Country music star Luke Combs has said that he is “sick to [his] stomach” after waking up to learn that he had won a $250,000 lawsuit against a Florida-based woman who had been selling drink tumblers with his likeness on them. According to Variety, the defendant, Nicol Harness, had sold 18 of the handmade glasses, earning her only $380.
Combs was completely unaware of the fact that his team had sued Harness and personally called her after he found out about the judgement that had been handed down in Illinois. During their conversation, Combs promised to send her $11,000 to cover some essential costs—Harness had previously explained to the singer that she had $5,500 locked away in her Amazon store account that she’d been unable to access.
Going the extra mile, Combs then pledged to release his own line of tumblers through his merch store and donate all of the proceeds to Harness. The Florida woman only learned about the $250,000 judgement on the day she returned from a hospital stay for congestive heart failure.
In an interview with Tampa-based news outlet WFLA, Harness stated: “It’s very stressful. I don’t have money to pay my bills. I just want this resolved. I didn’t mean any harm to Luke Combs. I quit selling the tumbler. I pulled it down. I just don’t understand.”
In his official response on Instagram, Combs stated: “[I] was able to get Nicol’s phone number. I spoke to her this morning. She told me that, you know, she was absolutely shocked by this. I’m so apologetic. Talking to her… It makes me sick, honestly, that this would happen, especially at the holidays. I can’t imagine being in her shoes. She told me there’s $5,500 locked up in her Amazon account. I’m gonna double that, send her $11,000 today, just so she doesn’t have anything to worry about. She was never supposed to be involved in anything like this. No fan should ever have to be involved in anything like this.”
The singer continued: “Again, this is unbelievable. I was completely shocked when I saw this this morning. It makes me sick. This is not something that I would ever do. This is not the kind of person I am. I’m not greedy in any way, shape or form. Money is the last thing on my mind—I promise you guys that. And I invited Nicol and her family out to a show this year so I could give her a hug and say sorry in person.”
The tumblers are now available to purchase on Combs’ merchandise website.