keith urban tour buses

CMA Fest: Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman rock out on the tour bus before stadium concert

Just before he played for tens of thousands of fans at Nissan Stadium on the first night of CMA Music Fest, Keith Urban had a concert for a much smaller audience aboard his tour bus.

As seen on his Instagram stories , the country star warmed up on the banjo just ahead of show time, making up a song on the spot as his wife Nicole Kidman tapped along.

"Backstage at CMA Fest," he sang with a country-blues tone. "On the bus/ feels good, I guess."

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Urban just needed a rhyme there. He soon made it clear that it felt very good to be back at the festival, closing out Thursday night with a celebratory set that included  "Days Go By" "Blue Ain't Your Color," "Wild Hearts" and "You'll Think of Me." 

Urban told The Tennessean backstage before his performance:  "The energy of this crowd is unlike anywhere. It’s such a unique moment. This week in Nashville, period, is unlike any other time in the city. This year especially, [after] having a two-year, pent-up absence. I can already feel it – everybody’s ready to make up for lost time." 

CMA Fest for free: No tickets required for these concerts

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Though she has made cameos at Urban's past Nashville shows (including his New Year's Eve gigs) Kidman didn't pop up on stage at Nissan Stadium. She must have not needed his jacket, as she did when she appeared at his Las Vegas residency last month. 

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Keith Urban Steals Tour-Bus-Turd Title From Dave Matthews

For nearly five years now, the Dave Matthews Band has held the record for Most Country-Ass Escapade While on a Tour Bus. In 2004 the group made headlines by illegally dumping the contents of their bus’s human-waste tank while driving through the city of Chicago. They were, of course, crossing a bridge over the Chicago river, and happened to have the exquisite timing to unleash the torrent of feces just as an architectural boat tour, laden with tourists, was passing underneath. One can only imagine that at least some of the passengers were staring up, open-mouthed, at the bridge’s architectural   wonder.

Now that’s pretty damn country. But not as country as what Keith Urban’s tour crew pulled last Wednesday here in New York. While the artist was inside performing at Webster Hall, his tour bus opened its septic tank and dumped gallons and gallons of sewage onto East 11 th Street. “There was about 150 square feet of gunk, a half an inch thick, outside the main entrance,” one employee told “Page Six,” not able to resist adding, “It was a literal shit   show.”

Basically, anyone trying to get out of the concert hall through the main entrance would be confronted by the horror — and forget it if you wanted to get onto the bus itself, which idled in its own filth for 30 minutes before pulling away. And the worst part is, they couldn’t clean the filth up until the next day, because they had to wait for it all to dry up . “The cleanup process lasted 12 hours,” Webster Hall owner Ballinger said. “Thankfully, it was a nice   day.”

We’re not sure that Ballinger is using the word “nice” correctly in that sentence, but we suppose he was being a good sport. He said he was “pretty sure” Urban had nothing to do with the dumping, but even so, we’re officially passing on the mantle of Most Country-Ass Escapade While on a Tour Bus to him. Because if you can turn East 11 th Street into a good old-fashioned Tennessee dookie swamp, then you’re pretty much as country as they   come.

COUNTRY SHOW A REAL STINKER   [ NYP ]

• dave matthews band
• keith urban
• things that are gross
• webster hall

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Keith Urban Announces North American Tour: 'It's Really Gonna Be Tough to Get Us Off the Stage'

"It's pure magic when you look out and see everyone just letting loose. I've really missed that!" he tells PEOPLE

Keith Urban is hitting the road in 2022!

The country superstar announced Wednesday that he's embarking on a slew of North American dates on his The Speed of Now World Tour, which will kick off in Tampa, Florida in June and go through November.

Urban, 54, tells PEOPLE that four years after his last world tour, he's most looking forward to seeing his fans in person once more.

"[I'm most looking forward to] re-igniting that person-to-person connection I feel with everyone that comes out to see our shows," he says. "It's pure magic when you look out and see everyone just letting loose. I've really missed that!"

Joining him will be up-and-coming country star Ingrid Andress , who was nominated for three Grammys at this past year's awards show.

