False claims of Keith Urban spat with Zohran Mamdani spread online

Matthew Elmas December 01, 2025
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A number of social media pages are spreading disinformation about Keith Urban to drive engagement. Image by Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS

WHAT WAS CLAIMED

Keith Urban has cancelled his New York shows in protest of Zohran Mamdani's election as mayor.

OUR VERDICT

False. Urban has no shows scheduled in the city and the quotes attributed to him are fake.

AAP FACTCHECK - Keith Urban hasn't cancelled shows in New York or declared that he doesn't "sing for commies" in protest against mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, despite claims online.

The 58-year-old country singer has no scheduled shows in the city and there's no record of the quote attributed to him. 

The social media account sharing the false claim has previously posted fake news about the Australian and it appears to be an engagement-bait operation.

The claim appears in a Facebook post featuring several images of Urban and Mamdani.

"KEITH URBAN IGNITES FIRESTORM: CANCELS ALL 2025 NYC SHOWS — "I DON'T SING FOR COMMIES!"" the caption reads. 

"Social media exploded as Keith Urban abruptly pulled every New York date and dropped a brutally blunt statement."

A screenshot of a Facebook page.
The page spreading disinformation about Keith Urban is based in Vietnam. (AAP/Facebook)

However, the claim is false and is the latest in a series of false claims about the Australian since his actor wife, Nicole Kidman, filed for divorce from him in September 2025.

Urban has no shows scheduled for New York in 2025 or 2026, according to his official website.

AAP FactCheck was unable to find any credible reports that Urban had uttered the quote attributed to him in the post or that he had made any public commentary about Mamdani or his recent election victory. 

Another post claims Urban has just undergone surgery and features images of the singer propped up in a hospital bed wearing a gown and with a bandaged hand.

A screenshot of a Facebook post.
There's no evidence Keith Urban recently underwent surgery and the image of him is AI-generated. (AAP/Facebook)

There are signs that the images were generated using artificial intelligence (AI), such as his face appearing overly smooth and his right arm does not feature his tattoos.

A reverse image search also reveals that the close-up shot of an IV attached to an arm in the composite image has been posted online dozens of times over the past year.

Urban has made no public statements about undergoing surgery recently and there are no credible reports either. 

The same page has posted a series of AI-generated videos featuring Urban recently, including one that purports to show Nicole Kidman kissing another man in front of him.

The disfigured faces of people in the video's background and Urban's neck tattoos not being visible above his collar indicate the video is fake.

A screenshot of a Facebook video.
The video has been generated using artificial intelligence and has botched Keith Urban's tattoos. (AAP/Facebook)

Another video purports to show Urban crying in the arms of American country singer Blake Shelton, claiming the moment was "unscripted" and left fans "speechless".

"Something that shook Keith to his core and left Blake wiping his own eyes. What did Keith say that made Blake drop everything to comfort him?" the caption reads. 

The video also appears to be AI-generated, with a tear on Urban's cheek appearing out of nowhere and the tattoo on his right hand is incorrect.

Another video claims to show Urban singing with one of his daughters, but it also appears to be AI-generated as the Australian's distinctive tattoos are missing.

AAP FactCheck previously debunked a series of claims about Urban.

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Sources

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AAP FactCheck is an accredited member of the International Fact-Checking Network