For Carrie Underwood, no place will ever be important for her to perform in as the Grand Ole Opry. On March 15, 2008, Underwood was invited to become an Opry member by Randy Travis. More than 17 years later, Underwood is still as much of a supporter of the historic institution as the day she received the invitation.
“I’ve obviously had so many incredible memories here at the Grand Ole Opry. But one of my favorites and my biggest is the night that I was asked to be a member,” Underwood shares on social media. “After American Idol, I moved to Nashville, and the Opry was one of the first places that I wanted to plant my feet here, kind of make it known immediately that someday I wanted to be a member. It was important to me, and I wanted to make that known to everybody in country music, and especially here at the Opry.
“We’ve played, and I’ve met so many people throughout the many times I’ve played at the Opry,” she continues. “The night that Randy Travis walked on stage, and asked me to become a member, it still blows my mind. And when I get to watch the videos back of it, I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ I still get excited, because it is that important.
As the Grand Ole Opry celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, Underwood remains an avid advocate, who still performs as much as she is able.
“That’s one of the things that I love about the Grand Ole Opry, is that it honors our tradition,” Underwood says. “It has the biggest stars in country music today. And every time you come, you see somebody that is just on their way. All of those things colliding in one place; no other genre of music has this. And it’s amazing.”
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Carrie Underwood Makes History in Country Music
Few artists have had success like Underwood. After winning Idol in 2005, the Oklahoma native has been an integral part of country music. She just became the highest RIAA-certified female artist of all time, of any genre, with a total of over 95 million units sold.
“I am so just humbled, and I’m so grateful of this recognition that is 20 years in the making,” Underwood says. “It not only represents my part of this career, but of course all of the songwriters and producers and musicians, and all of the audio engineers, and the band that plays it every night on stage with me. Hundreds of people that were involved every step of the way in making this music. And of course, none of it would be possible without fans from everywhere that have been with me for the past 20 years, just supporting and listening to, coming to the shows and buying the records and streaming and downloading and all that stuff.
“And of course, continue to support me today,” she adds. “Again, I’m just so amazed and blown away and blessed above all. So thank you. Thank you, everybody. This is incredible.”
Underwood will return for her second season as a judge on American Idol in 2026, joined again by Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie. The new season will premiere on Monday, January 26, on ABC.
Photo: Grand Ole Opry / Chris Hollo