Keith Urban Officially Signs Off From ‘The Voice’ Australia
It’s been widely speculated that Keith Urban will join a completely overhauled version of ‘American Idol’ next season — and with official word that the Australian superstar has left the his home country’s version of ‘The Voice,’ there is more fuel to the fire that the ‘For You’ singer could likely become a reality television star stateside.
“I’ve been so fortunate to have been a part of ‘The Voice,’” Urban says in a statement (quote via mjsbigblog). “And as much as I’d love to do it again, it’s clear that the recording and promoting of a new album, a tour and other commitments, will keep me from being a part of the second season.”
“To everyone who sang on the show I thank you, you’ve inspired not just me, but countless others,” the gracious singer adds. “To everyone behind the scenes and to my on camera family Darren, Delta, Joel and Seal, thank you for making it so much fun. Keep watching Australia!”
As far as his new album is concerned, Urban hopes the new project will be unlike anything he has ever released before. “I wanted to have everything around me be totally unfamiliar to me and I think it’s great in a sense that all sorts of stuff is coming out that I normally haven’t done before,” he reveals.
Urban did not elude to what “other commitments” that might be on his immediate agenda, but he did recently admit that ‘American Idol’ producers have indeed approached him to fill the vacant judge spot on the wildly popular reality show.
If all goes as planned, the singer will receive a hefty paycheck of $4 million to join pop singers Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj in Season 12 of ‘American Idol,’ which is expected to air in January 2013. His new album is also expected to drop sometime next year.