07):
my my sister lawn brother, and I said, I'm going
to get you a white pony. When she passed. You know,
we've been through tragedy and we've always been hands on,
Like right there in the moment, well, watching my um
family suffer, and I couldn't do anything about it. I
didn't know what in the world to do. So a
(21:30):
friend called me and she goes, oh my gosh, I'm
here at a rescue barn and there's a white pony
and I'm gonna save it if you want it, And
I said, no, I want it. So we adopted two
ponies and a goat, and that just kept going. And
so it's been it's just been great for us and
for for kids and families that can come out, because
(21:52):
some of these kids have been in hospital for a
year and when they can, you know, come out and
play why and their mom and dad just sit and
breathe and the kids be kids. It's the best thing ever.
So and now we're so attached that we just keep
We're going to keep adding on, so hopefully someday it'll
(22:14):
be public. What are some of the What are some
of your favorite animals. My lama is one of my
favorites because she is just her name is Peca. A
child at the hospital named her. Um. Oh my gosh,
she loves she loves pigs. I'm not the biggest pick
(22:35):
fan because I see what pigs eat and it is
so I really don't eat much pork. Anymore. But our
horses llamas, Oh my gosh, well they're all I love
my goats too, so but yeah, pigs, pigs. Have you
ever seen what pigs eat? Yes? I have. It's basically um,
(22:56):
an accumulation of the most disgusting things that you can
find and things that other things won't eat or use. Yes,
and all gathered together. Yes, we just slot pigs a
lot as a kid, and it's literal slot in the
slot because it's disgusting. Yeah, but they poop, yeah everything.
I just can't. I just can't. For you guys who
want to check it out, follow at Brett's Barn because
(23:16):
you can follow along with Caroline's Rescue animals. And she
started the barn in honor of her niece Bread who
passed away from c h D. Which we should talk
about the foundation. I think that leads to that. So
the Brett Boyer Foundation at Bright for for Brett and
so c h D is something that you are involved
heavily in. You know, what advancements have you seen since
(23:38):
you have directly gotten involved, or how can people also
help on a way that we actually feel like we're
doing something. Well, we've seen um through just our help
I mean they have how do you call it, it's
not a fake heart, it's a it's a model of
a heart that they can do. But they all so
(24:00):
have um no, but there's a different word and I've
gone blank. So they have a heart that they can
place into a child, and it's like a mechanical heart. God.
Um So we've seen that happen and that keeps a
child alive until they have a donor, which is amazing.
(24:20):
Created a mechanical heart that is like a placeholder for
a real hardness until but there's only a certain amount
of time, but it is they I mean we've seen
children live because of that and so but it has
to be funded, and so we do anything from research
to immediate help to mental health because these parents come
(24:44):
in with children and they have other kids at home
and they don't understand why they're mom and dad aren't home.
So it's we try to do everything all around. If
you guys want to check this out, go to apt
Bright for Brett and you know the working race finds
a good directly toward research initiative h D. And I
(25:04):
mean that mechanical heart is wild and even for thirty minutes,
even for five minutes that that would go in and
actually work as a placeholder for a heart so they
could do things to actually save the kid's life that
I did not know that. Wow, So yeah, be sure
to check that out at bright for bread. Well, let's
(25:28):
rewind you talk. Gluke calls you on some corded phone
from the hundred. I'm always yours. I had the same phones,
and he's like, all right, we should Then what happens
do you guys say, let's start over or let's just
pick up where we left off. How do you start
a relationship back after that long Well, so at this
(25:49):
time I was living in Georgia. He's in Nashville, and
I was traveling a good bit with the company I
was with. So this is just when texting just started happening.
So you know, I was just learning how to text. Seriously. Uh,
he called me. I was working in Cincinnati for like
(26:10):
two weeks and he called me out of the blue,
And so I invited him to my family's Christmas party
in Atlanta. He said, okay, he drove down, got there
at midnight, and we slept on some cot I don't
even know. I nothing happened. I swear it was like
a peck on the cheek and it's been we've been
(26:34):
together since then. What stage of his career was he
when you guys got back together, he had just signed
with Capital, And as we know, just because you signed,
I don't mean it doesn't mean I mean it actually
means probably more broke, because now you got to do
a bunch of freestyle. We were broke. Yeah. Yeah, So
(26:54):
you're with a struggling artist who I'm assuming I'm sure
that who you believed and as an artist, not just
as a man, because you believed in him, but what
did you see in him as a young artist that
led you to believe? And I think he could actually
do this? Well, I mean I think everybody who meets Luke,
(27:15):
I mean he's got this big. I mean, his personality
is huge. It's just you. You can't fake it. It's
just huge. And so I always knew that. I mean,
first of all, he's talented, but he can come in
and he can talk to anybody, and he can say
anything and it can come all funny, even if it's wrong.
(27:35):
He can laugh and it comes off okay. So I
just always knew that he could he could do it.
But then there were times when he doubted himself and
you know that's not like Luke. So it was like
there was a time where he really doubted that he
could do it and he was thinking about doing something else,
and I'm like, no, I don't think you should give up. Yeah,
(27:58):
even though it's hard when you don't see your spouse
or for weeks at a time, but it paid off.
And but I know I never doubted that he could
do it if he wanted to. When did the trajectory
actually start to turn around? And not heavily It doesn't
have to like full, but were you two together to go, well,
(28:20):
we have a little bit of traction this, we're not
just in the hole, Like when what was that? What happened?
I think when it really started to be like okay, whoa,
this this could be big? Was um when he put
out Country Girl. I think were you guys married by then?
Okay we had kids? Yeah? Okay, oh so you kids?
(28:43):
Where did you guys get married? Tursh Okay? So I'm
assuming there weren't a lot of people out there. We
just told friends like whoever wants to come, come, So
I think we had probably it was about of us. Yeah,
that's about what I would imagine not four it and
oh god no, So you go to Turks and Kike Ghosts,
(29:03):
which I don't even know if you gave me a map.
I'm assuming it's down there by Cuba somewhere, and the
it's about I guess about four hundred and naughty something
mouse south of Miami area. Let me know my geography.
Come on, so you go to Turks and Cake ghost
How did he propose? Let's back it up a little bit. Um,
(29:24):
he proposed. I had been gone two weeks working in Indiana.
I came home and he came outside the house and
he had shaved, which you know, Luke shaving doesn't happen much.
And I was like, okay, and he dressed he had
dressed up. I thought he just missed me. And he
had made this CD of like our favorite songs in college.
(29:44):
And then he told me he was taking me somewhere
to eat. And then he put a blindfold on me,
which I thought. I knew something was up then, because
you know, that's just not get blindfolded every Saturday night.
Oh god, no, no, we're not. We're not like that. Um.
And then he took me and he just walked me
up these steps and he took it off and he
(30:07):
was on one name, and I'm assuming it was an
easy yes, yeah, of course. Yeah. So you get married
and and we're traveling for work. What was the job
that you were doing, like when you're in Cincinnati, Like,
what was that job? Specifically? I was a drug rap
so we always had to go have training, like because
I was always learning a new drug. So you'd go
(30:29):
away for two weeks, sometimes a month. It was just
it was just constant, like an artist's life. But it
was me. Hell, Like, I guess that's all I've ever
known now, so I mean, I guess I never thought
about that. But yeah, yeah, it sounds like a lot
of road time, a lot of hotels. Oh god, yea
(30:50):
hotel food, and so you must know what it's like
then to be a traveling artist, especially in the early stages,
because you stay in crappy hotels and they eat the
same kind of food over and over again. Yeah, but yes,
but no, but you know Luke like, oh my gosh,
the starting days he would be on. There was a
time when he had fourteen flights in seven days, and
(31:13):
you know, I mean he's just exhausted, but he never
he never stopped. So but you get married and Luke
has a record deal. When you get married, yes, okay,
so how do you support like, what do you do?
Do you can you quit your job at that point?
(31:34):
I mean no, I supported us really for how long? Shoot?
Oh my gosh, I don't even know. Not terrible. I mean,
he always made money, but you know, he was doing
all these free shows and I had I had a
good job, so yeah, I mean, and that was my
point with the record deal. When you sign a record deal,
sometimes you go into the hole even more because again
(31:56):
you have to do free shows because the record company
used to go and suck up to the radio station.
So you have to play a show over the radio
station and you don't get paid for so you actually
it's worse financially for you. So he's quite lucky that
he had you at the time. He would have been fine.
He would have been fine, like Luke would have always
(32:17):
you know, sad, hustled. He would have been fine. But
I mean, but yeah, just us having a house and
but yeah, but and then you know he was on
my insurance and so that always helped. But which is
sounds weird to like, I'm like, no, he was on
my insurance and people don't get that. I'm like, but that, yeah,
you have to have insurance. But what about you moving
(32:38):
up here? What was that story? Oh? I was ready.
I never thought twice about it. Did he say, hey, Caroline,
move up here? Yeah? And I said, okay, that was it.
I've never been I've never been homesick once, truly. Do
you get back home often? I don't. I don't because
we're everything is so busy here. You know, We've our
(32:59):
kids are here, we they have lives, Luke, and I mean,
we're constantly on the go. So I don't want I
need to want to play you a voicemail. This is
a listener was in Vegas and Luke was doing his
residency there and you guys were all there, um. And
I only played this because I knew that you had
publicly shown on social media that you were all there.
(33:21):
Otherwise I would have just not said it. I would
have kept it off the air. But this is Julian St.
Louis who had this question. And then I'll let you respond.
I'll tell you how I responded, but go ahead. Hey,
So I just had a question. I was at the
Luke Brian concert. This past weekend in Vegas, and I
saw his wife and boys in the concert and they
were just sitting there watching, And of course the boys
(33:42):
were like bored out of their mind and it made
me laugh. No one like said anything to them, no
one like knew that it was them. And so my
question is, can I go say hello? Would that have
been not? Okay? Like, what's the rule on famous people's family?
