The 2016 Country Radio Seminar (CRS) got started yesterday (2/8) and one of the first official events was awarding Keith Urban an award for his humanitarian efforts.

The Country Radio Broadcasters (CRB) have been awarding deserving country music artists the CRS Artist Humanitarian Award since 1990. The award goes to artists who have exhibited exceptional humanitarian efforts during their career.

Last year’s recipients Lady Antebellum were on had to present Keith with the 2016 CRS Artist Humanitarian Award as part of the opening ceremonies for the seminar.

CMT reports that Keith said that he is often asked what country music is. Although there are many ways to answer that question in his opinion, The Australian country music singer-songwriter says he always says that country music is, “no matter where you come from, it’s about community.”

Keith then shared a personal story from his own life that not only supported that assessment, it reveals an important event that helped shape him into the artists and person that he is today.

“When I was about 9, my parents had joined a country music club in Brisbane,” Keith revealed.

“We’d been members for about a year when our house burned down. We were all OK, but we lost all our belongings; which wasn’t much, but it was everything we had.”

Then, Keith explained what happened when the community of country music heard about his family’s plight. “Without hesitation that country music club put on a fundraiser for us,” Keith shared, adding, “it was so apparent to me that from the age of 9, this is what it’s all about.”

Keith stated what I would also call the mantra of country music artists, record companies, radio stations and fans, “When people fall on hard times, we help.”

Keith Urban will be bringing his 2016 “RipCORD Tour” with special guests Brett Eldredge and Maren Morris to US Cellular Coliseum November 12, 2016.

Congratulations to Keith Urban on the well-deserved honor of being named the 2016 CRS Artist Humanitarian Award recipient.

By: Buck Stevens