Hollywood actor Russell Crowe is preparing to entertain music fans around the world as his band begins a tour of the US for the first time in 12 years.

His six-member band The Gentleman Barbers, with Crowe as lead singer, and Irish singer Lorraine O’Reilly, who performed on the Party’s Australian tour last year, will play six venues across the US in August as part of the Indoor Garden Party tour.

“Hello America, it’s your turn,” Crowe posted to his three million followers on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.

Crowe, who celebrated his 60th birthday on April 7, will also tour France, Italy and the UK, including Glastonbury, in the lead-up to his opening night gig in the US at the New Jersey Performing Arts Centre in Newark.

Headlined Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Party, he will play the Sony Hall in New York City on August 12 and head to the west coast to the iconic Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood.

Tulsa, then Austin and he’ll finish the run at Tipitina’s in New Orleans on August 21.

Throwing the party sparked a mini meltdown on social media, with fans pushing him to tour other US cities, Canada, South Africa and Argentina, but it was his LA gig which attracted the biggest shout-out.

“Old school,” wrote one fan about the Whiskey A Go Go, considered the most famous rock and roll landmark in the country, which has been host to hundreds of big-name acts over seven decades, including Alice Cooper, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Guns N Roses.

“Making movies, writing songs and fightin’ around the world,” said another, no doubt referencing South Park’s archives, and more importantly a nod to his talents and lead role in Gladiator in 2000.

Tickets to the LA gig range in price from $107 to $1530.

Russell Crowe with his band during the opening ceremony for the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival last year in the Czech Republic. Photo: Getty

‘Life is always interesting if you’re Russell Crowe’

New Zealand-born Crowe, who has called Australia his home since childhood, had his first big break with Romper Stomper in 1992 before breaking into the US movie business with LA Confidential in 1997.

His roles as Maximus Decimus Meridius in Ridley Scott’s epic Roman empire blockbuster Gladiator and as maths genius John Nash in A Beautiful Mind earned him two Academy Awards and set up a career spanning the next three decades.

Crowe’s home is his sprawling 400-hectare property at Nana Glen, outside Coffs Harbour, when he’s not jetting off for his film and music commitments.

He’s had a run of decent, locally-produced flicks over the past two years including Poker Face, The Greatest Beer Run Ever and Land of Bad (starring two of the three Hemsworth brothers) and has The Exorcism and Kraven the Hunter ready to launch.

But it’s his love of music, which dates back to forming a band, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts, in 1992, that eventually led to a niche for the Indoor Garden Party around the world.

“There’s an attitude about this band. It’s got a groove. We do a lot of story songs, but we also know we are here to blow out the cobwebs and give the audience a good night,” he says on the band’s website.

“I like playing in pubs. It’s what I did growing up. It’s my version of theatre. Even though my day job has a huge claim on my time, I’ve never not played music.

“My journey to film starts with playing in bands, touring around, releasing records.

“The band work led to musical theatre (Grease, Rocky Horror Show, Blood Brothers) and miraculously, a film director saw me performing in Blood Brothers and asked me to audition.”

Asked if the shows will change between pubs and theatres, Crowe replied: “Probably. I imagine when everyone has a comfy seat, I’ll tell more stories.”

“That’s what it’s about, songs or films.

“It’s always about the story. In the pubs and clubs, we will be putting the foot down. The Gentlemen Barbers sway between R&B, Gospel, dirty country songs about murder, dark waltzes, and powerful inspiring singalongs.

“Should be a good night.”