So I thought this was a great question, And so
(34:05):
what is your personal rule, especially in this situation when
she sees the whole family out together watching Luke? Okay? So,
first of all, we um are super careful, especially if
I have my kids out in the crowd. So we
did have two guards around us, and they they did
(34:26):
stop some some people. Um, but anybody can come up
and say, hey, just I just don't touch my children,
and you know that's what I said, Yeah, I just
just just don't touch my kids because that's happened in
the past. And you know, this is a stage where
there is no side stage, so we can't stand side
(34:47):
stage and watch Luke. So but everything went so smoothly
and people were awesome. So but yeah, I mean people
can come up and say, hey, just don't grab a child,
because then I will go into psycho mode. My general
answer to that if someone's like, hey, when can I
not say hello to somebody they have their eating or
(35:07):
with their kids, Like generally that's the rule. They're at
a table eating, there's food in front of them, leave
them alone. But that never happens. Yeah, you know that
never happens. But I try to make it happen more.
I tried. And then if they're with their kids, and
what I told her specifically was if she's by you,
(35:28):
say hello to Caroline. And if there's a situation where
Caroline is taking pictures, but don't ask for the kids
to be in a picture, don't write, don't ask of
the kids anything. And if for some reason Caroline is like, hey,
my kids are here, do you want them to be
in the picture, then you can allow that. But kids
are a whole different level that you guys didn't sign
(35:48):
up for them to be in this life. And so um,
I you know, I think that's the eating part. The
people let me run this by you, and I don't
know how if you guys can even go to dinner anymore,
we totally can. I think we know our places and
the times and you know, I mean, if you're with Luke,
(36:08):
it's gonna be tough. I don't care. But here in
town it's not that bad. But I mean, people are
going to come up and say, I'm so sorry to
bother you. That's just how it goes. It always starts
off with I'm so sorry to bother you. But I'd
rather have that. I think our pet peeve is when
(36:31):
a person comes up to us and goes, you don't
know who I am? Do you? It's the hardest. Yeah,
it's yeah, it's tough. I just like, why would you
do that to a person? What's my name? You don't
know who I am? Do you? We met once? Who
am I? I like, I don't meet in Green Tublow,
I don't know what you met? Ten million people like,
(36:54):
I'm so sorry I don't but yeah, that's so. But yeah,
if you're eating in public, I wonder. And the level
of what I do is nothing to the level of Luke's.
But what it has been difficult for us only recently
in the last couple of years, has been people will
just film us eating the whole time and an awkward
(37:18):
by and you know what, I'm okay with it, but
my wife, it just doesn't want to be and she's like, oh,
she just feels uncomfortable. But someone's got a phone like
recording us eating and they think that they're slides. They're like, yes,
they're they're pointing their phone like over here, but look
(37:39):
in the opposite way and they're like, dude, I know
what you're doing. I mean, And the reality is I
love to meet people if if i'm as much says hey,
you know, if I get a picture, if I'm on
two feet and I'm not eating or with your kids,
you have to add you know, I'm happy to take
a picture anytime anywhere. But I just wondered about the
eating part, like if you that's can even go to
(38:00):
a restaurant, And if so, do you have to have
do you have to get somewhere specific or I mean
it's it's going to happen anywhere. But we're so accustomed
to it. But we've taught our our kids got in
trouble wants because I do want them to be respectful.
So that a guy came up to our table and
(38:21):
Luke and I had been talking, so we let our
boys play on their phone just to give us a
minute to talk. Well, a guy comes up to our
table and is saying hey, and our boys were still
playing on their phone when the guy left, they got
in so much trouble because that's just I mean, I
was like, boys, don't you ever do that again. I mean,
I don't care who it is. Put the phone down,
(38:42):
look them in the eye, and just say hello. So
I'm weird about that too, because I just want I
don't want my kids to ever ignore a human. It
sounds like being a great parent is like priority number
one for you. Yeah, of course, Like that's that's the
thing that like when I we've talked about a bunch
of stuff and still have a lot of stuff talk
(39:03):
to you about. But that's when I really see like
strong love and opinion come out of you, Like you
get the face like this is what I really care about. Yeah.
I just wanted to make them gentlemen and with good manners.
And I mean, I don't care if they're they're never
gonna be the smartest kids in the class. That ain't
gonna happen with with my family, but they can have
(39:25):
the best manners and just open doors for girls. Stand
up if a girl comes to a table, shake hands, Yes, ma'am, yes, sir,
please thank you or they know that I'll I'm not
going to say hit them because you can't say that anymore,
but I might. We just have to know that. I
(39:46):
want to talk for a second and again we'll break
back in that in a minute. But best bad Influence
dot Com. Now if you go to that site, what
what's there? You tell me? So we started a merch
line on a while back, and that's been like my
tagline since I was a kid, because something happened years
(40:09):
ago when I was called a bad influence and I
was not, and so I was like, well, if I'm
a bad influence, I'm the best bad influence that this
person will ever have. And so I've said that, And
so we started a march line and it's done. It's
better than we ever thought. So we're just going to
keep on building it. So what kind of march are
(40:29):
we talking about? Here? T shirts, cups, stickers. Um, We're
gonna do a pop up shop at Luke's Bar on
in Town. This will be thirty eight March. We're going
to give away a cooler scooter, which I've had like
twelve of those, So it's gonna be a cooler scooter.
I think I saw you writing that on your Instagram, right,
(40:49):
that's what that was. Yeah, I love him a cooler scooter.
And so will you be at this pop up shop?
Of course? Yes, I don't know. I'll be there. We'll
be surrounded by humongous a uity guards. Don't look at
her in the eye. I don't know. I would never
do that. No, I want to play a song for you.
(41:12):
This is to the Moon and Back. Here is a
clip I blow somethingbody to the moon through the words
me in the through. So word is this is the
(41:37):
first song he wrote about you? Is that true? Okay?
So he did not write this song, but he heard
it and I think McGraw had it on hold, but
Luke went't asked for it because that's kind of like
our our family line. I love you to the Moon
and Back. So he recorded it and he told me
(41:58):
it was for me, which is very sweet. So when
he heard it, it it reminded him of you. Yes, okay,
here is sorority girl. This is and you can tell
me if this is true or not. It describes your
budding relationship while in college. Is this is this true?
This song? Which which part I don't know? Let's play
a little bit of it, Jeff try and some of
(42:28):
the stuff on the internet is not true some so
I just like to ask the questions, is this sorority girl?
Is this about your relationship of college? I don't think
it's about our relationship. But he did put ad pive
first because that's what I was in college. So I
told him. I was like, if you write a song
about a sorority, you have to put mine first. So
there is your influence on the song, just just a
(42:49):
little bit. After many many years, if he writes a
song and he's like, hey, Carolyss, reminds me of you,
or I wrote this thinking about you a little bit,
is it like song? No? I think it's so sweet.
But do you know what he did do? And he
did it all wrong? And someday he'll tell you about this.
(43:09):
We went on a two day trip just to be
alone because we never get time alone. He goes, I
want to play you this song he wrote. It's it's
a great song. First of all, he wrote it. He goes,
I want you to hear this. And so we're sitting
out on the balcony having a glass of wine and
the song is called married for for the kids, and
(43:32):
I'm listening to it and I'm like, I'm staring at him.
You know, Luca's clueless. He's like it in this good
and I'm like, what, so what are you trying to
tell me? I was like, it was just the wrong
time to approach me with this song, like it's a
song called it's a great song. He goes, I want
you to hear this, or I just wrote it. It's
called married for the kids. I said, Luke, I mean,
(43:55):
this is just the wrong time to like, are you
trying to tell me something? Do you bring me here
alone to tell me something? And he just begat. I
was like, He's like, I'm sorry, that was the wrong
time to ever bring that up. When you were younger,
did you have anyone say, Caroline, you should perform because
I feel like natural never not singing, but maybe on stage.
(44:19):
Um no, no acting. No. Um. Well, I think I
was scarred early because well, first of all, I have
no talent. I can't sing, and I kind of got
kicked out of ballet class when I was in the
third or fourth grade. They politely told my mom that
I should not come back, so I don't think I should. Evidently,
(44:44):
I was disrupted, but they never thought she's funny. She
has a presence about no one told you to any
I'd like to get an entertainment in anyway. I mean
when I was a senior, I was voted wittiest in
my class, but I never embraced like how I truly
am until honestly, until I was in college. I mean,
(45:07):
I've never really I just played this role of you know,
because I played sports author high school, so I never
I mean I was goofy, I did weird stuff, but
I just never thought about it truly. Let's go back
and jump back on the timeline for a second. When
when in Luke's career, then did it go from while
(45:28):
we're gaining a little traction to well, this thing is
actually going to be a monster, and this is gonna
be so much success that yes, it's great, but there
are also some other elements of success that can be um,
maybe not troublesome, but it's just you're not prepared for
some of it because you get so famous. Um. I
think my first and it took years, but I think
(45:51):
my first big freakout was when he told me at
the beach once he goes, hey, I'm having dinner. I
think I'm going to be a judge on American Idol,
and I didn't know how to because he was already touring, songwriting,
you know, just being Luke. And I remember I just
I went for a jog and I was going for
(46:12):
an hour and a half. So that really shook you
a little bitter. I did, because I was scared. I
didn't know how to handle it. I was like, how
how are we going to handle your touring and l
A and all this, And so that was my first
big just I mean, I had not a meltdown, but
I just had. I was just scared. So I just
(46:33):
took off and because he was supposed to go a
jog with me, and then I just I just shot out.
And he had he was wildly successful as an artist.
And but and correct me if I'm wrong. That grew
a little by a little by medium and you were
kind of able to nurture that as it got bigger
and bigger. Or the American Idol thing was just like
(46:56):
coming from left field and like boom ABC, He's launching
their version of American Idol. Judge gone like all that.
You didn't have time to sit with it. I didn't
so then I mean he just told me. He goes,
I've got to have dinner. And Luke always holds back
any info that think that if he thinks it's going
(47:18):
to freak me out, he holds it back into the
last second, which is not really the smartest thing. So
don't do that with Kaitlin. But yeah, just give her
time to process stuff, especially if it's something big like that.
