Keith Urban just released “Go Home W U,” his collaboration with Lainey Wilson. The New Zealand native, who teased the release of the song during his performance of “Straight Line” at the CMT Music Awards last month, held onto the song for a few years before sharing it with the world.
“I wrote ‘Go Home W U’ in 2020 with BRELAND, Sam [Sumser] and Sean [Small)]” said Urban. “We had a blast writing it. It started out as a late-night drum loop, I grabbed a bass guitar and started playing a simple recurring bass line. Before we knew it, we were writing a chorus that could be sung by any drunk person in any bar anywhere in the world.”
It wasn’t Urban’s idea to bring a female artist in, but he quickly latched onto the concept when someone else suggested it first.
“A friend of mine suggested the idea of making the song a duet and I immediately thought of Lainey,” Urban says. “Besides the fact that I love her voice, she’s got the swagger and attitude that fit so well with the song.”
Wilson has been a longtime admirer of Urban, so she quickly agreed to sing on it with him when he invited her to join him on the track.
“Keith has been someone in the industry I’ve taken notes from for a while now,” Wilson says. “From watching him at CMA Fest every year growing up to hearing the way he treats people up and down music row, he has taught me a lot. He’s a genuine supporter of mine and I am honored I get to continue to learn from one of the best. Getting to do a song with Keith is a notch on my belt I am very proud of.”
Wilson previously praised Urban for his influence on her, whe she was headlining her own Lainey Wilson: LIVE Tour, which performed in Australia, where Urban was raised
“He is a mentor of mine,” the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year told The Project. “He’s a friend. He’s that guy that just kind of lifts me up and encourages me every time he sees me. And when you’ve got people like Keith Urban encouraging you and believing in you, you really do feel like you can do it.”
Urban recently performed the song live for the first time at a surprise pop-up show in Dallas. For an artist who can sell out large arenas all over the world, it’s those small clubs that rejuvenate him in a way the bigger venus cannot.
“I left school at 15 and started playing rowdy clubs just like Dada four hours a night five nights a week,” Urban said after his performance. “I love the hot sweaty energy of a crowd just like that – so packed in there’s barely any room between them and my mic stand.”
“On stage it’s loose, it’s real, and it’s fun as hell cause we’re PLAYING,” he added. “New songs, some throwbacks, and even some random covers. I coulda played all night but…we’ll just have to do some more of these as we shred and hone our way into what’s coming!!!!”
Urban will have plenty of chances to perform “Go Home W U” later this year, when he begins his HIGH in Vegas residency, kicking off on October 4 at Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
“I think my calling has always been inclusivity in what I do,” Urban told People, speaking of his live shows. “It’s certainly always been that way playing live in concert. My calling is to bring all these different kinds of people together and become one for a couple of hours. And it’s an amazing thing as a musician to be able to get to do that because even a sporting event splits the audience in two.
“But as musicians,” he added, “we get to bring the most opposing kinds of people together who maybe only agree on this one thing, which is these songs in this moment.”
Find “Go Home W U” and all of Urban’s music and upcoming shows, at KeithUrban.com.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of NBC