The first country vocalist to win American Idol, Carrie Underwood grew up in the small town of Checotah, OK, and started singing with her church at the tender age of three. Throughout her childhood, she also performed at functions for the Lion’s Club and Old Settlers Day, eventually grading to festival gigs in several states. Along with developing her singing, Underwood learned to play guitar and piano. She graduated from high school as her class salutatorian and majored in mass communication at Northeastern State College with an eye on a career in broadcast journalism, but continued her singing career throughout her studies.Carrie Underwood to Release “Cry Pretty” Album September 14th
Lead Single and Title Track is No.1 Most Added Single at Country Radio and Has Already Topped iTunes Top Songs Charts in 12 Countries Multi-platinum global superstar Carrie Underwood will release Cry Pretty, her first studio album on Capitol Records Nashville on September 14. The title track and lead single was released worldwide on April 11 and is the most added song at Country radio this week. “Cry Pretty” has already topped the iTunes Top Songs charts in 12 countries and quickly racked up over 1.3 million streams in the U.S. with only two days of reporting. In addition to co-writing the single with Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose (aka The Love Junkies), Carrie is co-producing her album with fellow writer/producer David Garcia. Underwood says, “At this point in my career, I feel stronger and more creative than ever. I think you can hear that in this new album. It’s emotional, it’s soulful, it’s real, and we also have some fun on there too. I hope everyone loves it as much as I have loved making it.” On Sunday night at the 53rd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards™, Underwood took home her 14th career ACM Award for Vocal Event of the Year for “The Fighter,” her collaboration with Keith Urban, after bringing the audience to their feet with her emotional performance of “Cry Pretty.” Billboard ranked the “vocal dynamo” performance as the best of the night, touting “this is how you do an award show performance” while Rolling Stone noted that Underwood “channeled her inner country-soul diva” during the “knockout rendition.” Underwood, who is a seven-time Grammy Award winner, gives fans an intimate look inside her recording and co-producing process for Cry Pretty in this exclusive album trailer.