But when he goes, Okay, look, I've got to go
have dinner tonight, Um, I think I'm going to be
a judge on American Idol, And so I didn't have.
(47:42):
I was like, what how are we going to handle
something else? You know, we still have all these kids?
And so I freaked out. But then you know, when
it started happening, it wasn't it wasn't as bad. I mean,
it's still tough because you know, you're still gone. You've
done it far long hours, multiple days in a row.
(48:04):
It's tough, and it's it's tough on a on a wife.
It's just because we you know, we truly miss having
y'all around, but we understand that you have this drive.
But I just really had to wrap my head around it.
Did you and in our relationship and I've only we've
only been married six or seven months. But you know,
the struggle that we have is that for my life,
(48:30):
I have been very focused on my career and have
been just chipping away. And I don't have some you know,
crazy talent that people were like, Wow, you're twenty two,
let's give you all these great jobs. I've had to
really work in grind to get opportunities that built opportunity
to build opportunities. So now here I am and I'm
finally starting to have really nice opportunities, large opportunities. And
(48:54):
so I've known Caitlin for a few years, we've been
married for a little less than one, but she only
no was that version of of me where I'm getting
these opportunities and we're deciding together. But now they're all
coming at once and I can't believe it. I'm like, Wow,
that's a big and I'll take it. Wow, that's a
big one. I'll take it. And so we've had to
kind of make uh a word of that stuff for me.
(49:15):
We've had to compromise. And then I said, Hey, I'm
gonna do this show for Disney Plus and then I'm
gonna stay off the road. I'm gonna do stand up.
I'm gonna for three months and then I'm going to
take this show with this other network. But we've had
to compromise in that way. Did you find that you
and Luke had to find and dedicate time to just
(49:36):
him being Luke the dad and father, I guess the
same person, but the dad and like Nashville Guy, was
there a space where it's like, you can't do this
all the time or you're not gonna have the family.
Well that's what we've done. I mean, so I don't
know what Caitlin does, you know, on her world, but
(49:57):
every girl has to have her her own world, whether
it's a job or whether it's hobbies, friends. Um, I
don't think people like you and Luke are going to
ever change. You're gonna wanna drive drive, drive, go go go.
That that's just that's just your personality and there's nothing
wrong with that. Um. But for years, you know, I've
(50:19):
I've just been a mom with children, going back and
forth to see Luke and you know, trying really embracing
his dream. And so now that our kids are a
little bit older, you know, I'm doing things that I
never thought I would do. But it's been fun. But
but still, I mean, y'all can't change. You're still gonna go.
(50:42):
I want to do this. I want to do this,
and as long as she's okay with it, do it.
But I find myself not honoring. Does it seems sound
terrible to say, not honoring the promises completely because I
will say I will not go on the road for
three months, So no again, no touring, no TV show.
Can you do that? Well, here's what happens. Well it
(51:05):
comes up, Well, I go, well, I was just offered
a private comedy show in Vegas. It's five thousand people
and the money, and here's the money, and I can't
believe it does the same thing. And I'm like, you
have to live. And she's like, okay, if you think
it's worth it, then sure that this is what you
told me. But honest, she's like, but if you this
is worth it, do it. I'm like, thank you, and
I'll go do it. And I'd be like, I just
got off another one and it's not going to stop.
(51:28):
I try, but I just I'm not. I'm gonna say
I'm a bad person. It's not been it's not being
about Luke does this stuff to me every week, right,
And so he's like, Okay, well, I gotta do this
soon because he's he's been gone for almost a month.
We've traveled back and forth to see and then he
called me and he goes, okay, I've got to do
this March first, March second, like okay, okay, okay, okay.
(51:52):
But the more, I mean, he's so focused on building,
building building, and then some day he says it he
just wants to just stop. Every same I just want
to cult you will never stop, You'll never stop. I
just want to build it to a point where I
feel safe and I'm gonna quit everything and just hangsity.
(52:13):
But I do have a dream that I would be
able to do that. But you can cut back a
lot and they have a nice nest egg. But you
guys will never tell he stop. There's no way. I
guess the difference in me is. And then Luke looks
a lot richer than I am. So I still fear
that I'm going to be broke one day. Every man
(52:35):
thinks that, which I mean I think, I mean, I
don't worry about that, but what if something happens. What
if Luke says one wrong word and you just I
think that's normal, especially if you come from nothing and
you build, you work your ass off and then you
have something great. It's normal. H You mentioned the kids
(53:01):
getting older and you're starting to kind of find yourself
in a different space. Like what you know? I asked
you in tenth grade? But what is the dream now?
I still don't know. I don't, I don't. I mean
this is all like like I said, I spent fourteen
years raising kids, and you know, we're working around Luke's life.
(53:22):
That so a few things happened that we didn't plan on.
And I truly I'm having fun in the moment and
just trying to keep kids alive, trying to keep Luke alive.
I just want to be real selfish in this question
for you though the kids five years from now, the
(53:44):
kids are great. You don't have to worry about them.
You always got to worry about them, but you don't
have to worry about it. And it's like, and Luke
says Caroline, I wanted to help you do what you
want to do. What do you want to do? I'm
giving you full support, time, effort. What do you want
to do? I want to take a nap? Can you
imagine just sleeping past like five am for me. No,
(54:07):
I don't have to wake up for kids if you
wake up from radio show. But um, but what what
is it if you don't know? Some of the most
people I know still don't know right now, I truly
don't know. I mean we're playing it. I mean I've
enjoyed you know, you know, being on podcast, meeting all
these people, you know, traveling, I've enjoyed that. But my
(54:27):
happiest times are when we're all at home. That's the
doing your own show. I don't know about any of that.
I mean, I don't think I have the talent for
any of that. I would disagree. I think you have
the I think you have the natural intuition to do
that and you just have to learn the format. Well.
I have such a healthy fear. It's not healthy. I
(54:52):
just have like this fear of failing anything. I just
don't want to. That's what that holds me back from
a lot. But we're trying. We're trying stuff. I mean,
this one over here is pushing me to do everything.
And people can't say here, but her name is Nicole.
She's young, but she's an old soul. She's pushing you
(55:14):
to do everything. We're just not pushed me, but just
encouraging me to try difference or maybe you won't do
anything and then we miss out because you're not doing it.
I'm still like, I just see honestly, I mean, I'm
just being realistic. I'm not you know, I'm not Luke.
(55:36):
I don't have his I don't Luke's special. He just
I don't think now though, that people look at you
as and I'm gonna I'll say this as honestly as possible,
right to your face. I don't think people just look
at you as Luke's wife anymore. That's the that's the
God's honest truth. It's very sweet. I think people used
to know you as Luke's wife, but I don't think
(55:56):
now Caroline is just associated as Luke Bryan's why life well,
and that's me watching from afar, And that's also me
watching from medium to close. You know, Luke and I
have a relationship. You and I've spent a little time together.
Um and then also I get to watch just on
social media and I get to see you doing other stuff.
So I think you're actually kind of breaking out of
(56:18):
the of a wonderful shell that you can also live
in that you're just not You're just not Luke's wife anymore.
You'll always be Luke's wife and my mom. But now
you're starting to be freaking Caroline. And that's awesome, just terrifying.
Yes it is. You never know what I'm gonna do
and that, but that's what's great for us, maybe not
for you. That's great for us is that you never
know what you're gonna do or say. Let me mention
(56:40):
a few things again, and then I'll end on one
question here because we've done almost an hour here. Okay, first,
best bad Influence dot Com if you want to check
out Caroline's merch and then they will be at a
pop up shop with all new merch March at Short
Things Cigars in thirty eight Florida's Yeah, like me, I
can read um at Brett's Barn to follow the rescue animals,
(57:04):
which is wonderful or bright for Brett for more info
on general heart disease, down syndrome and what the Brett
Boyer Foundation does. And you are very involved in so
many things, Like I think it's really cool. I think
it's really cool how you balance out all the things
That's why I lead with the question like, how do
you how do you balance two different lives front facing
(57:26):
and inward facing. I don't know if I can just
be known for I mean this, this sounds so fake,
but it's not. If I could just be known for
helping and just get giving back, then I mean, you know,
if we're blessed with all this stuff and if we
don't give back, then shame on us. So that's truly,
that's that's really it all right here. This is my
(57:48):
final little line up questioning. I've I did not get
married till later in my life because I just I
mean I didn't. I never wanted to marry anybody. Honestly,
I never told a single person I loved him. I
never so finally I did, and I do and it's
and it was unlike anything that I'd ever experienced with
(58:08):
a person. And now we've been married six months the
first year of marriage. What's your advice about the first
year of marriage? Because for me, at times, I live
by myself forever. I know, I'm not the easiest person
to She kind of has to rebreak me in because
I've been so selfish and not that it's just I
(58:30):
keep everything not in that but selfish and it's my time.
I've only ever knowniced take care of myself. What is
your first year of marriage advice? Well, first of all,
being selfish without kids and a wife, that's not a
bad thing. That's your time to be selfish and do
whatever you want. First year, I think is the same
(58:51):
as every year. Talk talk, talk, don't don't ever not
tell each other how you're feeling, and there there is
no secret as long as both people are in and
putting it in work. But always talk communication times I
say things when talking that makes it uncomfortable, well, then
(59:14):
shut your mouth and just give her a minute. That's
the thing that I've also learned is to let her
process because I struggle, Like, we have a lot in comments.
So if she's mad, do you want want to talk
it out then and not give her I don't. I
do not want to give her a moment for anything,
because I'm like, looks the same way. I wait till
the last second and then I say okay, and then
(59:36):
I'm like, don't be mad. You can't be mad. Why
are you mad? And I'm just like ah, and try
to fix it real quick. Man can't okay? Men are fixers.
I'll learn this in therapy a while back. Man want
to fix everything right then sometimes you can't fix it.
