Before he was a Grammy-winning, chart-topping country music powerhouse—and long before he was trading vocals with Carrie Underwood on hits like The Fighter—Keith Urban was just a mullet-sporting teen chasing a dream on Australian television.
In a rare and nostalgic clip, a 16-year-old Urban appears on the long-running Aussie talent show New Faces in 1983, performing a heartfelt rendition of Air Supply’s All Out of Love. With big hair, a glittery jacket, and all the earnest energy of a future star, Urban won over the audience—and raised a few eyebrows among the judges.
Their advice? Tighten up his vocal delivery. Start a band. And maybe rethink the wardrobe, which one judge joked looked straight out of a Bay City Rollers concert. But hidden under that sequined surface was raw talent—and a tenacity that would fuel a career far beyond Australia’s borders.
It wasn’t even his first reality TV rodeo. At just 9 years old, Urban was critiqued by a talent show judge who bluntly advised him to “escape the mediocrity of country and western” or risk “sounding like Dolly Parton and being absolutely useless.” Ouch. The same judge did, however, acknowledge his musicality and encouraged him to sing in tune. Clearly, young Keith took some of that advice to heart—though it’s safe to say he proved the rest of it wrong.
Years later, that same kid from Whangārei, New Zealand would go on to lead country-rock trio The Ranch, launch a solo career with his 1999 self-titled U.S. debut album, and rack up a list of accolades that includes:
- Four Grammy Awards
- Multiple CMA & ACM Entertainer of the Year titles
- Billboard chart-topping hits
- Collaborations with pop icons like Pink
- A long-running role as a judge on American Idol and The Voice Australia
- A star-studded family life with actress Nicole Kidman and daughters Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret
Urban’s early appearance on New Faces even brought him full circle. He was later spotlighted twice in the Country Radio Seminar’s prestigious New Faces of Country Music showcase—first in 1998 with The Ranch and again in 2000 as a rising solo artist.
Today, it’s almost surreal to think of Keith Urban as an aspiring teenager taking cues from TV judges in Australia. But his journey—from local talent shows to Nashville royalty—is a testament to perseverance, reinvention, and staying true to the heart of country music.
Watch the video that started it all: Keith Urban at 16—before the fame, the hits, and the headlines.