Urban teases that fans can expect to hear a mix of old classics, as well as new songs from his most recent album The Speed of Now Part 1 , which came out in September 2020.

"I can't wait to play those," he tells PEOPLE. "Visually, I think it's really important to create something that lends itself to the show's energy, but it's a bit early to know exactly what that'll be for this tour — I have a few ideas though! I'm just so looking forward to playing, playing, playing!"

In a statement, the "Blue Ain't Your Color" singer said he's eagerly awaiting the thrill of performing each night, as "every show is different."

"After two years we're finally gonna get the chance to play some of the new songs we haven't done live before. We'll throw in a bunch of the songs that everyone comes to hear, a couple of which we'll rework a bit, and it's really gonna be tough to get us of the stage," he said. "I've always considered myself a live performer first. It's what I've always done and it's what my music needs to live and breathe. Our shows are all about living in the moment. They're a totally interactive and immersive experience where everyone can participate in whatever way they want — sing, dance, do whatever."

RELATED VIDEO: Keith Urban on the Effect Johnny Cash Had on His Dad Which Inspired His New Song Wild Hearts

Urban previously announced shows in Australia, Germany, Netherlands and the U.K., though the North American leg will mark his first-ever shows in Fort Worth, Texas and Savannah, Georgia.

He'll play three nights at Caesars Palace Colosseum in Las Vegas on May 27, 28 and 29 before the tour's official start in Tampa. Tickets will go on sale here on Dec. 10 at 10 a.m. local time.

The Speed of Now World Tour dates below:

June 17 — Tampa — MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre

June 18 — West Palm Beach — iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre

July 8 — Toronto — Budweiser Stage

July 9 — Toronto — Budweiser Stage

July 10 — Canandaigua — CMAC

July 15 — Cleveland — Blossom Music Center

July 16 — Cincinnati — Riverbend Music Center

July 22 — Mansfield — Xfinity Center

July 23 — Bangor — Maine Savings Amphitheater

July 24 — Gilford — Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion

July 29 — Holmdel — PNC Bank Arts Center

July 30 — Bristow — Jiffy Lube Live

July 31 — Camden — BB&T Pavilion

Aug. 4 — Jacksonville — Daily's Place

Aug. 5 — Jacksonville — Daily's Place

Aug. 6 — Orange Beach — The Wharf Amphitheater

Aug. 12 — Charlotte — PNC Music Pavilion

Aug. 13 — Raleigh — Coastal Credit Union Music Park

Aug. 14 — Virginia Beach — Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater

Aug. 18 — Rogers — Walmart AMP

Aug. 19 — St. Louis — Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre

Aug. 20 — Des Moines — Iowa State Fair

Aug. 26 — Detroit — DTE Energy Music Theatre

Aug 27 — Indianapolis — Ruoff Music Center

Aug. 28 — Milwaukee — American Family Insurance Amphitheater

Sept. 1 — Lake Tahoe — Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys

Sept. 3 — Mountain View — Shoreline Amphitheatre

Sept. 8 — Phoenix — Footprint Center

Sept. 9 — San Diego — North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre

Sept. 10 — Los Angeles — The Forum

Sept. 15 — Salt Lake City — USANA Amphitheatre

Sept. 16 — Denver — Ball Arena

Sept. 17 — Wichita — INTRUST Bank Arena

Sept. 22 — Grand Rapids — Van Andel Arena

Sept. 23 — Columbus — Nationwide Arena

Sept. 24 — Chicago — Hollywood Casino Amphitheater

Sept. 29 — Kansas City — T-Mobile Center

Sept. 30 — Oklahoma City — Paycom Center

Oct. 1 — Fort Worth — Dickies Arena

Oct. 6 — Lexington — Rupp Arena

Oct. 7 — Nashville — Bridgestone Arena

Oct. 8 — Atlanta — State Farm Arena

Oct. 13 — Savannah — Enmarket Arena

Oct. 14 — Knoxville — Thompson Boling Arena

Oct. 15 — Charleston — Charleston Coliseum

Oct. 21 — Uncasville — Mohegan Sun Arena

Oct. 22 — Long Island — UBS Arena at Belmont Park

Nov. 3 — Madison — Alliant Energy Center

Nov. 4 — Peoria — Peoria Civic Center

Nov. 5 — St. Paul — Xcel Center

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Keith Urban Announces Summer 2022 Tour Dates

By Joseph Hudak

Joseph Hudak

Since the pandemic, the majority of Keith Urban ’s live shows have been onstage in Las Vegas, part of his ongoing residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. This summer, however, the guitarist is returning to the road with the launch of the Speed of Now World Tour. Urban announced the summer 2022 trek on Wednesday.

