Before his separation from Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban took to the stage on his new CBS show, “The Road,” to perform a song reflecting a desire to escape a monotonous routine. This performance took place during the series premiere on Sunday, October 19, where Urban, at 57, delivered “Straight Line” from his latest album, “High.”

Prior to his split from Kidman, who is 58, Urban shared his thoughts on the significance of the track. In February 2024, he expressed his excitement about the album’s release on Instagram, stating, “This is the song that kicks off an album I’m eager to share with you all. I chose it first for many reasons, especially because it encapsulates an energy and spirit that threads through the entire record. The album covers a wide range of themes, emotions, and vibes, but a very human spirit runs through them all.”

Urban emphasized how “Straight Line” sparked dialogue about making changes in life.

The past year has been transformative for Keith Urban. In September 2025, Us Weekly confirmed that the renowned “Somebody Like You” singer and Nicole Kidman had ended their 19-year marriage. Shortly after this revelation, the acclaimed “Big Little Lies” actress filed for divorce. Reports suggested that the couple had been quietly separated for some time before making their decision public.

Keith Urban is experiencing an unforgettable year of change. Us Weekly confirmed in September 2025 that the “Somebody Like You” singer and Nicole Kidman had separated after 19 years of marriage. Soon after, the Big Little Lies actress filed for divorce from her husband. “They had been quietly separated for a while now but needed […]

“‘Straight Line’ is wanting to break out of a soul-sucking routine that you might be stuck in: maybe in a relationship, a job, with creativity, with yourself…whatever it is !!” he continued at the time. “It’s a message of feeling alive again and getting out from under that dark cloud. If you’ve seen us in concert, I hope it gives you that same feeling.”

Earlier in the episode, Urban opened up about the highs and lows of life on tour.

“Where do we start? It’s a calling, and you’re going to do it or you’re not going to make it,” he explained. “When you wake up on a tour bus at 3:30 in the morning and you’re sick as a dog, you’re in the middle of nowhere and you’ve got to play your fifth show later that night, and you haven’t slept, and you miss your friends, and you’re missing your family, and you’re completely lonely and miserable and sick — and you say to yourself, ‘Why am I doing this?’”

Urban added: “The only answer can be: because this is what I’m born to do. We’re going to find out who’s made for that stuff [on this show].”

The Road follows 12 emerging musicians competing as opening acts for Urban while he tours across America. The contestants advance to the next city based on the reaction from the crowds at their respective shows. By the end of the season, only one act is left standing to take home $250,000 and a record deal.

One month before The Road premiered, Us Weekly confirmed in September that Kidman and Urban split after 19 years of marriage. They originally met in 2005 following her divorce from Tom Cruise. After one year of dating, Kidman and Urban got married and expanded their family in 2008 with the arrival of daughter Sunday Rose. Two years later, Kidman and Urban welcomed daughter Faith via surrogate. (Kidman is also the mother of daughter Isabella and son Connor, whom she adopted with Cruise.)

Throughout the years, Keith Urban penned several songs referencing his love story with Nicole Kidman prior to their September 2025 split. The pair met at the G’Day USA Gala in 2005 and eventually tied the knot in June 2006. They went on to welcome daughters Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret in July 2008 and December […]

“I have the most extraordinary partner in life. I will always say that about him,” Kidman said in a 2019 interview with Entertainment Tonight. “I’m one of the very fortunate women in the world to have had a wonderful father, and I have a wonderful husband, and I’m just very — I love to be able to say that because to talk about the good men that have influenced me and affected me.”

Kidman was also honest about the work that went into her marriage.

“We’re always working through stuff, but it’s very much love-based, so there’s an enormous amount of give and take,” she explained in the September 2021 issue of Harper’s Bazaar. “I want him to have the best life he can have, and he responds the same way. We really love parenting together.”

At the time, Kidman addressed her high-profile split from Cruise in 2001, adding, “I was young. I think I offered it up? Maybe I’ve gotten a bit more trepidatious, but I’m always trying to be as open as possible.”

She continued: “I just prefer to live in the world that way. I’m wary at times, and I’ve been hurt, but at the same time I much prefer a warm approach rather than a prickly shutdown approach. My husband, Keith, says that when he met me, he said, ‘How’s your heart?’ And I apparently responded, ‘Open.’”

The Road airs on CBS Sundays before streaming on Paramount+. The show will air at 9:30 p.m. ET on October 26 and November 2.