Keith Urban
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, FileKeith Urban will return to the road in 2022, with June marking the North American debut of his first world tour in four years, The Speed of Now World Tour. The newly announced North American shows will add 50 new concert stops to his previously announced shows set in Australia, Germany, Netherlands and the U.K for next year.
“More Hearts Than Mine” hitmaker Ingrid Andress will join Urban for the North American tour dates, which begin June 17 at Tampa, Fla.’s Midflorida Credit Union Amphitheatre and wrap Nov. 5 at St. Paul, Minn.’s Excel Center.
“Every night is the first time we’ve played these songs for that audience, in that moment,” Urban said via a statement. “It’s why every show is different – spontaneous and unpredictable – even for us!” He adds, “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 off the stage.”
The trek will include Urban’s first concerts in Fort Worth, Texas and Savannah, Ga., as well as a stop at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Oct. 7.
The tour takes its name from Urban’s The Speed of Now Part 1 album, which was released in September 2020 and features “Superman,” “One Too Many” (with Pink) and “Out The Cage” (featuring Breland and Nile Rodgers).
On May 27-29, Urban will be performing three shows as part of a run of dates at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas; tickets for those shows will go on sale Dec. 10 at 10 a.m. PT.
Sharleen Spiteri joined BBC Radio 2’s The Sara Cox Breakfast Show ahead of Texas taking the stage to launch the main live music programme at Radio 2 in the Park in Stirling.
Checking in from rehearsals, the Texas frontwoman spoke about getting ready for the band’s opening performance at City Park. Radio 2’s annual flagship festival takes place there from 11 to 13 September 2026. "I’m match fit because I’ve had a couple of days’ rehearsals," Spiteri said. "We’re kicking the whole weekend off, which we’re very much looking forward to, so everybody’s got to get ready to party."
Before the live acts take over, Friday’s DJ Pre-Party gets the weekend started with Radio 2 favourites Sara Cox, DJ Spoony, Gary Davies, Michelle Visage, and Rylan behind the decks.
Jo Whiley helped set the mood with a special programme from Stirling’s Tolbooth venue. Working with BBC Introducing Scotland, the broadcast put the spotlight on Scotland’s emerging music scene through performances and conversations with Fright Years, Alice Faye, and James Emmanuel.
Fright Years, a four member band from Edinburgh, played "Never Been Wrong" and offered their take on Simple Minds’ "Waterfront." Glasgow singer and songwriter Alice Faye, the BBC Introducing in Scotland 2026 winner, paired "Some Brief Encounter" with a rendition of Lulu’s arrangement of "I Started a Joke." James Emmanuel, who was born in Nigeria and now lives in Edinburgh, sang "Brothers & Sisters" before taking on Chaka Khan’s "I’m Every Woman."
"We’re all about celebrating BBC Introducing and all the music that’s come out of Scotland," Whiley told listeners. "It's about celebrating the local music scene and the incredibly important work that BBC Introducing does to support independent, up-and-coming artists."
Joining the conversation were Stephanie Cheape, presenter of BBC Introducing in Scotland, Tara McLoughlin, venue manager for Stirling Council, and student radio presenters representing the University of Stirling’s Air3 Radio.
Listeners can catch the complete interviews and live performances from the weekend’s programmes on BBC Sounds.