Just I'm the same way. If I'm mad, Luke needs
to just give me a moment, which he can't. God,
(01:00:00):
he wants to fix it right then sometimes you can't
fix it. You can just listen, even if we sound ridiculous,
just listen. But you can't fix it. Sometimes I feel
like maybe she goes, why did I marry him? No,
she doesn't. She just wants a moment alone. Well, let's
hope that's the case. She doesn't think. Let's hope that's
(01:00:22):
the case. All right, You guys follow Caroline l I
n A Brian three. When people ask you that, do
you say Lena Brian three or it looks like it
is Lina and I get called Lena all the time,
but that was my nickname in college was Lana, like
Carolina in the morning, which that's my singing voice. Pretty goodhead.
(01:00:46):
A lot of labels are on the phone right now,
So yeah, Lina Brian three. Uh, you've been a real
as always. You've been a real treat to talk to.
Thank you for having and I appreciate you coming over
and I don't know if you've ever done an hour before,
but you know, I feel like you could do another hour.
So that's what do All right, here we go Part two?
All right, LINEA Brian three. You guys follow her and
if you can help the Brett Boyer Foundation. And I
(01:01:07):
think the best way to help is just to learn,
and then from learning you make decisions. But if you
never learned, you never know and you but people always go, hey,
how can I help? Well, if you just read a
little bit about it and learn about it, like that's enough.
That's all the help that I could ask for anyone
to give. And then if you're motivated, inspired to actually
do more than great, and if not, you already did
more than I could have ever hoped you would do.
(01:01:29):
And so I hope you guys check it out, all right,
um Lina Brian three on Instagram and good to see.
Thank you guys, Thank you
Hey, welcome to episode three thirty five. Caroline Brian, who
you know asn't a song writer, but as extremely interesting
and has been, you know, in the music world in
a different capacity. So she's doing a lot to give back,
and that's really the reason we brought her on. But
there's so much interesting stuff about her life, about Luke's life,
things that I didn't even know, so that was pretty cool. Uh.
(00:25):
Caroline Brian went to Georgia Southern University, which we talked
about here, you're actually here, we go where'd you go
to school? So I'm only saying this afterward because now
I know her dad was a social specialist, her mom
worked as an operator and an insurance company, and you know,
Caroline went to school and had her own career going.
And she talks about for a while when Luke was
starting out, she was supporting Luke and it's interesting, you know,
(00:47):
you're in a marriage and at times, at different times,
both people have to kind of step up and help
in different ways. And you know, it's just a look
at her if you haven't spent any time getting to
know her, and also maybe a different look at Luke.
And the one thing in this that Luke told her
that kind of shook her and she was like, wow,
like of all the things Luke said, I'm doing this,
and I was. I guess I wasn't surprised, and I
(01:08):
won't say what it is here, but I was, Um,
I wasn't I guess that that was so impactful. Was
surprising that it was kind of later. Yeah, I thought
it would be something early on same you know, like
Luke wins is first Entertainer of the Year or but
it was something later that I wouldn't have considered from
(01:30):
where I sit to be that big of a deal.
I thought it. I felt a little more normal at
that point. Yeah, but then when she said it, I
was like, yeah, I guess you're right. That kind of
came out of nowhere. So you'll hear her talk about that.
Just love this. I think you'll love it too. And
Caroline Brian Luke Brian's wife, but so much more than that,
and that's why we had her on. So enjoy the episode.
Here you go, Caroline, good to see you again. I
(01:56):
was on your Instagram story the other day. I saw
that you had gotten your maybe SUV your car stuck
in a bunch of mud. What what happened. I was
flipping through so fast, but it looked like the tire
was so deep into the mud that it almost seemed
like you should have known there was mud. It wasn't
like surprised mud. It wasn't a surprised mud. I didn't know.
(02:16):
So first of all, I um, I bought this big
van because all I do is car pool, you know,
with a bunch of So it's a big van. It's
not like just a MANI van. It's a big van.
And it's been raining a ton. And so I told
T and I said, let's go check on Brett's barn
to see if it's flooded, because we've been flooded today,
(02:39):
like we've She's been transporting animals all day. So I
went to take a turn to go check on the
big horses, and I just I got stuck, and I said, baby,
we're welcome back to the house. I'm sorry. And so
how did you get the van out of the mud.
Did someone come and pull it out? Oh? Absolutely, did
(03:00):
have that truck at your house to pull it out?
Got it? Do you feel like a little bit you
live too? Completely different lives at the same time, meaning
and knowing. Luke now more than just in a professional
relationship myself and then knowing you a little bit as well.
(03:20):
There is this the life that you guys live that
is very front facing. There's a bit of fame, notoriety, um,
the success of Luke and now your success, like that's
all the thing and like wow. But then also at
home it just feels like that doesn't exist and you
(03:40):
have mud in a barn, and it just feels like
two different lives and not in a good way or
a bad way. But if they're so different to me,
do you feel that way? I do and I don't.
I think they're both. So I think that's why people
can kind of connect with us, because yeah, I mean
(04:02):
Luke is so big. He is, and but when we're
home my favorite thing, like on a Saturday or a Sunday,
if I'm home, I'm at the bar and I'm feeding
the animals. You know, animals are climbing all over me,
I'm stepping in poop and but it's so but people
like that to you know, not not everything is fancy,
(04:24):
and but you're not doing it for them to like that,
I guess, is my point. It's just us though, because
there are other brother sisters, siblings of stars who if
they had and they do have the ability, and they're
just like, why would I ever clean up after an animal?
We're rich now, yeah, and that's not us that right,
and that you have the the life of you are.
(04:46):
You can do what you want at this point because
of your family success. But yet you still, for lack
of a better term, keep it extremely real. Well that's
all that we know. Because we're both from small towns
in Georgia. You know, we didn't grow up with much.
I mean, you know, we weren't, you know, poor poor,
but we didn't grow up with much but um and life.
(05:07):
We've always said that life somehow has a way of
making you humble. So either you stay humble or or
life is going to do it for you. And you know,
we've had some knocks in life to where I don't
think we could ever even if we tried, I don't
think we could ever change how we are because you know,
Luke's Lucas Luke. He just wants to fish and hot, truly,
(05:28):
I mean, he loves being he loves being seen, that's
his thing. But no, I mean I can't imagine ever
having somebody doing everything for me that would drive me nuts.
How do you raise kids with again their dad and
now their mom? Uh? Famous? Famous? I mean, there's no
(05:51):
other way to say it, just famous and wildly successful.
And I asked that question and that you know, eventually
my wife and I are gonna have kids. And I
grew up in pretty extreme poverty. But my kids will
not grow up in poverty. They won't And so I
often wonder, like, how how the crap am I supposed
(06:12):
to do that? And how do I instill values because
they're not going to be instilled the same way they
were instilled into me because mine were forced into me,
but they kind of can be. So you were raised
a certain way, so you have a work ethic installed
in new that you can't take out, right, Yeah, but
how did they They're not going to have that because
they're they can you make them do chores and you
(06:35):
make them this is what I'm asking. If they want
a game, if they want this, I mean, you make
them work for it. And if they have their you know,
we always have their friends over it. That's just like
our house where all the boys come, but they all
get a trash bag and they clean up because you know,
I mean it can. It can become like a circus
(06:57):
with a bunch of kids. I make them go and
clean up everything. That's what they do, or they can't
do anything. And if they want a game, I'll make
takeo wash my car. So nothing comes for free. You know,
sometimes it's okay to go, y'all been good, so let's
go have ice cream. That that's okay, But because you
do want to spoil them a little bit because you
(07:20):
didn't have that, And like I'm an overbearing mom every
you know, I'm up every morning with the kids, making
them from breakfast because I didn't have, you know, a
mom my. Mom was fabulous, but she had to be
at work, so I've had to make mom breakfast and
this and this and this and so now I'm trying
(07:40):
to pull back some from from going here's your breakfast, sweetie,
here because I didn't have that, but I wanted it.
It sounds to me, as again not a parent myself yet,
that there's a line and you never quite walk it right,
and you're always trying to find it and you're trying
to stay as close to it all the time. You'll
never do anything right. It's just you just learned from
what you do wrong, which everybody knows. I've screwed up
(08:02):
a million times. But with a parent, you're not going
to do everything right. But they're going to know that
my mom and dad are there. They're going to know
that what was your hometown? Like very small, but it
was awesome? What's it called Sandersville, Georgia? Sandersville? And what's
in sanders if I'm driving up to it right now? Like,
(08:22):
what do I see in Sandersville? So we are the
Kaolan capital of the world. I don't know what kaola is?
Chalk chalk mines, Okay, So there are there a lot
of holes, yes, yes, and so that's where almost everybody
worked or somehow that's just how that was our town.
But a lot of chalk mines. So I grew up
(08:44):
in a town that we had a like a sawmill,
So we were known for me a huge sawmill. And
the industry in that town was everyone that worked in
the sawmill. Is that what the mines are like? There? Is?
Are there a lot of jobs created by the mind
still today almost everything? Yes? And you mean like school chalk,
so chalk is in I mean it's a medicine. I
(09:06):
have no idea You're going to teach me something right now,
it's in a ton of things and it gets shipped out.
We have trains, we have truck I mean, you know,
it's it's being shipped out everywhere. But eventually it's gonna
be mined out. So so my town, I don't know
what's gonna we We went through this in my town,
the saw mill shut down, and not that this is
(09:29):
what's gonna happen to your town, but a lot of
what's happened in my town is it's dying or dead.
And it sucks because there's no reason to go to
my town now because it was only built for the
sawmill and it struggles. And I do my part to
try to help and keep it afloat. But I understand
what it's like to have like a central industry in
(09:50):
the town that keeps it afloat. And you're a mining
town where your parents involved in the mining industry at all.
