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.
Way Too Long
Keith Urban Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like friends on Valentines
The puzzle pieces got lost in time and left behind, but fought a real good fight
But there's something 'bout you, babe
Though I tried to open up
It's no use, I'm frozen in the stage
Being great at pushing everyone I love
And it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
For way too long
Despite the look that's in your eyes
I know how hard you tried to break my stubbornness
Do your best to pull me out
But I'm burried in this mess, I see you're disheartened and
I really want to give you more
Than just parts of what I can
I wish you could call the last ones
So you understand
That it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
And baby, I'm trying, baby, I'm trying
You know I been trying for way too long
And baby, I'm trying, baby, I'm trying
But it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Mmm, oh, oh, for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Mmm, mmm oh, oh, oh
For way too long
The song "Way Too Long" by Keith Urban is about an individual who has been hurt in past relationships and has become closed off and defensive as a result. The lyrics express the difficulty the person is experiencing in opening up to a new potential partner due to fear of being hurt again. The person recognizes that their behavior is pushing people away, but they are unable to change their ways. The line "I can't stop singing in and outta key" can be seen as a metaphor for the dissonance in the person's emotions and relationships. Despite wanting to give a new relationship a chance, the person feels stuck in their old patterns of behavior and fears that it may be too late to change.
In the second verse, the person is aware of their partner's efforts to help them but feels unable to fully commit due to their own emotional baggage. They express a desire to be able to give more of themselves to their partner, but fear that their past experiences have left them unable to do so. Ultimately, the chorus repeats that the person's heart has been beaten and bleeding for too long and that it may be too late to change.
Line by Line Meaning
The words are getting hard to find
I'm having difficulty expressing myself
Like friends on Valentines
The people I love are hard to come by
The puzzle pieces got lost in time and left behind, but fought a real good fight
The pieces of my past still affect my present, but they put up a good fight
But there's something 'bout you, babe
Despite my struggles, there's something special about you
Though I tried to open up
I attempted to let you in
It's no use, I'm frozen in the stage
But I'm unable to change my ways
Being great at pushing everyone I love
I excel in pushing loved ones away
I love away
And then wonder why I'm alone
And it's just too little too late to change
I'm set in my ways
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
My past traumas still affect me
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I struggle to find my own voice
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
My emotional wounds still haven't healed
Despite the look that's in your eyes
I'm aware of how much you care
I know how hard you tried to break my stubbornness
I understand you want to help me, but I can't let go of my ways
Do your best to pull me out
You try to get me to improve
But I'm burried in this mess, I see you're disheartened and
But I'm still stuck in my old patterns, and I can see it taking a toll on your spirit
I really want to give you more
I do want to be better for you
Than just parts of what I can
But I'm still struggling to fully change
I wish you could call the last ones
I wish you could reach out to those who hurt me in the past
So you understand
So you can see where I'm coming from
And baby, I'm trying, baby, I'm trying
I promise I'm making an effort
You know I been trying for way too long
I've been trying for a long time, and I still have a ways to go
Mmm, oh, oh, for way too long
For too long, I've been struggling to make progress
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Julia Michaels, Nate Ruess, Oscar Holter
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Chest Man
The words are getting hard to find
Like friends on Valentines
The puzzle pieces got lost in time and left behind, but fought a real good fight
But there's something 'bout you, babe
Though I tried to open up
It's no use, I'm frozen in the stage
Being great at pushing everyone I love
I love away
And it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
For way too long
Despite the look that's in your eyes
I know how hard you tried to break my stubbornness
Do your best to pull me out
But I'm burried in this mess, I see you're disheartened and
I really want to give you more
Than just parts of what I can
I wish you could call the last ones
So you understand
That it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
And baby, I'm trying, baby, I'm trying
You know I been trying for way too long
And baby, I'm trying, baby, I'm trying
But it's just too little too late to change
I got a heart that's been beaten this way for way too long
I can't stop singing in and outta key
I got a heart that's been bleeding this way for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Mmm, oh, oh, for way too long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Mmm, mmm oh, oh, oh
For way too long
sweetestvictory
Keith urban is the ultimate singer/songwriter the way he plays and the words you feel the excitement, or the hurt, the passion and not all music is that way you really feel what he feels while singing the song thank you Keith for inviting us all to your world through your music.
Tarun Roger
Trivia: The song is co-written by Julia Michaels and Nate Ruess, the song was supposed to be this good.
LadyWolf7178
He truly is an amazing artist...with such longevity...I think Julia Michaels wrote this with him...gorgeous song...
Rocki Wicker
He is my favorite, has been since 1995. I saw him in concert in 2008. I didn't stay for Kenny Chesney, I just witnessed true greatness
Taco Skip
He’s perfect with his expressions. You worded this so perfectly
sweetestvictory
Ditto Nicole too they're true soul mates
Rhonda Dixon
Love it as always! What an amazing talent you have!! Keep it coming please 😊
Lsie Cosplays
this song was so worth counting down the days for, don't think ill stop listening to this for ages!
Denise Hedden
🖤🥀Amazing song and I love it🥀🖤🤘
Emma Wiles
I love this song