“I’ve always considered myself a live performer first,” Urban said in a statement. “It’s what I’ve always done and it’s what my music needs to live and breathe. Our shows are all about living in the moment. They’re a totally interactive and immersive experience where everyone can participate in whatever way they want — sing, dance, do whatever.”

Urban, whose latest single is the inspirational “Wild Hearts,” will kick off the new tour June 17 in Tampa, Florida, at the MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre and spend the next six months winding his way through the U.S. and Canada. The run is slated to end Nov. 5 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Ingrid Andress will open all dates.

Prior to the Speed of Now World Tour, Urban, the subject of a recent Rolling Stone Australia cover story , will play three new shows at the Colosseum in Las Vegas on May 27, 28, and 29.

Keith Urban’s The Speed of Now World Tour June 17 — Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre June 18 — West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre July 8 — Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage July 9 — Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage July 10 — Canandaigua, NY @ CMAC July 15 — Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center July 16 — Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center July 22 — Mansfield, NH @ Xfinity Center July 23 — Bangor, ME @ Maine Savings Amphitheater July 24 — Gilford, NH @ Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion July 29 — Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center July 30 — Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live July 31 — Camden, NJ @ BB&T Pavilion August 4 — Jacksonville, FL @ Daily’s Place August 5 — Jacksonville, FL @ Daily’s Place August 6 — Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater August 12 — Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion August 13 — Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park August 14 — Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater August 18 — Rogers, AR @ Walmart AMP August 19 — St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre August 20 — Des Moines, IA @ Iowa State Fair August 26 — Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre August 27 — Indianapolis, IN @ Ruoff Music Center August 28 — Milwaukee, WI @ American Family Insurance Amphitheater September 1 — Lake Tahoe, NV @ Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys September 2 — Lake Tahoe, NV @ Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys September 3 — Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre September 8 — Phoenix, AZ  @ Footprint Center September 9 — San Diego, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre September 10 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Forum September 15 — Salt Lake City, UT @ USANA Amphitheatre September 16 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena September 17 — Wichita, KS @ INTRUST Bank Arena September 22 — Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel Arena September 23 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena September 24 — Chicago, IL @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheater September 29 — Kansas City, MO @ T-Mobile Center September 30 — Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom Center October 1 — Ft. Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena October 6 — Lexington, KY @ Rupp Arena October 7 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena October 8 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena October 13 — Savannah, GA @ Enmarket Arena October 14 — Knoxville, TN @ Thompson Boling Arena October 15 — Charleston, SC @ Charleston Coliseum October 20 — Wilkes Barre, PA @ Mohegan Sun Arena October 21 — Uncasville, CT @ Mohegan Sun Arena October 22 — Long Island, NY @ UBS Arena at Belmont Park November 3 — Madison, WI @ Alliant Energy Center November 4 — Peoria, IL @ Peoria Civic Center November 5 — St. Paul, MS @ Xcel Center

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Keith Urban's Publicist Denies That Tour Bus Polluted New York Street

Keith Urban's publicist has issued a statement of denial following the New York media's reports that the septic tank of Urban's tour bus was emptied outside a local music club. Urban appeared Wednesday (April 1) at Webster Hall, a venue located on East 11th Street. According to reports in the New York Post newspaper and on New York magazine's Web site, Urban's bus dumped the waste on the street around 3 a.m. However, Urban's publicist, Paul Freundlich, said, "Keith Urban neither contracted, leased or owned any type of vehicle (bus or otherwise) located in or around New York City at the time of his performance at Webster Hall. Any accusations that he was responsible in any way (for the alleged release of septic water into the streets of New York City) are inaccurate and malicious. His tour bus was in fact in Tennessee where it was being prepared for Keith's upcoming tour." Urban has been performing a series of shows in small venues before his national tour of arenas and amphitheaters begins in May.

