Carrie Underwood brushed off the repeated booing she has received from the American Idol audience as a judge this season.
The 42-year-old songstress first shot to stardom when she was a contestant on the smash hit series, which she won in its fourth season in 2005.
She returned to the show as a judge for the 23rd season last year – replacing outgoing Katy Perry on the panel – and is back for the current 24th season.
During the Hollywood Week: Music City Takeover – filmed in Nashville for the first time this season – Underwood was unsparing in her critiques of the contestants.
Viewers in the studio audience were disgruntled enough with her honesty that she prefaced one of her notes by warning the crowd: ‘You guys are gonna boo me,’ adding: ‘Bring it on! I love it! Your boos are feeding me.’
She took a similar tack this Monday when she posted to X, formerly Twitter: ‘Boo me. I don’t care,’ with crying laughing, winking and zany face emojis.
Carrie Underwood brushed off the repeated booing she has received from the American Idol audience as a judge this season
During the Hollywood Week: Music City Takeover – filmed in Nashville for the first time this season – Underwood was unsparing in her critiques of the contestants
At one point during Hollywood Week, she was jeered at so severely that her co-judge Luke Bryan leapt to her defense, saying: ‘She only won this. She knows.’
Underwood faced a particularly intense wave of blowback when she took contestant Mor to task for singing an original song and not utilizing the studio band.
She argued that ‘for you to bring an original song with that incredible band sitting behind you, twiddling their thumbs – I feel like it was a missed opportunity.’
The Before He Cheats star stuck by her criticism on X, saying: ‘Singing original music is SUCH a gamble at this stage in the competition. Don’t. Waste. The. Band.’
She explained that his ‘voice and previous audition’ were what enabled Mor to advance to the next round. ‘I wanna hear his original music after he’s a big star!’
It was announced in 2024 that Underwood would be replacing Katy Perry, who spent seven years on American Idol before announcing her departure earlier that year.
Perry was first announced as an American Idol judge in 2017, when it was reported she would be earning a staggering $25 million a season.
In 2023, she was frequently raked over the coals online and accused of ‘bullying’ because of her spiky on-air remarks to contestants.
The Daily Mail exclusively reported then that she was on the brink of quitting the ABC reality show, feeling she was ‘thrown under the bus by producers’ who positioned her to be the ‘nasty judge’ on the series.
Underwood was announced as a judge in 2024, months before she performed at U.S. President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, where she is pictured
The 42-year-old first shot to stardom when she was a contestant on the series, which she won in its fourth season in 2005; pictured at the moment of triumph with host Ryan Seacrest
Months after the controversies exploded online, Perry announced in February 2024 on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that she would leave the show after season 22.
Underwood became a contestant on American Idol after her barnstorming audition in August 2004, performing the Bonnie Raitt song I Can’t Make You Love Me.
The following year, audiences across the United States fell in love with Underwood as she rose through the ranks on American Idol and eventually won the season.
At the time the judges were Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul, while Ryan Seacrest held the hosting position he still occupies today.
Underwood then became a wildly successful country star with a record 25 CMT Music Awards, and is often cited along with Kelly Clarkson as one of the few American Idol winners to enjoy an A-list career afterwards.