My mom um was a therapist and my but my
my father did work for the chalk mines. He did,
and that's just kind of how it was. And so
I'm just I didn't know there were so many uses
for chalk. I thought, basically you wrote three times three,
(10:12):
and there's a ton there's a ton of stuff which
I can't even explain at all. And I grew up there,
but there is all kinds of stuff. So in this town,
like geographically where is it? We are kind of in
the heart of Georgia. Were kind of in the middle
of everything. Um, we are an hour and a half
from Atlanta, an hour and a half from Athens, hour
(10:34):
and a half from States for two hours from Savannah.
So it sounds like you couldn't be any more Georgian
than where you're from. Your right in the middle of everything.
And so kind of kid are in high school? What
kind of student are you? I was a good kid, um.
I played sports, you know, I never Everybody now thinks,
oh she's so, she's naughty, but I was. I was
(10:56):
a really good kid. I didn't get into a ton
of trouble. I got into a little bit it. I
played sports, and I was just your typical kid. But
what was the dream in like tenth grade? You did
you want to graduate and leave town? Did you want
to like, did you have a future for you in
your mind? Tenth grade? I honestly thought that I would
be in my hometown forever. And I was fine with that,
(11:18):
and it's a great hometown. But that that was my
I never saw outside of that short term period. I
just didn't. So you finished high school and then what
my first week in college? I'm at Luke that quick?
That quick? Yeah, and you guys were at school where
Georgia Southern in Statesboro? And how did you meet Luke
(11:40):
your first week? It's some sort of freshman uh you
know everybody okay? So naturally, so the first time in
a bar? It was your first time in a bar?
Well it was, it was it was my third. But
I wasn't a drinker in high school, so I didn't,
you know, I didn't go to bars. And so I
(12:01):
went to a bar my first week in college and
I met Luke. Do you remember meeting Luke like that?
Not just like we I know we met it, but
do you remember the thoughts of hey, I see that guy,
or like how did how did you two start talking?
What was the approach? Well? He sent Okay, so I
walk into a bar. You know, I'm I'm a freshman.
(12:22):
I don't know anything. You know. Classes started the next day.
Was he a freshman too, or was the older he
was a senior? So I was. I was a freshman.
He was a senior, and you know, I'd only met
a hand, I didn't meet a ton of people. And
so I walked into a bar with my friends and
I keep seeing across the bar like just this these
(12:44):
white teeth. No, I'm not kidding, And I was like,
what is like this? This guy was smiling at me,
and I'm like, okay, I mean he he was adorable,
but I didn't think a thing about it. And then
he sent a friend over to say hey for him, yes,
which is not like Luke. But then eventually he came
(13:04):
over and he said hey, and we started talking and then, um,
we were friends. You're doing, I am, you can't see.
We were friends for two weeks and then you know
you started dating. Yes, So if he was a senior,
does that mean he graduated or left pretty soon after that? Uh? Well,
(13:26):
he stayed an extra year and a half. And when
you met him? Was he this guy Luke that you
met and he liked? Was he a guy that you
know had big dreams to be a country music artist? Like? Wow,
under what pretense did you meet him? Meaning? Hi, I'm Luke,
I do so? And so was it? Student? Was it
hopefully artist. Well, he was singing, So that's all with Luke.
(13:46):
That's all I've ever known. So um, I mean he
would go on Fridays and Saturdays to other colleges and
he would go sing and he'd play shows. So that's
all I ever knew with him still is. You know,
he was gone, but he never really talked a ton about,
you know, moving here in a town. I always knew
(14:08):
that if he wanted it, he could. I just knew
he could. But um, a year passes and he's he's
about to graduate and he's you know, Luke was Luke
was already a senior. He'd already dated girls. I hadn't
dated around. I just was innocent and you know, a prude,
which I still kind of am. But um, he was
(14:32):
talking about marriage and I freaked out and we I said,
we have to break up. We just do. Usually it's
the opposite where at least with my friends because because
dudes are like, oh, marriage, well you get scared though
if you're not ready, you just freak out and get scared.
While so you said, that's a little too serious for me.
(14:54):
Let's pump the brakes, or let's break it up. We
broke up. We did, and um he moved home, and
then eventually eight months after that he moved here in
a town and which I was so happy for him.
I mean, did you think it was over for about Yes,
(15:16):
you did. There was a point where you really thought
it was. So let's keep this about you for a second.
I mean, listen, I love Luke too, but I can
see Luke anytime, you know, I don't get to see
you a whole lot. So I want to know about
you a little bit. You are a freshman and sophomore
in college. Why are you going to school to learn
what to do? What business? With the thought of I
(15:38):
always thought that I would own a real estate company
and white real estate. I don't know, I just liked it.
I just loved the thought, which now here if I
owned one here now great. But yeah, but um, this
was back into lord m I just And what's weird
is that I had named it. I was gonna name
(15:59):
it red red Door. And now everything about us is
read because of you know, charities and our home and
his sisters. So that's really odd. But so I don't
think anything just happens for a reason. I think everything
is set in place for something, But yeah, I thought
I would own a real estate company. Did you like college? Ye?
(16:22):
Was which part appealed to you more, the higher learning
or the social There's no higher learning in me. I
felt college algebra twice. So you're having a good time
in school. And do you end up finishing at Georgia Southern?
I did, and Luke is here. And while you're in school,
(16:45):
do you guys get back together? At some point? We
kept in touch through email because this is pretexting, this
is pre Facebook. Instagram said. There was no texting when
I was in college, and we kept in touch sporadically
through email. And then he was always in touch with
my brother also, so we kept in touch. But if
(17:10):
I if he had a show in town, I would
go always, which is kind of messed up, but we
would always say hey and hug, but then we'd go
our separate ways. But when did you feel like, Okay,
maybe this isn't all the way over Because if you're
going to shows and listen, what do I know? But
(17:32):
if you're going to shows and it's an ex boyfriend,
I would have to think that some little tiny part
of you thinks possibly there's a chance. Well, I always knew,
and I always said that he was the greatest guy
that I would ever date. And I would say that
whether I had been drinking or whether I was sober
(17:53):
in college. Um, but one night I was working in
a town on and I go to a bar, did
not have a clue, but Luke was playing and we
locked eyes. And that's been it ever since. So it's
like everything changed within two minutes. So let me see
(18:15):
if I got the story straight. You met, you broke up,
you weren't going to get back together. But then you randomly,
even though you ran one of some of the shows
when he was in town, you randomly went to a
place he was playing. Had no clue he was playing.
Really truly, I wasn't on the front door on the
drive there. Um, I was with my brother and his friends,
(18:36):
and my brother goes, well, guess who's playing it? Blah
blah blah, And I was like who And I was
in work close. I did not look like a cute
college kid, but I was already out of college. He goes,
Luke's playing here tonight. Now what okay? All right? All right, well,
here here we go and here we go. I didn't
know what to do. Um, but he was on stage
(19:00):
and we saw each other and it was like it
was it was something different and then but ever since
then it's been and from that moment though, you guys
were together. Well, I probably shouldn't say this. Um Luke
had to leave the stage early for something. So I
thought he left the stage early because he was trying
(19:22):
to avoid me. So I left and uh, my phone
rang about two am, and he goes, where did you go?
He left, and you didn't see him after he left.
It wasn't like he left and came back. Well he did,
he did, but I thought he just left to avoid me.
So I got upset. It's like a three company episode.
(19:42):
Everybody's confused, I know. And I said Bow, just which
Bow is? My brother? I said, Bow, just take just
you know, I'll go home because I had to get
up at six am to work anyway, I said, just
take me home. And I cried the whole way and
I said, well, I ruined everything with the best guy
I'd ever dated. I fel sleep too am his his
(20:03):
room phone rings. I mean, we still don't have cell
phones really, and it was looking. He goes, where did
you go? And I said, I thought that you didn't
I want to see me, and he goes, no, I'll
explain later, and then yeah, you're exactly right, that's what happened.
So and I want to come back to this part
(20:23):
of the story. But I do want to go back,
and I want to talk about Brett's barn for a second.
And you you mentioned the animals. Where did this love
of animals come from with you personally? Like, when did
it start to be a calling for you that I
want a big part of my life to be in
helping animals. Oh well, I grew up having all kinds
of animals, so I've always loved them. I mean, there
(20:45):
was never a time when I didn't love dogs, cats.
I grew up with pet turkeys, which pet turkeys well
ironically want to attacked me. But um later in life.
But when when Brett passed, when well, when she was
a baby, I was kidding around with my with you know,
(21:07):
my my sister lawn brother, and I said, I'm going
to get you a white pony. When she passed. You know,
we've been through tragedy and we've always been hands on,
Like right there in the moment, well, watching my um
family suffer, and I couldn't do anything about it. I
didn't know what in the world to do. So a
(21:30):
friend called me and she goes, oh my gosh, I'm
here at a rescue barn and there's a white pony
and I'm gonna save it if you want it, And
I said, no, I want it. So we adopted two
ponies and a goat, and that just kept going. And
so it's been it's just been great for us and
for for kids and families that can come out, because
(21:52):
some of these kids have been in hospital for a
year and when they can, you know, come out and
play why and their mom and dad just sit and
breathe and the kids be kids. It's the best thing ever.
So and now we're so attached that we just keep
We're going to keep adding on, so hopefully someday it'll
(22:14):
be public. What are some of the What are some
of your favorite animals. My lama is one of my
favorites because she is just her name is Peca. A
child at the hospital named her. Um. Oh my gosh,
she loves she loves pigs. I'm not the biggest pick
(22:35):
fan because I see what pigs eat and it is
so I really don't eat much pork. Anymore. But our
horses llamas, Oh my gosh, well they're all I love
my goats too, so but yeah, pigs, pigs. Have you
ever seen what pigs eat? Yes? I have. It's basically um,
(22:56):
an accumulation of the most disgusting things that you can
find and things that other things won't eat or use. Yes,
and all gathered together. Yes, we just slot pigs a
lot as a kid, and it's literal slot in the
slot because it's disgusting. Yeah, but they poop, yeah everything.
