On stage his Speed of Now tour in Manchester, Keith Urban took a moment to pay tribute to the late singer Naomi Judd by performing a short cover of The Judds’ hit song “Love Can Build A Bridge.”
Naomi passed away last Saturday, April 30, at 76 after her long battle with mental health. Her death took everyone by surprise especially as she and her daughter Wynonna were set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame the next day. And as the entire country music community mourns the loss of one of the genre’s greatest artists, there has been an outpour of support for the family, with fellow musicians dedicating social media posts and even sharing touching covers of their songs.
One of the first to pay their tribute was the Brothers Osborne, who took Stagecoach Festival’s stage last April 30 with a performance of The Judds’ 1984 hit “Why Not Me.” Another was Brandi Carlile, who uploaded a short video of her singing “Love Can Build A Bridge” with her daughter singing nearby. Carlile was scheduled to sing the same song at the duo’s induction ceremony but had to cancel her appearance due to COVID-19.
And the most recent artist to join the tribute train was Keith Urban. Urban performed the chorus of “Love Can Build A Bridge” on his tour stage with a short heartfelt speech acknowledging the contributions of Naomi Judd in the genre. He said, “What The Judds did was astounding through the ’80s, and she was the queen, the matriarch of it all. And she wrote this song, which is pretty amazing.”
He also posted the clip of that performance on his Instagram account. You can watch the full video of Keith Urban’s “Love Can Build A Bridge” tribute cover for Naomi Judd in the video below.