Randy Cordova
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 15, 2005 12:00 AM
Nearly 30 million viewers watched Carrie Underwood claim the American Idol title in May. She cried, and so did her fans. Since then, there's been a No. 1 single (Inside Your Heaven), a rush of publicity appearances and the American Idols Live! tour, which stops at Glendale Arena on Tuesday.
Underwood, 22, still lives in small Checotah, Okla., but hopes to move to Nashville before the year is out. A friendly Underwood talked about her fast-moving career during a recent call.
QUESTION: Do you still get nervous before going onstage? advertisement
ANSWER: I'm actually nervous before every single time I go onstage. Once I get out there, I'm fine, but I'm nervous before.
Q: How busy are you since winning Idol?
A: It's quite busy. Pretty much any free time I get is used for listening to songs for the album. In a couple of days, when I have some time off, I'm going to Nashville to record some stuff for it. It should be out in November.
Q: So it's going to be a country album?
A: Definitely. That's where I feel like I belong. I went to the CMA Music Festival a month and a half ago, and everybody was so nice. I knew then that that's where I want to be.
Q: Do you mind having the American Idol tag?
A: No. I don't want to break away from it. I was nobody a year ago. I'm still a big nobody. I get a shot because of them. I know what got me here.
Q: During the competition, did you read the press and check out the message boards?
A: Unfortunately, I was into reading it. It was the worst thing I could have done. People can be horrible. I didn't feel bad for myself. I felt bad for my parents and the parents of the other contestants. There's no time to get used to it. Most people (in the public eye) have three or four years to get used to that kind of thing.
Q: So that stuff hurts?
A: Yes. To anyone who ever said anything bad on a message board, I want them to imagine someone saying those kinds of things about their kids. I would read the message boards, and they said awful things.
Q: Did it affect the Idols?
A: Well, Mikalah - she was such a wonderful personality. That's why people loved her. She had such an I-don't-care-what-you-think personality. Then she started caring about what people thought, and it broke her. We're not used to it. We're normal people. I'm the kind of person that wants everyone to like me.
Q: Really?
A: Yes. I'm nice to everybody. (pause) Well, if someone's rude to me, then I'm not nice to everybody.
From all appearances, as predicted early on by yours truly, she's going to be a star. Carrie, I hope you're reading this!
That's the one thing that I've always HATED about online message boards for competions, etc.... because people are so judgemental, and very hurtful. I might not like someone, but to 'tear them apart' because you don't like their voice, or something... who in the hell do you really think that you are?
:::>^..^<::: ~*~The Journey is more important than the end or the start~*~ :::>^..^<:::
It was a way for her to get additional exposure. I didn't watch this season very much, and I didn't know or care who won. When I saw her, I didn't know who she was but I heard her voice, and thought she was a new singer. I had no idea she won this season's AI. I think she'll do well. She's got a very nice voice, and she ain't too hard to look at, neither.
Sierradaddy said this in post #5 : It was a way for her to get additional exposure. I didn't watch this season very much, and I didn't know or care who won. When I saw her, I didn't know who she was but I heard her voice, and thought she was a new singer. I had no idea she won this season's AI. I think she'll do well. She's got a very nice voice, and she ain't too hard to look at, neither.
08-15-2005 04:55 PM