I just can't. I just can't. For you guys who
want to check it out, follow at Brett's Barn because
(23:16):
you can follow along with Caroline's Rescue animals. And she
started the barn in honor of her niece Bread who
passed away from c h D. Which we should talk
about the foundation. I think that leads to that. So
the Brett Boyer Foundation at Bright for for Brett and
so c h D is something that you are involved
heavily in. You know, what advancements have you seen since
(23:38):
you have directly gotten involved, or how can people also
help on a way that we actually feel like we're
doing something. Well, we've seen um through just our help
I mean they have how do you call it, it's
not a fake heart, it's a it's a model of
a heart that they can do. But they all so
(24:00):
have um no, but there's a different word and I've
gone blank. So they have a heart that they can
place into a child, and it's like a mechanical heart. God.
Um So we've seen that happen and that keeps a
child alive until they have a donor, which is amazing.
(24:20):
Created a mechanical heart that is like a placeholder for
a real hardness until but there's only a certain amount
of time, but it is they I mean we've seen
children live because of that and so but it has
to be funded, and so we do anything from research
to immediate help to mental health because these parents come
(24:44):
in with children and they have other kids at home
and they don't understand why they're mom and dad aren't home.
So it's we try to do everything all around. If
you guys want to check this out, go to apt
Bright for Brett and you know the working race finds
a good directly toward research initiative h D. And I
(25:04):
mean that mechanical heart is wild and even for thirty minutes,
even for five minutes that that would go in and
actually work as a placeholder for a heart so they
could do things to actually save the kid's life that
I did not know that. Wow, So yeah, be sure
to check that out at bright for bread. Well, let's
(25:28):
rewind you talk. Gluke calls you on some corded phone
from the hundred. I'm always yours. I had the same phones,
and he's like, all right, we should Then what happens
do you guys say, let's start over or let's just
pick up where we left off. How do you start
a relationship back after that long Well, so at this
(25:49):
time I was living in Georgia. He's in Nashville, and
I was traveling a good bit with the company I
was with. So this is just when texting just started happening.
So you know, I was just learning how to text. Seriously. Uh,
he called me. I was working in Cincinnati for like
(26:10):
two weeks and he called me out of the blue,
And so I invited him to my family's Christmas party
in Atlanta. He said, okay, he drove down, got there
at midnight, and we slept on some cot I don't
even know. I nothing happened. I swear it was like
a peck on the cheek and it's been we've been
(26:34):
together since then. What stage of his career was he
when you guys got back together, he had just signed
with Capital, And as we know, just because you signed,
I don't mean it doesn't mean I mean it actually
means probably more broke, because now you got to do
a bunch of freestyle. We were broke. Yeah. Yeah, So
(26:54):
you're with a struggling artist who I'm assuming I'm sure
that who you believed and as an artist, not just
as a man, because you believed in him, but what
did you see in him as a young artist that
led you to believe? And I think he could actually
do this? Well, I mean I think everybody who meets Luke,
(27:15):
I mean he's got this big. I mean, his personality
is huge. It's just you. You can't fake it. It's
just huge. And so I always knew that. I mean,
first of all, he's talented, but he can come in
and he can talk to anybody, and he can say
anything and it can come all funny, even if it's wrong.
(27:35):
He can laugh and it comes off okay. So I
just always knew that he could he could do it.
But then there were times when he doubted himself and
you know that's not like Luke. So it was like
there was a time where he really doubted that he
could do it and he was thinking about doing something else,
and I'm like, no, I don't think you should give up. Yeah,
(27:58):
even though it's hard when you don't see your spouse
or for weeks at a time, but it paid off.
And but I know I never doubted that he could
do it if he wanted to. When did the trajectory
actually start to turn around? And not heavily It doesn't
have to like full, but were you two together to go, well,
(28:20):
we have a little bit of traction this, we're not
just in the hole, Like when what was that? What happened?
I think when it really started to be like okay, whoa,
this this could be big? Was um when he put
out Country Girl. I think were you guys married by then?
Okay we had kids? Yeah? Okay, oh so you kids?
(28:43):
Where did you guys get married? Tursh Okay? So I'm
assuming there weren't a lot of people out there. We
just told friends like whoever wants to come, come, So
I think we had probably it was about of us. Yeah,
that's about what I would imagine not four it and
oh god no, So you go to Turks and Kike Ghosts,
(29:03):
which I don't even know if you gave me a map.
I'm assuming it's down there by Cuba somewhere, and the
it's about I guess about four hundred and naughty something
mouse south of Miami area. Let me know my geography.
Come on, so you go to Turks and Cake ghost
How did he propose? Let's back it up a little bit. Um,
(29:24):
he proposed. I had been gone two weeks working in Indiana.
I came home and he came outside the house and
he had shaved, which you know, Luke shaving doesn't happen much.
And I was like, okay, and he dressed he had
dressed up. I thought he just missed me. And he
had made this CD of like our favorite songs in college.
(29:44):
And then he told me he was taking me somewhere
to eat. And then he put a blindfold on me,
which I thought. I knew something was up then, because
you know, that's just not get blindfolded every Saturday night.
Oh god, no, no, we're not. We're not like that. Um.
And then he took me and he just walked me
up these steps and he took it off and he
(30:07):
was on one name, and I'm assuming it was an
easy yes, yeah, of course. Yeah. So you get married
and and we're traveling for work. What was the job
that you were doing, like when you're in Cincinnati, Like,
what was that job? Specifically? I was a drug rap
so we always had to go have training, like because
I was always learning a new drug. So you'd go
(30:29):
away for two weeks, sometimes a month. It was just
it was just constant, like an artist's life. But it
was me. Hell, Like, I guess that's all I've ever
known now, so I mean, I guess I never thought
about that. But yeah, yeah, it sounds like a lot
of road time, a lot of hotels. Oh god, yea
(30:50):
hotel food, and so you must know what it's like
then to be a traveling artist, especially in the early stages,
because you stay in crappy hotels and they eat the
same kind of food over and over again. Yeah, but yes,
but no, but you know Luke like, oh my gosh,
the starting days he would be on. There was a
time when he had fourteen flights in seven days, and
(31:13):
you know, I mean he's just exhausted, but he never
he never stopped. So but you get married and Luke
has a record deal. When you get married, yes, okay,
so how do you support like, what do you do?
Do you can you quit your job at that point?
(31:34):
I mean no, I supported us really for how long? Shoot?
Oh my gosh, I don't even know. Not terrible. I mean,
he always made money, but you know, he was doing
all these free shows and I had I had a
good job, so yeah, I mean, and that was my
point with the record deal. When you sign a record deal,
sometimes you go into the hole even more because again
(31:56):
you have to do free shows because the record company
used to go and suck up to the radio station.
So you have to play a show over the radio
station and you don't get paid for so you actually
it's worse financially for you. So he's quite lucky that
he had you at the time. He would have been fine.
He would have been fine, like Luke would have always
(32:17):
you know, sad, hustled. He would have been fine. But
I mean, but yeah, just us having a house and
but yeah, but and then you know he was on
my insurance and so that always helped. But which is
sounds weird to like, I'm like, no, he was on
my insurance and people don't get that. I'm like, but that, yeah,
you have to have insurance. But what about you moving
(32:38):
up here? What was that story? Oh? I was ready.
I never thought twice about it. Did he say, hey, Caroline,
move up here? Yeah? And I said, okay, that was it.
I've never been I've never been homesick once, truly. Do
you get back home often? I don't. I don't because
we're everything is so busy here. You know, We've our
(32:59):
kids are here, we they have lives, Luke, and I mean,
we're constantly on the go. So I don't want I
need to want to play you a voicemail. This is
a listener was in Vegas and Luke was doing his
residency there and you guys were all there, um. And
I only played this because I knew that you had
publicly shown on social media that you were all there.
(33:21):
Otherwise I would have just not said it. I would
have kept it off the air. But this is Julian St.
Louis who had this question. And then I'll let you respond.
I'll tell you how I responded, but go ahead. Hey,
So I just had a question. I was at the
Luke Brian concert. This past weekend in Vegas, and I
saw his wife and boys in the concert and they
were just sitting there watching, And of course the boys
(33:42):
were like bored out of their mind and it made
me laugh. No one like said anything to them, no
one like knew that it was them. And so my
question is, can I go say hello? Would that have
been not? Okay? Like, what's the rule on famous people's family?
So I thought this was a great question, And so
(34:05):
what is your personal rule, especially in this situation when
she sees the whole family out together watching Luke? Okay? So,
first of all, we um are super careful, especially if
I have my kids out in the crowd. So we
did have two guards around us, and they they did
(34:26):
stop some some people. Um, but anybody can come up
and say, hey, just I just don't touch my children,
and you know that's what I said, Yeah, I just
just just don't touch my kids because that's happened in
the past. And you know, this is a stage where
there is no side stage, so we can't stand side
(34:47):
stage and watch Luke. So but everything went so smoothly
and people were awesome. So but yeah, I mean people
can come up and say, hey, just don't grab a child,
because then I will go into psycho mode. My general
answer to that if someone's like, hey, when can I
not say hello to somebody they have their eating or
(35:07):
with their kids, Like generally that's the rule. They're at
a table eating, there's food in front of them, leave
them alone. But that never happens. Yeah, you know that
never happens. But I try to make it happen more.
I tried. And then if they're with their kids, and
what I told her specifically was if she's by you,
(35:28):
say hello to Caroline. And if there's a situation where
Caroline is taking pictures, but don't ask for the kids
to be in a picture, don't write, don't ask of
the kids anything. And if for some reason Caroline is like, hey,
my kids are here, do you want them to be
in the picture, then you can allow that. But kids
are a whole different level that you guys didn't sign
(35:48):
up for them to be in this life. And so um,
I you know, I think that's the eating part. The
people let me run this by you, and I don't
know how if you guys can even go to dinner anymore,
we totally can. I think we know our places and
the times and you know, I mean, if you're with Luke,
(36:08):
it's gonna be tough. I don't care. But here in
town it's not that bad. But I mean, people are
going to come up and say, I'm so sorry to
bother you. That's just how it goes. It always starts
off with I'm so sorry to bother you. But I'd
rather have that. I think our pet peeve is when
(36:31):
a person comes up to us and goes, you don't
know who I am? Do you? It's the hardest. Yeah,
it's yeah, it's tough. I just like, why would you
do that to a person? What's my name? You don't
know who I am? Do you? We met once? Who
am I? I like, I don't meet in Green Tublow,
I don't know what you met? Ten million people like,
(36:54):
I'm so sorry I don't but yeah, that's so. But yeah,
if you're eating in public, I wonder. And the level
of what I do is nothing to the level of Luke's.
