Before she was a household name, Carrie Underwood was a 22-year-old farm girl from Oklahoma vying for a chance at stardom on American Idol. Then in its fourth season, the popular singing reality show had mostly catered to aspiring pop and R&B artists. Underwood changed that, dominating the competition with covers of Bonnie Raitt, Rascal Flatts, and Shania Twain. On May 25, 2005, she cleared the first hurdle along her path to superstardom when viewers crowned her the winner over runner-up Bo Bice. Now, however, the “Inside Your Heaven” singer needed to prove her mettle to country music audiences. She did so decidedly during her Grand Ole Opry debut on this day (June 10) in 2005, earning thunderous applause with her cover of this Roy Orbison classic.
What Did Carrie Underwoood Perform During Her Grand Ole Opry Debut?
Today, we know how the story ends for Carrie Underwood: with eight Grammy Awards, nearly 100 million albums sold, and a star along the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Videos by American Songwriter
Twenty-one years ago today, however, the “Jesus, Take the Wheel” singer was barely two weeks removed from her dominant American Idol victory. Nerves nearly got the best of Underwood as she waited to take the stage at country music’s most hallowed institution for the first time.
Still, she managed to belt her brand-new single, “Inside Your Heaven”, followed by Roy Orbison’s 1962 top 5 hit “Crying”.
This wasn’t Underwood’s first time performing the latter. She sang “Crying” to much fanfare during her winning American Idol run.
“Sorry guys, Roy is smiling!” one fan commented on a video of the performance uploaded to YouTube. “NOW that was awesome!”
If Underwood had any reservations about how the Opry audience would receive her, they melted away with the tide of uproarious applause she received after her performance.
“It’s kind of magical,” she gushed immediately afterwards. “I don’t feel like I deserve this at all.”
Coming Full Circle
Three years after her debut, ’90s country legend Randy Travis surprised Carrie Underwood with an invitation to join the cast of the Grand Ole Opry on March 5, 2008. Another ’90s county icon, Garth Brooks, would later induct her.
The “Before He Cheats” singer’s career came full circle in 2024 when American Idol announced that she was joining Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie on the judging panel, replacing existing judge Katy Perry.
[RELATED: Carrie Underwood Gave Hannah Harper One Surprising Tip After Winning ‘American Idol’]
Just last week, the 16-time ACM Award winner joined season 24 champ Hannah Harper onstage for the latter’s own Grand Ole Opry debut. The pair performed Harper’s original song, “String Cheese”.
Featured image by Rick Diamond/Getty Images