Carrie Underwood won American Idol in 2005. The sprightly young woman from Oklahoma wowed the audience and the judges with her powerhouse vocals and smooth versatility. Such seasoned poise in someone who was so young at the time was definitely eye-catching.
Videos by Wide Open Country
Since those early days, Underwood has become a beloved, bona fide superstar of the country/pop genre. Classic tracks like "Before He Cheats," "Jesus, Take the Wheel," and "Something in the Water" catapulted Underwood to the very top, where she has remained.
Reflecting on her American Idol experience with Billboard, there is one thing that the singer wishes she had done when she graced the show's stage back then. What was it?
Underwood Said This Is What She Should Have Done Then
Underwood, who turns 43 on March 10, 2026, told the outlet she regrets not doing this as an Idol contestant.
"I'm very angry with myself because when I was on the show, I wasn't taking any pictures. I'm thinking, '...Why didn't you do that? Why didn't you save these things?' We had a girl come in that had a pair of jeans that I wore on the show, and she told me, 'My grandpa bought these at a charity auction and I wore them on the show,' and I asked, 'Can I buy them back from you?' Why did I let them go? Why didn't I keep more things and just document things a little better?"
She must have had her hands full at the time. That may be why Carrie Underwood let something like that take a back seat. Rehearsing, preparing herself to go onstage, and dealing with costume fittings and photo ops would have taken up her schedule and energy. Picture-taking and the like would have been understandably quite far from her mind.
She Has Six Upcoming Concerts
If you want to see Carrie Underwood in person, you will have a few chances this year in June, August, and September. Her appearance schedule is limited; the fervor for her among the public is not!
The star will be performing in Thackerville, Oklahoma (June 12), Lincoln, California (June 14), Nashville (June 27), Big Sky, Montana (August 1), Lenox, Massachusetts (August 29), and Dyersville, Iowa (September 5).
