Keith Urban Praises Miley Cyrus’ Voice, Says She 'Sounds Like an Ashtray': 'I Mean That as a Compliment'

There’s no question that Miley Cyrus has long had not only one of the most powerful voices in contemporary music, but also one of its most impressively distinct. Within seconds, you know it’s Miley you’re hearing on any given track, regardless of whether you’re familiar with the song itself or are hearing it for the first time. Keith Urban would agree, though he managed to word this all in a far more headlines-generatingly descriptive fashion.

Speaking with the crew behind Fitzy and Wippa With Kate Ritchie for NOVA FM, the four-time Grammy winner was asked about Cyrus’ 2023 hit “Flowers,” at which point he obliged a request to sing and play a bit of the track while acknowledging it was vocally “a bit high” for him. From there, Urban heaped praise on Cyrus as a vocalist.

“I love Miley,” Urban, who recently performed a surprise set at a Buc-ee’s in Alabama, said. “I’ve always loved Miley. I love her. The voice, man. That voice. She sounds like an ashtray. And I mean that as a compliment. I literally mean that as a compliment.”

Naturally, the hosts then brought up another distinctive American voice, Tom Waits. Continuing his cig-focused comparisons, Urban noted that Waits is, simply, “the nicotine” and “all the yellow stuff in the cigarette.”

In October, Urban will launch a new Vegas residency with five dates at the BleauLive Theater, followed by five additional dates next February. But first, his 12th studio album, High, will be released on Sept. 20 through Capitol Nashville and Hit Red. Urban will celebrate the release with a performance at the iHeartRadio Music festival the following Saturday.

Endless Summer Vacation, Miley's most recent studio album, arrived last March. At this year's Grammys, she won Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for the aforementioned "Flowers," which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.