Being the son of Willie Nelson could make it difficult for a musician to establish his own identity, but that has not seemed to be the case for Lukas Nelson. In fact with his band Promise of the Real, Lucas Nelson has had some major success and simultaneously he has been able to support his fathers continuing career.
Lukas says he has never shied away from the family connection, noting that sounding a bit like his famous father can’t be all bad,.“You know, it’s not,” Lukas says. “I’ve never tried to run away from who I am. I’m so proud of my dad I can’t even express it in words.
“He’s one of the great musicians ever, and he’s one of the great fathers. He’s just one of the great human beings out there, and I feel really grateful to be close to him.
After dropping out of college in 2008, Lukas Nelson put together his band in southern California and recorded the first record in 2010. A couple of years later he and Promise of the Real opened shows for his father and then were able to jam with Neil Young at Farm Aid 2014. This lead to POTR along with brother Micah Nelson serving as Youngs’ backing band.
For ten years Nelson spent most of his time on the road and says he never stayed in one place for more than three months. The pandemic changed that and left Lukas and his brother Micah at the family ranch in Texas for a full year. Lukas found that he enjoyed the time so much with his family and having a home base that inspired him to purchase a home of his own for the first time on Maui.
