interview by angela puvirenti

Keith Urban – feature profile
(By Angela Pulvirenti)

It didn’t happen to Keith Urban overnight – but it did happen. After more than a decade of struggling with the prejudices of Nashville, his chemical demons and a few odd styling choices; Keith Urban is now a multi platinum artist in the US, a fully fledged sex symbol and one of the most respected musicians in the world. It’s no wonder he wants to BE HERE.

“I think where I’m at right now is just recognizing the importance of being in the moment in every situation, because you can so easily live in the past, “ says Urban as we sit face to face during the soundcheck of his July gig in Great Falls Montana. “There’s just a real importance to me about living in the moment because life is now”.

The sentiment is expertly captured by Days Go BY, the first single off Urban’s third US release, (Be Here). A rollicking country rock hit, the song is Urban’s fifth consecutive single to reach #1 and the 8th single to reach the top five; making Urban the first Australian artist to ever achieve such a feat in the US market. It’s a promising start to the life of an album destined to transition Urban from a household name in the country states of the US, to a household name, the country over.

But Urban is determined to play down the fervor surrounding his career. When I ask him how big a star he is in America, he responds as if I have just asked him whether or not he has ever contracted a sexually transmitted disease. “You’re asking me”, he says blushing, “I can’t really answer that”.

Urban’s 1999 debut solo album in the US sold over 700 000 copies and produced a string of top ten hits, including his first number one – But For The Grace of God. It also earned him American Country Music’s highest honor - the Horizon Award for best new talent; (previously bestowed on Garth Brooks and The Dixie Chicks). Towards the end of his ground breaking year, Urban dashed home for the 2002 Arias looking like a countrified David Bowie; shorter blonde hair, earrings and a pin striped suit of drain piped trousers and three quarter length jacket. After being presented with a Lifetime Achievement Aria by the iconic Slim Dusty he urged 1 .3 million television viewers “to please turn off the television this Saturday night and go and see some live music”. If that didn’t get his peers barracking for him, his gracious harmonies on Kasey Chambers’s performance of Not Pretty Enough must have surely sealed the deal. Keith Urban had finally been recognized by his home country and was well and truly on the radar of the world’s biggest country market. But it wasn’t until the release of 2002’s Golden Road that Urban’s star shot into the higher stratosphere.

The first single “Somebody Like You” spent 6 consecutive weeks at #1. The video for the song featured a bronzed, long haired Urban looking more comfortable than he ever has dressed simply in a t shirt and jeans, and holding either a guitar – or Nikki Taylor – in his arms. While the two became a couple for almost 12 months, they split in mid 2003. Urban responds to the topic of romance by politely informing me that “one of the difficult things about this job is trying to keep your private life…private”. Pressing on, I ask the 36 year old singer whether his demanding schedule permits enough time for dating. “It doesn’t actually”, he says with friendly caution, “but I’m working on changing that”.Like Golden Road, “Be Here” is peppered with the kind of songs that make you wish you were in love; (or with any luck - celebrate the fact that you are).
The second single, “You’re My Better Half”, was co written by Keith and John Shanks, who has also worked with Sheryl Crow, Michelle Branch and Stevie Nicks. Like “Somebody Like You”, the pair’s most recent descendant, “You’re My Better Half” is a contagious, uplifting track destined for radio success. “It’s a bit confusing actually because there’s also a song on the album called ‘Better Life’”, says Urban referring to his equally hook-laden collaboration with Richard Marx. Is this a sign that things in his life are simply better all around? “I guess it must be”, he says cautiously as if afraid to jinx himself.

Keith Urban is no stranger to regret or humility. While he has previously talked openly about his battles with drugs and alcohol, today he appears more interested in focusing on moving into his future with a newfound sense of sobriety and spirituality. “The beauty of things like meditation is that it helps you focus on the moment. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed it trains you to stop and go ‘OK, what’s really the problem here, can I fix it or do I move on”.

Urban also credits the process of collaborating on songs that capture deeper emotional sentiments with helping him get a grip on his dependencies. On “Be Here”, it is tracks like “Nobody Drinks Alone”, and “Tonight I want to Cry” which give Urban the opportunity to wear his heart on his sleeve and revel in the mistakes of the past. “There are all kinds of stuff we can lose ourselves in to avoid dealing with our problems. Whether it’s getting into bad relationshipsor gambling too much, or watching too much TV”, he says straight forwardly. “The whole creative process is great because you get a different take on a very personal subject; even though the stuff that comes out, especially subconsciously, can be a little alarming”.

With a new hit album under his belt, a headlining US tour commencing in October and an Australian tour scheduled for February, Keith Urban is certainly living a better life than those humbling first years in Nashville. “It’s funny because I didn’t really have a plan from the start. I thought I’d just play and tour and eventually get a chance to make a record”, he says. Urban has no bitterness that it took much longer than expected. “I honestly believe if it had happened any earlier I would have screwed it up somehow”.

Infact the only facet missing from Keith’s “Better Life” picture is larger Australian audiences to play to. It’s while watching Urban rock 6000 Americans to their feet in a relatively remote part of the Mid West that one begins to share his frustration. “Unfortunately it’s a catch 22 situation for me in Australia because we haven’t gone and built up the audience in Australia and there isn’t the widespread radio or video outlets unless you have a huge cross over hit like Shania Twain”. Until that time comes, Urban has a clear course of action.“I know what I have to do and that’s rise above the frustration, get back in the trenches and work. It’s the Aussie way to just get in there and work”.