Country singer Keith Urban to undergo throat surgery
Australian country singer Keith Urban is to have throat surgery to remove a polyp on his vocal cord later this month.
A spokesman for the 44-year-old - who is married to actress Nicole Kidman - said the surgery was a minor outpatient procedure.
He added the singer would "require complete vocal rest followed by an undetermined period of recuperation".
All of Urban's scheduled performances this year will be postponed until 2012.
The All For The Hall benefit concert for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum which the singer had been due to host on 18 January in Nashville will also be rescheduled.
But the spokesman said Urban would still honour his commitments that require only a one-song performance until his surgery.
He is scheduled to perform at the Country Music Association Awards on 9 November where he is nominated for entertainer and male vocalist of the year.
Urban is the latest in a string of singers to undergo throat surgery in recent months.
John Mayer had an operation last month to remove an inflamed nodule from his vocal cords, and Kiss frontman Paul Stanley also revealed he needed an operation to fix his voice after damage caused by his rock career.
British singer Adele was also forced to cancel all her remaining live dates for 2011 for surgery to remedy a vocal cord haemorrhage.