Keith Urban’s Return To American Idol’ Included A Performance Of “Wild Hearts”
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The American Idol Season 21 finale aired Sunday night (May 21). Along with the crowning of a new Idol champ came a three-hour episode jam-packed with performances from the judges, final 3 contestants and some of the biggest names in music.
One of those performers was country star Keith Urban who was doing double duty for the American Idol finale. In addition to serving as mentor to the Top 3, he also took the stage to sing his 2021 hit “Wild Hearts.”
Urban, who served as judge on the singing competition from seasons 12 to 15, told PEOPLE how he was feeling about his return to the Idol set.
“To be able to come in as a mentor, and play as well, is incredible,” he says. “That was home for me for several seasons, and the mentoring part is probably one of the things I always enjoyed the most, getting to work with the artist one-on-one.”
He also told the outlet that he thinks the Top 3 finalists, Iam Tongi, Megan Danielle and Colin Stough, are ready for what’s in store for them in the finale.
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“If you’ve made it this far, I think you’re [good],” Urban said. “Most artists I’ve ever seen at this point have a pretty good sense of what they need to work on, what they’re good at and what they’re not so good at. I think they’re open to help at this point, maybe not so much early on, but by the time you get into the top three like this, I think they’re all pretty receptive to good feedback.”
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Urban’s return included a live performance of “Wild Hearts,” a song he chose specifically for the finale as a way to inspire the finalists and those watching from home who have big dream
“A lot of people who watch the show have dreams and aspirations, and they’re either pursuing those or they’ve put them on hold, and they just need a reminder to get back on that track again. The song is definitely an anthemic call to following your dreams, for sure,” Urban said.
Co-written by Keith Urban, Eric Paslay, Jennifer Wayne and Brad Tursi, “Wild Hearts” is the lead single from Urban’s upcoming album.
Hear Keith Urban perform “Wild Hearts” live at the American Idol Season 21 finale in the video below.