But what it has been difficult for us only recently
in the last couple of years, has been people will
just film us eating the whole time and an awkward
(37:18):
by and you know what, I'm okay with it, but
my wife, it just doesn't want to be and she's like, oh,
she just feels uncomfortable. But someone's got a phone like
recording us eating and they think that they're slides. They're like, yes,
they're they're pointing their phone like over here, but look
(37:39):
in the opposite way and they're like, dude, I know
what you're doing. I mean, And the reality is I
love to meet people if if i'm as much says hey,
you know, if I get a picture, if I'm on
two feet and I'm not eating or with your kids,
you have to add you know, I'm happy to take
a picture anytime anywhere. But I just wondered about the
eating part, like if you that's can even go to
(38:00):
a restaurant, And if so, do you have to have
do you have to get somewhere specific or I mean
it's it's going to happen anywhere. But we're so accustomed
to it. But we've taught our our kids got in
trouble wants because I do want them to be respectful.
So that a guy came up to our table and
(38:21):
Luke and I had been talking, so we let our
boys play on their phone just to give us a
minute to talk. Well, a guy comes up to our
table and is saying hey, and our boys were still
playing on their phone when the guy left, they got
in so much trouble because that's just I mean, I
was like, boys, don't you ever do that again. I mean,
I don't care who it is. Put the phone down,
(38:42):
look them in the eye, and just say hello. So
I'm weird about that too, because I just want I
don't want my kids to ever ignore a human. It
sounds like being a great parent is like priority number
one for you. Yeah, of course, Like that's that's the
thing that like when I we've talked about a bunch
of stuff and still have a lot of stuff talk
(39:03):
to you about. But that's when I really see like
strong love and opinion come out of you, Like you
get the face like this is what I really care about. Yeah.
I just wanted to make them gentlemen and with good manners.
And I mean, I don't care if they're they're never
gonna be the smartest kids in the class. That ain't
gonna happen with with my family, but they can have
(39:25):
the best manners and just open doors for girls. Stand
up if a girl comes to a table, shake hands, Yes, ma'am, yes, sir,
please thank you or they know that I'll I'm not
going to say hit them because you can't say that anymore,
but I might. We just have to know that. I
(39:46):
want to talk for a second and again we'll break
back in that in a minute. But best bad Influence
dot Com. Now if you go to that site, what
what's there? You tell me? So we started a merch
line on a while back, and that's been like my
tagline since I was a kid, because something happened years
(40:09):
ago when I was called a bad influence and I
was not, and so I was like, well, if I'm
a bad influence, I'm the best bad influence that this
person will ever have. And so I've said that, And
so we started a march line and it's done. It's
better than we ever thought. So we're just going to
keep on building it. So what kind of march are
(40:29):
we talking about? Here? T shirts, cups, stickers. Um, We're
gonna do a pop up shop at Luke's Bar on
in Town. This will be thirty eight March. We're going
to give away a cooler scooter, which I've had like
twelve of those, So it's gonna be a cooler scooter.
I think I saw you writing that on your Instagram, right,
(40:49):
that's what that was. Yeah, I love him a cooler scooter.
And so will you be at this pop up shop?
Of course? Yes, I don't know. I'll be there. We'll
be surrounded by humongous a uity guards. Don't look at
her in the eye. I don't know. I would never
do that. No, I want to play a song for you.
(41:12):
This is to the Moon and Back. Here is a
clip I blow somethingbody to the moon through the words
me in the through. So word is this is the
(41:37):
first song he wrote about you? Is that true? Okay?
So he did not write this song, but he heard
it and I think McGraw had it on hold, but
Luke went't asked for it because that's kind of like
our our family line. I love you to the Moon
and Back. So he recorded it and he told me
(41:58):
it was for me, which is very sweet. So when
he heard it, it it reminded him of you. Yes, okay,
here is sorority girl. This is and you can tell
me if this is true or not. It describes your
budding relationship while in college. Is this is this true?
This song? Which which part I don't know? Let's play
a little bit of it, Jeff try and some of
(42:28):
the stuff on the internet is not true some so
I just like to ask the questions, is this sorority girl?
Is this about your relationship of college? I don't think
it's about our relationship. But he did put ad pive
first because that's what I was in college. So I
told him. I was like, if you write a song
about a sorority, you have to put mine first. So
there is your influence on the song, just just a
(42:49):
little bit. After many many years, if he writes a
song and he's like, hey, Carolyss, reminds me of you,
or I wrote this thinking about you a little bit,
is it like song? No? I think it's so sweet.
But do you know what he did do? And he
did it all wrong? And someday he'll tell you about this.
(43:09):
We went on a two day trip just to be
alone because we never get time alone. He goes, I
want to play you this song he wrote. It's it's
a great song. First of all, he wrote it. He goes,
I want you to hear this. And so we're sitting
out on the balcony having a glass of wine and
the song is called married for for the kids, and
(43:32):
I'm listening to it and I'm like, I'm staring at him.
You know, Luca's clueless. He's like it in this good
and I'm like, what, so what are you trying to
tell me? I was like, it was just the wrong
time to approach me with this song, like it's a
song called it's a great song. He goes, I want
you to hear this, or I just wrote it. It's
called married for the kids. I said, Luke, I mean,
(43:55):
this is just the wrong time to like, are you
trying to tell me something? Do you bring me here
alone to tell me something? And he just begat. I
was like, He's like, I'm sorry, that was the wrong
time to ever bring that up. When you were younger,
did you have anyone say, Caroline, you should perform because
I feel like natural never not singing, but maybe on stage.
(44:19):
Um no, no acting. No. Um. Well, I think I
was scarred early because well, first of all, I have
no talent. I can't sing, and I kind of got
kicked out of ballet class when I was in the
third or fourth grade. They politely told my mom that
I should not come back, so I don't think I should. Evidently,
(44:44):
I was disrupted, but they never thought she's funny. She
has a presence about no one told you to any
I'd like to get an entertainment in anyway. I mean
when I was a senior, I was voted wittiest in
my class, but I never embraced like how I truly
am until honestly, until I was in college. I mean,
(45:07):
I've never really I just played this role of you know,
because I played sports author high school, so I never
I mean I was goofy, I did weird stuff, but
I just never thought about it truly. Let's go back
and jump back on the timeline for a second. When
when in Luke's career, then did it go from while
(45:28):
we're gaining a little traction to well, this thing is
actually going to be a monster, and this is gonna
be so much success that yes, it's great, but there
are also some other elements of success that can be um,
maybe not troublesome, but it's just you're not prepared for
some of it because you get so famous. Um. I
think my first and it took years, but I think
(45:51):
my first big freakout was when he told me at
the beach once he goes, hey, I'm having dinner. I
think I'm going to be a judge on American Idol,
and I didn't know how to because he was already touring, songwriting,
you know, just being Luke. And I remember I just
I went for a jog and I was going for
(46:12):
an hour and a half. So that really shook you
a little bitter. I did, because I was scared. I
didn't know how to handle it. I was like, how
how are we going to handle your touring and l
A and all this, And so that was my first
big just I mean, I had not a meltdown, but
I just had. I was just scared. So I just
(46:33):
took off and because he was supposed to go a
jog with me, and then I just I just shot out.
And he had he was wildly successful as an artist.
And but and correct me if I'm wrong. That grew
a little by a little by medium and you were
kind of able to nurture that as it got bigger
and bigger. Or the American Idol thing was just like
(46:56):
coming from left field and like boom ABC, He's launching
their version of American Idol. Judge gone like all that.
You didn't have time to sit with it. I didn't
so then I mean he just told me. He goes,
I've got to have dinner. And Luke always holds back
any info that think that if he thinks it's going
(47:18):
to freak me out, he holds it back into the
last second, which is not really the smartest thing. So
don't do that with Kaitlin. But yeah, just give her
time to process stuff, especially if it's something big like that.
But when he goes, Okay, look, I've got to go
have dinner tonight, Um, I think I'm going to be
a judge on American Idol, And so I didn't have.
(47:42):
I was like, what how are we going to handle
something else? You know, we still have all these kids?
And so I freaked out. But then you know, when
it started happening, it wasn't it wasn't as bad. I mean,
it's still tough because you know, you're still gone. You've
done it far long hours, multiple days in a row.
(48:04):
It's tough, and it's it's tough on a on a wife.
It's just because we you know, we truly miss having
y'all around, but we understand that you have this drive.
But I just really had to wrap my head around it.
Did you and in our relationship and I've only we've
only been married six or seven months. But you know,
the struggle that we have is that for my life,
(48:30):
I have been very focused on my career and have
been just chipping away. And I don't have some you know,
crazy talent that people were like, Wow, you're twenty two,
let's give you all these great jobs. I've had to
really work in grind to get opportunities that built opportunity
to build opportunities. So now here I am and I'm
finally starting to have really nice opportunities, large opportunities. And
(48:54):
so I've known Caitlin for a few years, we've been
married for a little less than one, but she only
no was that version of of me where I'm getting
these opportunities and we're deciding together. But now they're all
coming at once and I can't believe it. I'm like, Wow,
that's a big and I'll take it. Wow, that's a
big one. I'll take it. And so we've had to
kind of make uh a word of that stuff for me.
(49:15):
We've had to compromise. And then I said, Hey, I'm
gonna do this show for Disney Plus and then I'm
gonna stay off the road. I'm gonna do stand up.