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Home › Live Sound

Tour Profile: Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood

WORKING THE STAGE AND THE AUDIENCE THE GOOD OLD-FASHIONED WAY

By Gaby Alter

When many big pop acts put on a show, it typically calls for a heavily choreographed routine. Such acts follow a tight script that’s filled with large production numbers, dancers and special effects. For Keith Urban, one of the biggest names in contemporary country music, putting on a show means doing it the old-fashioned way: working hard to win over the crowd, changing up the set with new arrangements — in short, making it anything but routine. This was evident at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, one of the first stops on the Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride tour featuring co-headliners Urban and Carrie Underwood. The tour began in January and will be making stops across the U.S. before heading to Urban’s native Australia and then finishing up Stateside this month. During his performance, Urban ran from one end of the stage to the other, up and down a runway and often into the audience, where he let fans touch him as he took guitar solos. At one point, he even unplugged his axe, signed it and gave it to a dumbfounded fan.

Urban’s front-of-house engineer, Steve Laws, has been with the singer (minus a few breaks) since Urban started out on Australia’s club scene 20 years ago. Admittedly, Urban’s old-school Aussie club chops are enhanced by very new-school technology, in particular a 60×40-foot high-definition video wall that adds some fancy imagery and close-ups of the band.

The tour is carrying a Clair Bros. P.A., with the new “bow-tie” subs, eight i4s as side hangs in large arenas and a pair doing frontfills. “There’s always a zone in the center that no matter what concert you go to is the worst seat in the house,” Laws says. “So we put a pair of i4s there, stacked on the subs, making it punchy down in the front. We have a couple of smaller P2 cabinets doing outfills on the very end of the runway on the sides, just for the people way close in the front. It’s very consistent sonically from venue to venue. It doesn’t throw a lot of junk off the back. It’s a great system.”

However, the nucleus of the show remains Urban’s spontaneous, crowd-engaging style. “He’s known for grabbing the mic and going out into the audience, which is always fun,” says Spence. “The biggest trick was coming up with a game plan for his spontaneity to make sure he had a mic when he was out in the crowd and by the time he got back up onstage. So we have six vocal mic positions for him between the main stage, the B stage and the piano position. Whatever he’s closest to, he grabs it and goes.” The mics — Shure Beta 87 capsules with Shure U4D receivers and U2 transmitters, along with a KSM9 as the main stage mic — often see abuse in the line of duty. “He goes out into the audience, grabs a mic and sings on it; now when it’s time for him to play guitar, the mic just gets thrown,” Spence says, “so they’re a little dinged up. We’re on a rotation of getting ’em repaired, but it makes it fun for the audience.”

“Both Jason and I have to be on our toes a lot because he’ll do audibles,” adds Laws. “He’ll just call a song, and we’ve got to be ready to go. It doesn’t happen a lot, but it does happen.” What’s more, the band changes instruments frequently. During the show, Urban plays electric and acoustic guitars, banjo and bass, and his bandmembers switch between acoustic and electric guitars, banjo and mandolin. In addition, the band plays a second, mostly acoustic set on a raised platform at the end of a runway in the center of the arena, which has its own setup (and during which more instrument switching occurs). In all, Spence and Laws must deal with a massive 104 inputs. “I do a lot of awards shows, and I don’t have that many inputs coming from [them],” Spence says.

To handle the FOH mix, Laws uses a DiGiCo D5 console. “I’d still rather have an analog system at the end of the day, but it’s really impractical, especially now,” he says. “It’s also a space-saving thing. I’d basically need two [Midas] XL4s to make the whole thing work, and the amount of real estate I’d take up would be obscene.

“I use the onboard EQ,” Laws continues. “I’m not big on using too many inserts or too many outboard devices, especially on a digital console; that kind of defeats the purpose of why you got the thing in the first place. Not only that, you can introduce latency, and then trying to compensate for that. I know a lot of people who don’t compensate for it, and personally I can hear it.

