Carrie Underwood Looks Back on ‘Incredible Ride’ on 15th Anniversary of Winning ‘American Idol’
Carrie Underwood turned to social media to mark the 15th anniversary of her winning American Idol on Monday (May 25), thanking fans for a sweet video they made for the occasion.
A huge Underwood fan named Olivia Sturdivant posted the video above to YouTube, and she shared it to Twitter under the name @CareBear4Carrie, writing, "Today 15 years ago your world and ours were forever changed @carrieunderwood. We are so thankful you didn’t have your dad turn the car around! Happy 'Idol-versary.' Here's a little something from us, 'whenever you remember' we’ll be there always."
The clip features pictures, video tributes and messages from fans who have been especially impacted by their fandom for Underwood, and the superstar responded via Twitter after the video came to her attention, replying, "WOW, I cannot believe it’s been 15 years since my @americanidol win!!! It’s been an incredible ride and I couldn’t have made it through without all of you guys!! THANK YOU so much for this sweet video!!"
Underwood was a 21-year-old small-town Oklahoma girl who had never been on an airplane when she auditioned for Idol in 2005. She sang the Bonnie Raitt classic "I Can't Make You Love Me" and charmed the judges not only with her obvious vocal ability, but with her sweet demeanor. Underwood admitted to judge Randy Jackson that she was "a little bit" nervous "because he's scary," indicating the sometimes-intimidating Simon Cowell, who replied with a bemused grin, saying, "No I'm not."
Underwood went on to give a series of powerful performances over the course of the season, and she was crowned the winner of American Idol on May 25, 2005. She's gone on to a stellar career as the best-selling Idol alum, winning an armload of Grammy, CMA and ACM Awards and scoring more than a dozen No. 1 hits.
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