Payton Smith vividly remembers being about five years old, sitting on the couch in his living room, watching Keith Urban perform on an awards show and declaring that was what he wanted to do when he grew up. And it doesn’t take long, when you hear Payton play guitar, to realize that to this day, Keith is one of his musical heroes. So, getting to meet him was another significant moment for Payton, even though it was fairly quick. Payton recalls, “I met Keith backstage at the Opry, right before he walked on stage. So, we were able to spend about five minutes before, just visiting, and I was telling him how much his music meant to me growing up as a kid. We just kind of small talked, and then, you know, he said, ‘Alright, mate, well I gotta get out on stage. Good meetin’ you,’ and walked out on stage and played the Opry.”
Some people say you should never meet your heroes, cause they might disappoint you, but after meeting Keith Urban, Payton said, “Man, just a great guy. Somebody that I definitely look up to, not only as a musician, but as a human being.”
Payton’s debut single, “Like I Knew You Would,” was recently released to country radio, and he’s eagerly waiting for the day the touring industry fires back up, because he’ll be on tour with Chris Young.
Payton Smith – meeting Keith Urban :26
“I met Keith backstage at the Opry, right before he walked on stage. So, we were able to spend about five minutes before, just visiting, and I was telling him how much his music meant to me growing up as a kid. We just kind of small talked, and then, you know, he said, ‘Alright, mate, well I gotta get out on stage. Good meetin’ you,’ and walked out on stage and played the Opry. And man, just a great guy. Somebody that I definitely look up to, not only as a musician, but as a human being.”