Since 2013, fans of the NFL watched as Carrie Underwood kicked off Sunday Night Football with the hit intro “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night?” With the singer welcoming fans each week, the country star spent the last eleven years lending her voice to the NFL. While loving her ongoing partnership with the NFL, Underwood once turned down the job according to executive producer Fred Gaudelli.
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Recalling reaching out to Underwood after she won American Idol, Gaudelli explained to Yahoo how the singer turned down the job as her career was just taking off. Eventually landing a deal with Faith Hill, the country singer performed the anthem for several years. Hill ended her run as Gaudelli claimed the singer suggested, “[She] felt that she had taken it as far as she could take it. She said, ‘I think it’d be better if you kind of change horses.’”
Having to find a replacement for Hill, Gaudelli once again turned to Underwood to see if she changed her mind. “I said, ‘Look, we’re the No. 1 show in primetime television. This is going to air in front of 20 million people plus every single week.’ [Carrie’s] a football fan, I think it’s kind of a natural [choice]. I showed her the demographic breakdown, and once that was done, she’s like, ‘You know what? You’re right. We should do this.’ And that began a now 12-year run.”
[RELATED: “I Promise You”: Simon Cowell’s Advice to Carrie Underwood Joining ‘American Idol’]
Carrie Underwood Giving New Look To ‘Sunday Night Football’
Finally able to persuade the singer, Carrie Underwood quickly became the face of Sunday Night Football. And with another season underway, Rob Hyland, the coordinating producer for SNF, offered a glimpse of what fans should expect. “The music is very different. We essentially flipped the song upside down. The song now starts with the chorus, which is something we used to always build toward.”
Wanting to offer fans a new take on the intro, Hyland teased, “Rather than just having this glam spectacle, highly polished piece, let’s get behind the scenes a little bit. We’re still going to see Carrie in concert. But let’s make it feel like she’s along with us on this national road show, this singular phenomenon that is Sunday Night Football.”
Not wanting to give away too many details, Hyland insisted, “This year’s open will make you feel that, perhaps with even more energy than in any year we’ve ever had this privilege of having Carrie as part of this show.”
(Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
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