Keith Urban's growing catalog of country hits earned him a spot in yet another prestigious club. The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame announced on Thursday (Aug. 3) that Urban has been elected as this year's contemporary songwriter-artist inductee. He's joined in the Class of 2023 by Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn fame, who's going in as a veteran songwriter-artist.
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Frequent Kenny Chesney and Eric Church collaborator Casey Beathard and "Dust on the Bottle" singer-songwriter David Lee Murphy were announced as this year's contemporary songwriter inductees. A writer of George Jones and Tammy Wynette's "Golden Ring," Rafe Van Hoy rounds out the class as its veteran songwriter selection.
During Thursday's announcement at Nashville's historic Columbia Studio A, Urban recalled stories about his early days in town as a songwriter and shared his gratitude for joining the Hall of Fame alongside Brooks.
"Kix was one of the first that came along, who sat at Jack's Guitar Bar to hear me play and later took me on tour. He's been a champion ever since. I'm honored to be here with you," Urban said.
Brooks was equally thrilled about this year's class, referencing when he used to sweep floors alongside Murphy during leaner times and when he co-wrote the John Conlee hit "I'm Only in It For the Love" with Van Hoy and Deborah Allen.
"I came here as fan of songwriters. That's all I wanted to do," Brooks said. "My heroes were not just artists, but artists who wrote their own songs. To even think I would even be recognized in the same sentence as the mention of their names ..."
The four honorees will be formally inducted on Oct. 11 at the 53rd Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala, which will be hosted at Nashville's Music City Center.
