Urban was born in Whangarei, North Island, New Zealand (on 26 October, 1967). Before he turned two years old his family moved to Australia. By age seven, Urban was already thinking about emigrating to America and making his mark in Nashville. Urban began to learn the guitar at age six and began winning talent contests at age eight. By twelve he was booking his band in local clubs, and at fifteen he quit school to hit the road. In 1990, Urban signed with EMI in Australia and recorded his first solo album, which charted four No. 1 country hits in Australia. In 1992, he moved to Nashville to pursue the largest country music market in the world. Originally the front man for The Ranch, a three-piece group that released one album in 1997 to critical acclaim, Urban disbanded the group to pursue a solo career.
In the late 90's Urban battled an addiction to cocaine. After reaching a personal rock bottom in 1998, he became determined to give up the habit and checked into Cumberland Heights, a treatment center in Nashville. After cleaning up, Urban released his self-titled American debut in 2000, achieving three top 5 hits and securing the title of Top New Male Vocalist Award at the 2001 Academy of Country Music Awards. Urban, openly regarded as a modern day guitar virtuoso, has performed as a session musician on albums such as Garth Brooks' Double Live and the Dixie Chicks' Fly.
In an attempt to gain more exposure, Keith then appeared semi-nude in an interview for Playgirl magazine's April 2001 issue. The publicity attempt worked as Keith was on the cover of the magazine's readers' most requested issue.
Keith Urban released Golden Road in 2002, and the success of the single "Somebody Like You" sent his career into high gear. The single spent eight consecutive weeks at the top of the charts, remaining at No. 1 longer than any other country artist in 2002. Three other singles were released, two went to No. 1 and the third was No. 3. The album went platinum in every country where it has been released and is triple platinum in the United States. In 2004 Be Here was released and nominated for best country album at the Grammy Awards and at the Academy of Country Music Awards. Out of the five singles released from Be Here, three went No. 1, and two fell just shy of that mark to land at No. 2. In 2006 the album went triple platinum in the U.S. Urban has also released Days Go By, a greatest hits collection, in Europe. With a career total of 13 singles released, seven singles went to No. 1, two went to No.2, two went to No.3, one went to No. 4, and one went to No.18.
Touring as a supporting act for renowned country acts Brooks & Dunn and Kenny Chesney honed Urban's skills and stage-craft. Country video channel CMT signed on as the title sponsor of Keith Urban's first headlining arena tour titled Keith Urban Be Here '04. Urban continued his meteoric rise to fame in 2005 with the very successful Alive in '05 tour. He performed in the Live 8 Philadelphia concert on July 2, 2005 and had been chosen by The Gap to appear alongside seven other musical stars in their "Favorites" campaign. In 2005 he was named CMA's Entertainer of the Year. He released a DVD in late September entitled Livin' Right Now, recorded in California on December 2004. Urban performed "Better Life" on the CMA Awards and "You'll Think of Me" on the American Music Awards. He also performed at the Grammys playing "You'll Think of Me" and "The Lucky One" with Faith Hill. At the 2006 ACM Awards Urban gave two performances when he performed "Tonight I Wanna Cry" and played guitar for Brooks & Dunn's song "Believe."
Personal life
On arriving in Nashville, Tennessee in 1992, Urban quickly fell for veterinary technician Laura Sigler. The pair shared an on-off relationship from 1992, and lived together between 1998 and 2002. Urban paid tribute to Sigler in the sleeve notes to his self-titled first hit album, and dedicated love song "You're The Only One" to Sigler, writing "For Laura" at the bottom of the lyrics. After proposing to Sigler in 2001, the pair broke up in 2002.
In 2002, after his painful breakup with Sigler, Urban met supermodel Niki Taylor, who played his love interest in his music video for "Somebody Like You." Taylor had told her hair/makeup person, Debra Wingo, that she might be interested in being in a country music video. Wingo also does hair/makeup for Urban, and she mentioned that he was getting ready to do a video. Urban and Taylor dated on and off for three years until their split was officially announced July 2005.
Urban met actress Nicole Kidman at an event in Hollywood in January of 2005. In May of 2006, Urban and Kidman announced their engagement, and their plans to wed in Australia. They got married in Australia on 25 June 2006 at the Cardinal Cerretti Memorial Chapel in the grounds of St Patrick's Estate, Manly, Sydney.
If You Wanna Stay
Keith Urban Lyrics
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My hearts not a game you can play with and out away
Baby tryin' to figure you out, could make a man go insane
So just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
Dream what you want to dream, be who you gotta be
I never wanna be the one who kept you from being free
But girl I gotta know what you want, 'cause I've takin' all I can take
Every time you decide, to spread your wings and fly
You make the same mistake, and I can't take anymore goodbyes
So baby just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
Every time you decide, to spread your wings and fly
You make the same mistake, and I can't take anymore goodbyes
So baby just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
I don't wanna lose everything our love has made
But I don't wanna feel alone every time you go away
So just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
Baby just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
The lyrics to Keith Urban's song "If You Wanna Stay" are all about a relationship that's on the rocks. The singer is telling his lover that they have to make a choice - either they stay and work on the relationship together, or they leave and go their separate ways. The singer doesn't want to be played with or strung along, and he knows that trying to figure her out is a losing battle that's driving him insane. He wants her to follow her dreams and be herself, but only if it's what she really wants.
The chorus of the song is a plea for her to make up her mind and stop hurting him by constantly coming and going. The repetition of the line "Every time you decide to spread your wings and fly, you make the same mistake, and I can't take anymore goodbyes" highlights the frustration and pain that the singer is feeling. He loves her and doesn't want to lose her or the love that they've built together, but he also doesn't want to feel alone every time she leaves.
Overall, the lyrics to "If You Wanna Stay" are emotional and relatable, capturing the complexity of relationships and the struggle to make them work.
Line by Line Meaning
Go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
You have the freedom to choose whether you want to leave or stay in this relationship.
My heart's not a game you can play with and out away
My heart is not something you can treat carelessly or discard when you’re done with it.
Baby tryin' to figure you out, could make a man go insane
Trying to understand what you want is difficult and could drive a person crazy.
Dream what you want to dream, be who you gotta be
You should follow your dreams and be true to yourself.
I never wanna be the one who kept you from being free
I don’t want to be the reason you couldn’t be who you wanted to be.
But girl I gotta know what you want, 'cause I've takin' all I can take
I need to know what you want from this relationship because I’ve reached my limit.
Every time you decide, to spread your wings and fly
Whenever you choose to leave and go your own way,
You make the same mistake, and I can't take anymore goodbyes
You keep doing the same thing, and I can’t handle any more goodbyes.
So baby just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
So, it’s up to you whether you want to stay or leave.
I don't wanna lose everything our love has made
I don’t want to lose all that we’ve achieved in our relationship.
But I don't wanna feel alone every time you go away
However, I don’t want to feel lonely every time you’re not here.
Baby just go if you wanna go, stay if you wanna stay
Ultimately, the decision is yours whether you stay or leave.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KEITH LIONEL URBAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind