NASHVILLE, TN  [Friday May.11.2007]  /WMQT.com/ -- It's hard enough getting the stage and lighting for a big time country show around the good ol' USA and Canada...but, it's another thing to ship it all 10,000 miles to another continent.

But as KEITH URBAN's Love Pain & the whole crazy World Tour heads to Australia, going with Keith are... TWO stages, more than 150 lighting fixtures, 50 miles of cable, eight trucks and more than 15 metric tons of gear have been shipped from the United States to Australia. Band and crew, more than 50 strong, have landed in Brisbane for two days of production rehearsals.

THE TOUR, which premieres in Brisbane (May 11th and 12th) for two performances at the nearly 15,000-seat Brisbane Entertainment Center, will be Keith's first concerts played in his native Australia in nearly two years. May 15th will have 'Love, Pain & the whole crazy World Tour' at Sydney's Acre Arena before concerts at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne (May 18th), Adelaide's Entertainment Centre (May 20th) and Perth's Domed Entertainment Centre.

MEANWHILE...some of Keith's country-singing countrymen are headed back the other way, to Nashville... This June, a group of musical ambassadors, Australia's hottest Country artists will take part in the 2007 CMA Music Festival. These talented Aussies include: Morgan Evans, Adam Harvey, Briana Lee, Travis Collins, Troy Kemp, Mark O'Shea, and Beccy Cole.

The success these artists have achieved in Australia has earned them the opportunity to take part in this year's CMA Global Events. While in Nashville, several will collaborate with writers and producers to record songs for release in their home territories. CMA Music Festival will give these international artists an opportunity to reach American fans and to network with the Nashville music industry.

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