“The only outboard I use is a [Lexicon] 480L. There’s not many things around that can do what a 480L does. I use a medium hall setting, and I use a snare plate or a wood room on the snare drum. I have a [Tech 21] SansAmp guitar preamp I use to distort the drum kit for a couple of songs, and also the bass guitar for a couple of songs. It gives it a little edge. [For] the drum kit, I have [Empirical Labs] Distressors on the kick and snare, simply because there’s nothing like that inside the DiGiCo. I’ve also got the ADK [Pro Audio] computer with the Universal Audio card, so I can access LA-2As and 1176s and things like that, but it’s through the DiGiCo without having to go through any kind of conversion.” Laws sends the rest of the drum kit through a stereo pair to an Empirical Labs EL7 Fatso audio processor, “which really makes the drums leap out of the mix,” he adds.

Laws groups Urban’s six vocal channels together and inserts Crane Song Trakker Class-A compressor/limiters across the group. “[It’s] a studio device, primarily, but probably one of the most awesome compressors I’ve ever used,” he says. “I’ve got two of the Trakkers, and I also have an STC-8 [Crane Song stereo compressor], which I use over bass and guitar. There’s a few touring guys that use the STC-8 on bass; it’s really one of the best bass guitar compressors out there. The Trakkers are a little different — more of a mastering compressor and really good at handling vocal transients without any kind of coloration. It does have a lot of options. It’s basically every compressor that you’ve ever used built into one compressor.”

At stage-left, Spence is mixing on a Yamaha PM1D dual engine with LMY4-MLF mic/line input cards with 5k preamps, clocked with an Apogee Big Ben. “It’s the only reliable console that can handle the inputs and outputs that we’re running,” he says.

“All the FX are onboard,” Spence continues. “I do have the [Yamaha] REV-X ‘verbs installed in there. I’m running Version 2 on the 1D. There’s a really cool 1176 emulator on there that I use on a few inputs; that works quite well. There’s a tape-saturation emulator, which is great for putting on kick drums — it emulates slamming analog tape and gives you that punch.”

Sharing the Yamaha PM1D as a surface with Spence is Underwood’s monitor engineer, Cam Beachley. “I have my own wireless rack and output cage for the PM1Ds so that we’re not having to repatch,” he says. “Jason and I really thought about this, what would be most effective and speedy.

The band uses Future Sonics custom ear buds with MG4 drivers with Sennheiser EW 300 IEM G2 in-ear transmitters and receiver packs. The drummer uses a hardwired Shure PSM 600 pack. “[The Future Sonics] are probably my favorite of all the in-ears, because they don’t scoop out the mids,” Spence says. “It’s not an armature, it’s a real driver. No dual-driver, no triple-driver: it’s one driver, 20 kHz.”

“Everybody’s wearing Future Sonics right now, and we’re using Sennheiser G2 transmitters and receivers,” Beachley adds. “Everybody’s in-ears; we’ve got two subs up on the deck, and the bass player’s using a wedge as a faux bass amp.”

In addition to the in-ears, Urban listens to Showco Prism SRM wedges suspended underneath a center-stage grating. “He tends to pull one ear out and switches back and forth,” Spence says. “It started out just as feel, but as he started pulling an ear out to get the crowd, it started becoming more of a full mix in there.”

Spence also uses multiple pairs of mics to pick up the audience: Shure VP88 stereo mics and Shure 91s at FOH, a pair of KSM32s downstage and a second pair facing the back of the arena behind the B stage. “It’s an interesting balance to try to achieve in the ears between getting the isolation you need, but then also not so isolated that your mix is just sterile,” he says. “So we use quite a lot of audience mics, and if it’s a good-sounding room, often I’ll leave the audience mics up in the mix all night long, and then I’ll just ride ’em harder or in between songs just to get that crowd reaction.”

Urban’s electric guitar rig runs through two Royer 122 ribbon mics and two Sennheiser MD 409s, which go separately through two pairs of Neve 1073 preamps to Universal Audio 1176s, and finally to an Apogee AD-8000 that converts the signal into AES.