I'm gonna for three months and then I'm going to
take this show with this other network. But we've had
to compromise in that way. Did you find that you
and Luke had to find and dedicate time to just
(49:36):
him being Luke the dad and father, I guess the
same person, but the dad and like Nashville Guy, was
there a space where it's like, you can't do this
all the time or you're not gonna have the family.
Well that's what we've done. I mean, so I don't
know what Caitlin does, you know, on her world, but
(49:57):
every girl has to have her her own world, whether
it's a job or whether it's hobbies, friends. Um, I
don't think people like you and Luke are going to
ever change. You're gonna wanna drive drive, drive, go go go.
That that's just that's just your personality and there's nothing
wrong with that. Um. But for years, you know, I've
(50:19):
I've just been a mom with children, going back and
forth to see Luke and you know, trying really embracing
his dream. And so now that our kids are a
little bit older, you know, I'm doing things that I
never thought I would do. But it's been fun. But
but still, I mean, y'all can't change. You're still gonna go.
(50:42):
I want to do this. I want to do this,
and as long as she's okay with it, do it.
But I find myself not honoring. Does it seems sound
terrible to say, not honoring the promises completely because I
will say I will not go on the road for
three months, So no again, no touring, no TV show.
Can you do that? Well, here's what happens. Well it
(51:05):
comes up, Well, I go, well, I was just offered
a private comedy show in Vegas. It's five thousand people
and the money, and here's the money, and I can't
believe it does the same thing. And I'm like, you
have to live. And she's like, okay, if you think
it's worth it, then sure that this is what you
told me. But honest, she's like, but if you this
is worth it, do it. I'm like, thank you, and
I'll go do it. And I'd be like, I just
got off another one and it's not going to stop.
(51:28):
I try, but I just I'm not. I'm gonna say
I'm a bad person. It's not been it's not being
about Luke does this stuff to me every week, right,
And so he's like, Okay, well, I gotta do this
soon because he's he's been gone for almost a month.
We've traveled back and forth to see and then he
called me and he goes, okay, I've got to do
this March first, March second, like okay, okay, okay, okay.
(51:52):
But the more, I mean, he's so focused on building,
building building, and then some day he says it he
just wants to just stop. Every same I just want
to cult you will never stop, You'll never stop. I
just want to build it to a point where I
feel safe and I'm gonna quit everything and just hangsity.
(52:13):
But I do have a dream that I would be
able to do that. But you can cut back a
lot and they have a nice nest egg. But you
guys will never tell he stop. There's no way. I
guess the difference in me is. And then Luke looks
a lot richer than I am. So I still fear
that I'm going to be broke one day. Every man
(52:35):
thinks that, which I mean I think, I mean, I
don't worry about that, but what if something happens. What
if Luke says one wrong word and you just I
think that's normal, especially if you come from nothing and
you build, you work your ass off and then you
have something great. It's normal. H You mentioned the kids
(53:01):
getting older and you're starting to kind of find yourself
in a different space. Like what you know? I asked
you in tenth grade? But what is the dream now?
I still don't know. I don't, I don't. I mean
this is all like like I said, I spent fourteen
years raising kids, and you know, we're working around Luke's life.
(53:22):
That so a few things happened that we didn't plan on.
And I truly I'm having fun in the moment and
just trying to keep kids alive, trying to keep Luke alive.
I just want to be real selfish in this question
for you though the kids five years from now, the
(53:44):
kids are great. You don't have to worry about them.
You always got to worry about them, but you don't
have to worry about it. And it's like, and Luke
says Caroline, I wanted to help you do what you
want to do. What do you want to do? I'm
giving you full support, time, effort. What do you want
to do? I want to take a nap? Can you
imagine just sleeping past like five am for me. No,
(54:07):
I don't have to wake up for kids if you
wake up from radio show. But um, but what what
is it if you don't know? Some of the most
people I know still don't know right now, I truly
don't know. I mean we're playing it. I mean I've
enjoyed you know, you know, being on podcast, meeting all
these people, you know, traveling, I've enjoyed that. But my
(54:27):
happiest times are when we're all at home. That's the
doing your own show. I don't know about any of that.
I mean, I don't think I have the talent for
any of that. I would disagree. I think you have
the I think you have the natural intuition to do
that and you just have to learn the format. Well.
I have such a healthy fear. It's not healthy. I
(54:52):
just have like this fear of failing anything. I just
don't want to. That's what that holds me back from
a lot. But we're trying. We're trying stuff. I mean,
this one over here is pushing me to do everything.
And people can't say here, but her name is Nicole.
She's young, but she's an old soul. She's pushing you
(55:14):
to do everything. We're just not pushed me, but just
encouraging me to try difference or maybe you won't do
anything and then we miss out because you're not doing it.
I'm still like, I just see honestly, I mean, I'm
just being realistic. I'm not you know, I'm not Luke.
(55:36):
I don't have his I don't Luke's special. He just
I don't think now though, that people look at you
as and I'm gonna I'll say this as honestly as possible,
right to your face. I don't think people just look
at you as Luke's wife anymore. That's the that's the
God's honest truth. It's very sweet. I think people used
to know you as Luke's wife, but I don't think
(55:56):
now Caroline is just associated as Luke Bryan's why life well,
and that's me watching from afar, And that's also me
watching from medium to close. You know, Luke and I
have a relationship. You and I've spent a little time together.
Um and then also I get to watch just on
social media and I get to see you doing other stuff.
So I think you're actually kind of breaking out of
(56:18):
the of a wonderful shell that you can also live
in that you're just not You're just not Luke's wife anymore.
You'll always be Luke's wife and my mom. But now
you're starting to be freaking Caroline. And that's awesome, just terrifying.
Yes it is. You never know what I'm gonna do
and that, but that's what's great for us, maybe not
for you. That's great for us is that you never
know what you're gonna do or say. Let me mention
(56:40):
a few things again, and then I'll end on one
question here because we've done almost an hour here. Okay, first,
best bad Influence dot Com if you want to check
out Caroline's merch and then they will be at a
pop up shop with all new merch March at Short
Things Cigars in thirty eight Florida's Yeah, like me, I
can read um at Brett's Barn to follow the rescue animals,
(57:04):
which is wonderful or bright for Brett for more info
on general heart disease, down syndrome and what the Brett
Boyer Foundation does. And you are very involved in so
many things, Like I think it's really cool. I think
it's really cool how you balance out all the things
That's why I lead with the question like, how do
you how do you balance two different lives front facing
(57:26):
and inward facing. I don't know if I can just
be known for I mean this, this sounds so fake,
but it's not. If I could just be known for
helping and just get giving back, then I mean, you know,
if we're blessed with all this stuff and if we
don't give back, then shame on us. So that's truly,
that's that's really it all right here. This is my
(57:48):
final little line up questioning. I've I did not get
married till later in my life because I just I
mean I didn't. I never wanted to marry anybody. Honestly,
I never told a single person I loved him. I
never so finally I did, and I do and it's
and it was unlike anything that I'd ever experienced with
(58:08):
a person. And now we've been married six months the
first year of marriage. What's your advice about the first
year of marriage? Because for me, at times, I live
by myself forever. I know, I'm not the easiest person
to She kind of has to rebreak me in because
I've been so selfish and not that it's just I
(58:30):
keep everything not in that but selfish and it's my time.
I've only ever knowniced take care of myself. What is
your first year of marriage advice? Well, first of all,
being selfish without kids and a wife, that's not a
bad thing. That's your time to be selfish and do
whatever you want. First year, I think is the same
(58:51):
as every year. Talk talk, talk, don't don't ever not
tell each other how you're feeling, and there there is
no secret as long as both people are in and
putting it in work. But always talk communication times I
say things when talking that makes it uncomfortable, well, then
(59:14):
shut your mouth and just give her a minute. That's
the thing that I've also learned is to let her
process because I struggle, Like, we have a lot in comments.
So if she's mad, do you want want to talk
it out then and not give her I don't. I
do not want to give her a moment for anything,
because I'm like, looks the same way. I wait till
the last second and then I say okay, and then
(59:36):
I'm like, don't be mad. You can't be mad. Why
are you mad? And I'm just like ah, and try
to fix it real quick. Man can't okay? Men are fixers.
I'll learn this in therapy a while back. Man want
to fix everything right then sometimes you can't fix it.
Just I'm the same way. If I'm mad, Luke needs
to just give me a moment, which he can't. God,
(01:00:00):
he wants to fix it right then sometimes you can't
fix it. You can just listen, even if we sound ridiculous,
just listen. But you can't fix it. Sometimes I feel
like maybe she goes, why did I marry him? No,
she doesn't. She just wants a moment alone. Well, let's
hope that's the case. She doesn't think. Let's hope that's
(01:00:22):
the case. All right, You guys follow Caroline l I
n A Brian three. When people ask you that, do
you say Lena Brian three or it looks like it
is Lina and I get called Lena all the time,
but that was my nickname in college was Lana, like
Carolina in the morning, which that's my singing voice. Pretty goodhead.
(01:00:46):
A lot of labels are on the phone right now,
So yeah, Lina Brian three. Uh, you've been a real
as always. You've been a real treat to talk to.
Thank you for having and I appreciate you coming over
and I don't know if you've ever done an hour before,
but you know, I feel like you could do another hour.
So that's what do All right, here we go Part two?
All right, LINEA Brian three. You guys follow her and
if you can help the Brett Boyer Foundation. And I
(01:01:07):
think the best way to help is just to learn,
and then from learning you make decisions. But if you
never learned, you never know and you but people always go, hey,
how can I help? Well, if you just read a
little bit about it and learn about it, like that's enough.
That's all the help that I could ask for anyone
to give. And then if you're motivated, inspired to actually
do more than great, and if not, you already did
more than I could have ever hoped you would do.
(01:01:29):
And so I hope you guys check it out, all right,
um Lina Brian three on Instagram and good to see.
Thank you guys, Thank you
Host
Bobby Bones
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