On April 15, Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood bested eight other artists—including Thomas Rhett, Maren Morris, Willie Nelson and more—to take home the ACM Award for Vocal Event of the Year for “The Fighter.”
The announcement of the award came moments before Carrie returned to the public eye—and the stage—for the first time since her accident in November 2017 to perform her new single, “Cry Pretty.”
“I just was elated to accept that award with Carrie,” says Keith. “I’m really happy for her too. And, yeah, she knocked that performance [of “Cry Pretty”] out of the park. I mean, whatever she’s been going through seemed to have really come out in that performance.”
The tune, which Keith co-wrote and produced with busbee, appear on Keith’s 2016 album, Ripcord. Keith will release his upcoming ninth studio album, Graffiti U, on April 27. The 13-track offering, which includes his current single, “Coming Home,” featuring Julia Michaels, is available for pre-order now.
“I’ve been full-on writing, recording, collaborating and creating with some incredibly talented people for Graffiti U, a lot of whom I’ve never worked with before,” said Keith. “I can hear how some of the songs will translate live already, which really makes putting on a new show so exhilarating and I loved having our fans included in the announcement of the tour because it’s their tour too.”