Keith Urban; Photo Courtesy of Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for CMT

There are few performers with the same captivating stage presence as the one and only Keith Urban, and the country crooner proved himself to be one of the best performers of our generation yet again tonight at the 2024 CMT Music Awards.

Making history as the first artist to perform at the CMT Awards a whopping 20 times, Urban brought the house down at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas with his electric performance of “Straight Line,” proving that he is a continued force to be reckoned with within the country music community.

Keith Urban; Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for CMT

Before Urban took the stage, world-renowned actress Emma Roberts presented the performance. “The only artist I love more than this next performer is his wife. Every time this guy plays the CMT Music Awards it’s epic, and tonight he’s about to do it again,” she shared, cheekily referencing the “Straight Line” singer’s wife, Nicole Kidman, as well.

Shortly afterward, Urban took the stage in a George Jones t-shirt, blowing attendees away with his energy and powerhouse performance of “Straight Line.” Naturally, country music lovers from coast to coast were impressed, taking to social media to gush about how much they loved Urban’s set, as well as the song itself.

“Awesome performance from Keith,” one fan wrote. Another dished, “So great to see Keith live and singing his new song. Epic performance!”

“Keith Urban’s uptempo ‘Straight Line’ is a bright, summer-ready anthem. What a fun new tune,” a third spilled.

Urban told the USA Today network ahead of the 2024 CMT Music Awards that the goal for the performance was “energy and truth and raw and real and right in front of you,” and it is safe to say that he delivered.

Keith Urban – “Straight Line”

As far as the song goes, written by Jerry Flowers, Chase McGill, Greg Wells, and Keith Urban himself, “Straight Line” is one of the two singles to stem from his forthcoming 13 studio album thus far — along with “Messed Up As Me” — telling the story of how the tune came to be in an exclusive interview with Music Mayhem and other media.

“The song just sort of grew. It just grew really quickly. There are two songs on this album that came from two days of writing, with three of my buddies that I love writing with, and ‘Straight Line’ was the second of the two songs we wrote, and I just loved the spirit of it,” he spilled in said interview. “If anybody has seen us play live, this song for me captures a lot of that feeling of what I’m trying to create in the room that we’re playing in. The feeling I want people to have. I felt like ‘Straight Line’ has that feeling about it, and it seemed like a perfect first song.”

The live show feeling of “Straight Line” was evident at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, as the whole entire crowd was up on their feet from start to finish.

Is Keith Urban Nominated At The CMT Awards?

Urban did not receive any nominations at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, however, he has taken home nine trophies, despite being nominated for a total of 30 CMT Awards in his career thus far.

When asked by the USA Today network why he continues to support the CMT Awards, even after failing to receive a nomination this year, he shared with a smile that “[The CMTs] are vibrant and supportive of new talent and supportive of great videos, obviously.”

2024 CMT Music Awards

The 2024 CMT Music Awards also featured performances by Jelly Roll, Bailey Zimmerman, Lainey Wilson, Sam Hunt, Cody Johnson, Dasha, Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Megan Moroney, Trisha Yearwood and more.