Carrie Underwood Lives Out Her ‘Rockstar Dreams,’ Reprises Iconic ‘American Idol’ Performance On Guns N’ Roses Tour
”I was super nervous playing for another band’s crowd,” Underwood admitted.
Carrie Underwood; Photo by Jeff Johnson
Carrie Underwood delighted fans with a nostalgic reprise of an iconic cover she first performed on American Idol during the Guns N’ Roses tour kick off on Saturday evening (Aug. 6) at Croix-Bleue Medavie Stadium in Moncton, NB, Canada.
During her support slot on the first night of Guns N’ Roses’ massive 2023 World Tour, the country superstar reprised her Top 11 American Idol performance from Season 4, when she covered Heart’s “Alone” on the popular singing competition show.
Donning an all-black leather ensemble with silver accents, Underwood belted out the lyrics to the iconic rock hit, proving once again that she is one of the greatest powerhouse singers of this generation.
Underwood’s cover of the ‘80s power ballad became a fan-favorite moment from her time on Idol, which she later was crowned the winner of.
Throughout her 18-song set, Carrie Underwood also delivered performances of “Last Name,” “Undo It,” “Church Bells,” “Blown Away,” “Flat On The Floor,” “Somethin’ Bad,” and of course her chart-topping hit, “Before He Cheats.”
She also performed a handful of tunes from her upcoming project, Denim & Rhinestones (Deluxe Edition), including “Crazy Angels,” “Hate My Heart,” “Poor Everybody Else,” “Velvet Heartbreak” and “Out Of That Truck.”
In addition to performing her own hits and a cover of Heart, she delivered five other jaw-dropping rock covers, including Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation,” Pat Benatar’s “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses,” Led Zeppelin’s “Rock And Roll” and Motörhead’s “Ace Of Spades.”
Underwood also joined the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame members for a pair of performances, including “Sweet Child O’ Mine” and “Paradise City,” both of which appear on Guns N’ Roses’ debut album, Appetite For Destruction.
Underwood was admittedly nervous to perform in front of an audience of rock fans rather than country fans.
“Just a country girl living out some rockstar dreams…I want to say a HUGE thanks to @gunsnroses for having us out on tour, as well as their amazing fans!” she wrote on Instagram. ”I was super nervous playing for another band’s crowd (of a completely different genre, no less) but you all made us feel so welcome!!!”
Ahead of the show, Underwood teased that she had “a lot of surprises” in store for her set.
“I wanted to be me, but I also wanted to bridge the gap between me and Guns N’ Roses a little bit, so we’re just having a blast with it,” she said of her setlist. “I’m doing some cover songs of some rock stuff that I love. I’m mashing up some of my songs with some other songs. We just look at it as an opportunity to be creative and get to do something we’ve never done before; just have a good time with it.”
She hopes her fans enjoy the chance to see a unique show from her.
“My fans that are at the shows will see things that they’ve never seen and hear things that they’ve never heard in a really cool way, and then also even if there’s people out there who have no idea what I do, hopefully, they’ll really enjoy seeing us before Guns N’ Roses and just have fun with us too,” she shared. “So, it’s an opportunity for new creative things to happen, and I’m excited about it.”
The opportunity to tour with Guns N’ Roses is something Carrie Underwood doesn’t take lightly. She has been a fan of the iconic rock band for quite some time.
“I think the things I look forward to most are obviously, like watching their show (laughs) and being around them, but it’s just such a fun vibe,” Underwood shared with her record label prior to the tour kick off. “Their fans are absolutely incredible and so supportive and just have been so much fun, everything that I’ve seen from them.”
The Oklahoma native and Guns N’ Roses’ frontman Axl Rose, who Underwood previously dubbed a “dream duet partner,” first joined forces for a star-studded duet during Underwood’s headlining set at Stagecoach in 2022.
She also teamed up with the popular rock group in London in July of 2022, surprising the crowd at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
In 2015, Underwood, an avid fan of classic rock, told E! Online she found her voice from listening to artists like the Guns N’ Roses’ singer.
“I’ve covered enough Guns N’ Roses stuff, and it was people like him who taught me how to sing,” Underwood previously shared. “I look at people like him and Freddie Mercury, those people who were doing all these crazy runs. It was so different.”
During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in 2020, Carrie Underwood opened up about flying to Las Vegas to see her “favorite band,” Guns N’ Roses, for the first time and she declared it was “one of the best nights” of her life.
“We were nowhere near Las Vegas, so naturally I said, ‘Let’s go to Las Vegas with the band and go see GN’R play,’” Underwood told Fallon at the time. “It’s kind of a life-long dream of mine I never thought would happen. Couldn’t waste that opportunity, so I abandoned my husband, abandoned my children, went to Vegas, and saw Guns N’ Roses. Amazing.”
Carrie Underwood’s extremely limited run of shows with Guns ‘N Roses includes two more dates: Tuesday, August 8 at Parc Jean Drapeau in Montreal, QC and Saturday, August 26 at GEODIS Park in Nashville, TN.
Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.
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