Doing FOH duties for co-headliner Carrie Underwood is Rob Rankin, who mixes on a Midas XL4. “Everything is available to me, as opposed to a digital console, where lots of stuff is buried. I’m old school,” he says unapologetically. “It’s mostly about her vocal and keeping up the band to support it.” Underwood’s vocals go through a Shure SM57, and then to an Empirical Labs DL8 Distressor and an XTA stereo dynamic EQ to help with sibilance.

Beachley adds that there is no need for him to treat Underwood’s voice. “Nothing on her vocals, flat EQ,” he confirms. “She’s an awesome singer, has great microphone technique. No compression, no nothing. She’s the real deal.”

Gaby Alter is a New York City-based writer.

FULL MIC LIST

Kick: SM91 Kick: ATM 25 Wendel Snare Top: SM57 Snare Bottom: SM57 Hat: AKG 451 Rack: Opus 87 Floor: Opus 87 Ride: KSM-141 O/H Stage Right: VP-88 O/H Stage Left: VP-88 Bass DI: Demeter DI Synth L: Radial JD-6 Synth R: Radial JD-6 Nord L: Radial JD-6 Nord R: Radial JD-6 Piano L: Radial JD-6 Piano R: Radial JD-6 Recpt L: Radial JD-6 Recpt R: Radial JD-6 Whirly: SM57 Leslie Low:– 421 Leslie High L: SM57 Leslie High R: SM57 Ed Electric guitar Mic L: 421 Ed Electric guitar Mic R: SM57 Ed Acoustic: RF Carrie Electric guitar: SM57 Carrie acoustic guitar: RF Spare Vocal: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Carrie Vocal 1: UR2/SM58 Fiddle: RF Mandolin: RF Jim Acoustic Guitar: RF Shawn Electric Guitar Mic L: 421 Shawn Electric Guitar Mic R: SM57 Shawn Acoustic Guitar: RF Steel: SM57 Dobro: RF Banjo: RF Pro Tools Pad L: Radial JD-6 Pro Tools Pad R: Radial JD-6 Pro Tools Loop L: Radial JD-6 Pro Tools Loop R: Radial JD-6 Pro Tools Percussion: Radial JD-6 Pro Tools Click: Radial JD-6 Track Vocal: Radial JD-6 Click 2: 1/8-Mini Adapt Mark Talkback Jon Talkback Aud SL Aud SR Monitor TB FOH TB

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How Keith Urban's daughters have supported him while on tour

He and nicole are used to conflicting schedules.

Keith Urban is having the time of his life while on his The Speed of Now World Tour , selling out big stadiums and performing to thousands of adoring fans.

MORE:  Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban's sprawling $4.5m Australian farmhouse will blow you away

While the prospect of having to spend so much time away from his family home and wife Nicole Kidman isn't the greatest, he's found other ways to cope.

VIDEO: Keith Urban talks marriage to Nicole Kidman

The singer hosted Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton earlier in the month and mentioned that his two daughters with Nicole, Sunday, 14, and Faith, 11, have hit the road with him too .

While still managing to find time around school and spending time at home with their mom, they've also found joy in joining their dad on his tour bus.

MORE:  Keith Urban shares rare glimpse inside family life with Nicole Kidman

" They've been out, I've been taking them out at different times individually ," Keith said. "And it's been great to have them out on the bus. 

" They love the bus, and I would too at that age . Just the idea of traveling and sleeping in the bunks. But it's been nice having them out there."

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Keith's daughters have joined him occasionally while he is on tour

Speaking recently to Audacy's KFROG (Riverside), Keith provided some insight on how he was spending his time while away from home for so long. 

The singer said that he was "obsessed" with the HBO comedy-drama series Barry , adding: "[ Barry ] was unbelievable. I'm so bummed that it's finished unless there's some way to reboot it down the track – that's a phenomenal show."

MORE:  Nicole Kidman shares sweet glimpse of restful weekend at home

MORE:  Nicole Kidman shares sweet reunion with Keith Urban as she makes surprise appearance

And like many others, he's also a huge fan of the Emmy-winning Apple TV+ show Ted Lasso , admitting that "you need to check your pulse" if you're not a fan.

"It's good because I think it's timely," he explained. "The idea that a show where you keep waiting for the other shoe to drop — this guy can't be that nice and compassionate and kind and empathetic, there's no way — there's something waiting.

