Carrie Underwood Is Reportedly Exploring a Rock Pivot With Help From Axl Rose

According to TMZ, country singer Carrie Underwood is experimenting with new sounds with help from none other than Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose.

Underwood has been known to dabble in rock music, especially onstage in recent years. Guns N’ Roses even welcomed her as an opener on select dates during their 2023 tour. She also performed at Stagecoach with Rose in 2022, where they duetted “Sweet Child O’ Mine” together.

Sources told TMZ that Rose is acting as Underwood’s mentor as she experiments with rock music. Honestly, we couldn’t think of a better person to have her back, especially since Underwood has been following the rocker from a young age.

The way I learned how to sing was I would pick really hard vocalists to try to emulate, and his voice always mesmerized me,” Underwood told Rolling Stone in 2022. “I was like, ‘How is he doing the things that he’s doing?’” 

Sources also shared that Carrie will be at a Guns N’ Roses show in Atlanta this weekend and may even take the stage.

Carrie Underwood Says “Never Say Never” to a Rock Album

So, what does this mean for Underwood’s country music fans? Is she abandoning country? Is a rock album in our future?

According to Underwood, switching genres is not out of the realm of possibility. The “Before He Cheats” singer told Audacy in 2023:

“I do have an affinity for rock music and metal, and I just love the energy more than anything. I love going to rock concerts because it feels like freedom to me,” she shared. “You never really know with me. I never say never about anything. I feel like certain influences work their way into different songs and different moments, even if they’re not songs that I record.”

It’s also not like the singer is keeping her love for the genre a secret. On September 5, Underwood covered Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff” on stage at Iowa’s Velocity Festival, wearing a red baseball cap and everything.

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Fans had mixed reactions on social media, with some saying they had “respect” for Underwood’s confidence, and others making remarks like: “Love carrie, but this is not it 😔.”

Whatever you think about Carrie’s potential rock era, I wouldn’t worry too much about her moving on from country music just yet. The singer is scheduled to headline the Barefoot Country Music Fest in Wildwood, New Jersey, in June of 2027.

Photo by: Graham Denholm/Getty Images