Keith Urban, Kix Brooks Among Five 2023 Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Inductees

Keith Urban leads a very star-studded 2023 class of Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees.

The country hitmaker will enter in the Contemporary Songwriter/Artist category during an Oct. 11 ceremony in Nashville. To date, there are 235 members of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, but that number will swell to 240.

Class of 2023 Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Inductees:

• Casey Beathard: Contemporary Songwriter category.
• David Lee Murphy: Contemporary Songwriter category.
• Keith Urban: Contemporary Songwriter/Artist category.
• Kix Brooks: Veteran Songwriter/Artist category.
• Rafe Van Hoy: Veteran Songwriter category.

The first four names on that list are either household names in 2023 or have written songs that have powered the careers of modern country hitmakers. Beathard is known for writing hit songs for Kenny Chesney, Eric Church and more, and Murphy has written hits for Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, Chesney and more in addition to his own hit songs, including "Dust on the Bottle."

Kix Brooks is one-half of Country Music Hall of Fame duo Brooks & Dunn. He wrote many of the pair's best and most famous songs. Urban's songwriting catalog is also contained mostly within his artist catalog.

Van Hoy's multi-decade-long songwriting career features hits by Mark Chestnutt, the Oak Ridge Boys, Barbara Mandrell and George Jones. "Golden Rings" (Jones' hit with Tammy Wynette) may be his most famous co-write. In 1983, a song he wrote for Deborah Allen called "Baby I Lied" that was nominated for a Grammy.

Music Row notes that the 53rd annual Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala will take place at the Music City Center in Nashville on Oct. 11.