Keith Urban and his wife, Nicole Kidman, were fortunate enough to spend time in Paris, watching the Olympics. For the New Zealand native, who has had plenty of unbelievable experiences as one of country music’s biggest superstars, few events will ever compare to what it was like to be cheering on his home country while in France.
“It was amazing,” Urban tells his management company. “I mean, we got to be in Paris watching the Olympics, me and all my family, and we saw obviously so many great events – volleyball and swimming and a whole bunch of great events, but the thing we were really looking forward to, of course, was Team U.S.A. at the gymnastics finals. It was amazing to get to be in the same space there, not far from Simone Biles, and Jade and all the girls who just did such a phenomenal job.
“Seeing it on television is one thing, but to be there witnessing it and to feel the energy in the crowd,” he continues. “There was a massive U.S.A. contingent in the audience, and you could just feel that they were on fire. Every event that they did, one after the other, they were racking up the points …It was absolutely electrifying.”
Urban’s trip to Paris came at an exciting time in his own career. The 56-year-old just released “Heart Like A Hometown,” from his forthcoming HIGH album, out on September 20.
“When I was a kid, our family moved around a lot,” Urban explained of the inspiration behind the song. “By the 5th grade, I’d been in four schools and lived in nine different houses. So, a ‘hometown’ felt more about my family, and a place inside of me, somewhere I could find my center. It’s a theme that’s always spoken to me. Songs like Don Williams’ ‘If Hollywood Don’t Need You’ and Glen Campbell’s ‘Country Boy (You Got Your Feet in LA)’ and a song I recorded on my Fuse album, ‘Come Back To Me.’ Those songs and this one all share a similar feeling, a kind of grounded safety, familiarity and a place where I can always find me.”
HIGH also includes his current single, “Messed Up As Me,” plus “Straight Line,” “Wildside” and his “Go Home W U” duet with Lainey Wilson.
“This album is the result of a prior record I started in 2022,” Urban said when announcing the project. “It’s 40 minutes top to bottom, and is completely expressive, true, honest and is so much more of what I actually wanted to say when making that scrapped record. I hope these songs bring you joy, levity, some new understanding, energy, and escape!”
Urban will kick off his 10-show HIGH residency in Las Vegas on October 4. Pre-order of his new HIGH album is available here. Find all of Urban’s music and upcoming shows at KeithUrban.com.