The two stars have learned how to make the best of their time together

"But the fact that it never does, and you go, 'Yeah, wow, what a gift!' A gift from the heavens that the spirit of that show has been right about now."

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Keith urban remembers toby keith..

During  Keith Urban ‘s early career, he got the chance to be the opening act on Brooks & Dunn ‘s Neon Circus Tour, which also featured Montgomery Gentry on the bill, as well as Toby Keith . He loved being out on the road with those guys, and he recalls riding Toby’s tour bus when they had to make an urgent pit stop at 2am at one point.

“The Neon Circus Tour with Brooks & Dunn – I was the opening, opening, opening act going on at, I don’t know, four in the afternoon (laughs) and you know playing my 20-minute set, and then Montgomery Gentry came out and played a set and then Toby came out and then Kix and Ronnie came out and killed it,” recalls Keith. “It was an amazing tour. I have a lot of stories from that tour. I rode on Toby’s tour bus on his 40th birthday, which was surreal, and there we are rolling down some interstate and he gets hungry at two in the morning, so we pull in to a Steak ‘n Shake, sat in the booth and ordered Steak ‘n Shake.”

The entire tour lineup decided to make after-show stops at local bars and take over for the house band.

“We would always do it unannounced, and it would be almost all of us – Montgomery Gentry, me, Toby, Kix and Ronnie, when they finished, we’d all end up there playing,” says Keith. “It was amazing because some of the clubs would only have six people in them because everybody’s at the concert. These people couldn’t go to the concert, so we show up, jump up and start started playing songs and then the club would fill up. And then people would have you signing all their shirts and stuff like that, and for whatever reason, I thought, ‘I’m just gonna sign Keith instead of both of my names. It’ll cut my signing time in half.’ So, I’m writing Keith (laughs) on all these shirts, and then at the end of the night, I noticed these people whose shirts are signed, and it’s like, it’s got more writing on it. And I went over and looked. Toby just started writing his name first, but he put it right in front of mine. (laughs) So, he got a full signature, and I got nothing.”

Toby Keith passed away February 5th from his battle with stomach cancer. He was 62 years old.

Audio / Keith Urban recalls being on the Brooks & Dunn Neon Circus Tour with Toby Keith and stopping for a late-night snack.

Keith Urban (Toby Keith) 1 OC: …Steak ‘n Shake. :35 “The Neon Circus Tour with Brooks & Dunn – I was the opening, opening, opening act going on at, I don’t know, four in the afternoon (laughs) and you know playing my 20-minute set, and then Montgomery Gentry came out and played a set and then Toby came out and then Kix and Ronnie came out and killed it. It was an amazing tour. I have a lot of stories from that tour. I rode on Toby’s tour bus on his 40th birthday, which was surreal, and there we are rolling down some interstate and he gets hungry at two in the morning, so we pull in to a Steak ‘n Shake, sat in the booth and ordered Steak ‘n Shake.”

Audio / Keith Urban recalls a funny story about Toby Keith when he went on tour with him on Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus Tour.

Keith Urban (Toby Keith) 2 OC: …I got nothing. 1:19 “On that tour, we started getting into the habit when we would come off stage, we would find the local honkytonk where there was a country music band playing, and we would organize all our buses to go to that line dance bar or whatever it was, and then we would get up and just take over for the house band. We would always do it unannounced, and it would be almost all of us – Montgomery Gentry, me, Toby Kix and Ronnie, when they finished, we’d all end up there playing. It was amazing because some of the clubs would only have six people in them because everybody’s at the concert. These people couldn’t go to the concert, so we show up, jump up and start started playing songs and then the club would fill up. And then people would have you signing all their shirts and stuff like that, and for whatever reason, I thought, ‘I’m just gonna sign Keith instead of both of my names. It’ll cut my signing time in half.’ So, I’m writing Keith (laughs) on all these shirts, and then at the end of the night, I noticed these people whose shirts are signed, and it’s like, it’s got more writing on it. And I went over and looked. Toby just started writing his name first, but he put it right in front of mine. (laughs) So, he got a full signature, and I got nothing.”

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