It's been hard to ignore the hype surrounding Carrie Underwood in the past two years. Since winning the fourth season of American Idol in 2005, she has collected an impressive array of major music awards, including five Academy of Country Music awards, two Country Music Association awards, and two Grammys. She recently beat Kelly Clarkson's Breakaway sales with her debut album, Some Hearts, which was declared platinum six times over, making her the most commercially successful Idol contestant in the show's history. She has enjoyed combined country/pop achievements with No. 1 singles on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Country Charts. What the numbers prove is that America loves Carrie Underwood.
So far, she's won over fans across the country with her pretty face, girl-next-door charm, and powerhouse voice. Yet, there are some in the country music industry who have criticized Underwood as the mere product of a popular reality TV show - someone undeserving of such heavy praise, having taken a shortcut to fame and commercial success. Also, the rise of her songs on pop radio has led some critics to brand her as singing inauthentic country. The anticipation for her follow-up album has been overwhelming as America waited to see if Underwood would live up to the high expectations that had been set for her.
Luckily, she does. On Carnival Ride, Underwood wisely sticks to what she does best - that is, singing pop-tinged, contemporary country. She seems to understand the role that she is expected to fill and rather than struggle against fans' expectations to break out of a mold (Ã la Kelly Clarkson's latest, My December), she doesn't stray far from the successful formula of Some Hearts. This time around, the album is just a hair more country and just a hair more fine-tuned in terms of song selection and production. It highlights her stellar voice in songs that she is evidently comfortable singing. She also played a larger role in its making, co-writing four of the 13 tracks. The result is something that skeptics can't deny: The girl knows how to use her talent.
Spring Break
