A Compendium of Photos of Keith Urban's Hair Through the Years

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Tomorrow night, Keith Urban will perform at the 2023 Academy of Country Music Awards. And, just like his red-carpet appearances, there is one detail in his performances that we can’t help but notice. Among his many achievements, like being married to Nicole Kidman for over a decade (and by all appearances, happily married), we’d be remiss if we didn’t celebrate another milestone — one that goes back a hell of a lot further than 15 years. Guys, Keith Urban has had the exact same flat-ironed, highlighted, soccer-mom haircut for at least 30 years.

He has committed to this hair, and while it’s not unusual for a man to just stick to one hairstyle for his whole life, it’s rarely this hairstyle. You see, Keith Urban hasn’t committed to a shaved head or a basic brush cut. He’s committed to a sultry, provocative, some might say slightly feminine hairstyle, and he’s done so for decades. Decades!

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And while we’ll readily admit to feeling bewildered by the style itself, I love that he’s embraced it so wholeheartedly. I love the fact that Keith Urban has decided that this is him. His best self. I’ll be honest with you; I don’t know if I’ll ever feel the confidence that Keith Urban feels while strutting around with sassy suburban mom hair. That’s something worth celebrating. How? Why by cataloging the evolution of the hair, of course.

Behold, exhibit A:

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Yes, friends. That’s a fresh young 16-year-old Keith Urban crooning away on an Australian TV show.

16-year-old Keith Urban

And look at it. It’s beyond debate. That is the exact same hairstyle Keith Urban rocks to this day.

Don’t believe me? Here. Exhibit B:

Keith Urban performs at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo., Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005. (AP Photo/The Kansas City Star, Jill Toyoshiba) ** NO MAGS, NO SALES, NO INTERNET *
Keith Urban performing in Kansas City

Keith Urban in 2005 still singing, still rocking his signature hairstyle. He’s lost the bangs and gone for some highlights, but otherwise, the look remains unchanged.

Oh, what’s this? Exhibit C:

Australia's Keith Urban holds his award for top male vocalist at the 41st Academy of Country Music Awards, Tuesday, May 23, 2006, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Keith Urban at the 2006 Country Music Awards

Keith Urban, a week before he and Kidman got married. The mullet is less obvious. It’s now more of a slow taper from front to back, but still. Still. Kidman knows she’s found a keeper because he has stayed faithful to a goddamned haircut for, like, 15 years already. She knows he ain’t the cheating kind.

Exhibit D:

** FILE ** In this Nov. 10, 2008 file photo, actress Nicole Kidman and husband Keith Urban attend the 2008 Glamour Women of the Year Awards at Carnegie Hall in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer, file)
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban at the 2008 Glamour Women of the Year Awards

It’s 2008. Stock markets are crashing. The world is panicking. But not our boy Keith Urban. I’m going to presume that Urban has discovered the round brush, and thus, he’s begun to style the front parts of his hair into smooth brackets bordering his face. This serves to emphasize the graceful flipping up of the back area of his hair, also courtesy of the round brush. It’s a whole new world.

On to exhibit E:

Australian musician Keith Urban attends the premiere of 'Rabbit Hole' at the Paris Theatre on Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010 in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini)
Keith Urban

Here we are in 2010. And there’s the hair. Virtually unchanged. He’s abandoned the round brush for an edgy, flat-ironed look and updated things with some jazzy new highlights, sure. But the essence of the hair — the middle-parted, house-shaped, mullet-but-not-quite-mullet essence lives on.

Are we done? Not even close. Look at exhibits F and G:

LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 23: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban attend the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences 64th Primetime Emmy Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on September 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tonya Wise/Invision for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences/AP Images)
Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban

It’s 2012. Urban and Kidman have been married for six years. “How’s my hair, babe?” he whispers. “F**k your hair, Keith,” she hisses back in her lovely Australian accent.

FILE - This Feb. 24, 2013 file photo shows musician Keith Urban, left, and his wife actress Nicole Kidman wearing a L'Wren Scott gown at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Scott was found dead Monday, March 17, 2014, in Manhattan of a possible suicide. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP, file)
Keith Urban, Nicole Kidman

On to 2013. I’ve always appreciated that Urban is confident enough not to let the height difference between himself and Kidman bother him — she always wears heels and never has to do any weird, Katie Holmes-esque slouching beside him. But in saying that, let’s also admit that Keith will never let Nicole have nicer hair. Look at his face. So petty. So pretty. So satisfied.

But wait. What’s this?

Keith Urban arrives at the 49th annual Academy of Country Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday, April 6, 2014, in Las Vegas. (Photo by Al Powers/Powers Imagery/Invision/AP)
Keith Urban

Keith! What the hell! Where is the flip?! Who did this to you?! It’s clear that 2014 will be the worst year of Keith Urban’s life. He has cut off his mullet, the source of his power. Look at his face. He knows he’s made a terrible, terrible mistake. Let’s not ever discuss 2014 Keith Urban ever again.

And finally, exhibits H and I:

Keith Urban attends the premiere of "Lion" at the Museum of Modern Art on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Keith Urban

It’s 2016, and Trump’s been elected president, but Urban doesn’t skip a beat. He just hits that straight iron and hits it hard.

Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman at The Carlyle Hotel before the 2023 Met Gala: Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty on May 1, 2023 in New York, New York. (Photo by Steve Eichner/WWD via Getty Images)
Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman at The Carlyle Hotel before the 2023 Met Gala: Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty on May 1, 2023 in New York, New York. (Photo by Steve Eichner/WWD via Getty Images)

It’s 2023.

“Nicole?” Keith whispers.
“Yes, Keith?”
“I have three earrings now. Also, my hair is still better than yours”
“I know, darling. Sshh. I know.”

A version of this story was originally published in 2017. 

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