Keith Urban takes over the cover of the August/September issue of Australia’s GQ magazine, which hits newsstands overseas on July 23rd.

On his marriage to Nicole Kidman: “Negativity and doubt are always creeping into my life and having to be kept at bay. Thankfully, Nic is great at calling me on it, and our marriage is at the stage where she doesn’t have to say anything. I hear myself prattling on with negative crap and her loaded silence shuts me up.”

On mentoring on Australia’s The Voice: “The best thing about it has been the chance for people in Australia to get to know me. My music doesn’t really get played here despite it having a lot of appeal elsewhere, so I’ve found myself without an outlet for my songs because of various narrow stereotypes and perceptions about me. That’s been a challenge. But The Voice has offered me an opportunity to connect in a different way and I hope now people check out the gigs because that’s the real show for me… and it ain’t played on a planet of 10-gallon hats.”

On being famous and being a father: “We try to keep a sense of privacy around us, while acknowledging that Nic and I both inhabit very public professions. Being a husband and a father is a horrendous responsibility but it’s a beautiful opportunity as well. I’m always balancing the need to encourage the girls’ freedom and not impose on their own journey with that primal need of the father and husband to protect and guide them every step of the way.”

On the future: “The creative flow is taking me down a new path, past the excruciating blankness of the empty page, to somewhere fresh where singing songs and playing guitar is fun – pure and simple.”