When Carrie Underwood came off of her massive Cry Pretty Tour 360 last year, she immediately got to work recording her upcoming Christmas album, My Gift, never imagining how drastic the entire world would change just a short time later, when the coronavirus pandemic would impact almost every aspect of her life, and others. Still, the 37-year-old found the silver lining, even while having to come up with a new way to record the music.
“We plucked Greg Wells as a producer early on, before everything happened,” she shared in a trailer announcing the new record. “I have recorded with him via Zoom. He’s been in the vocal booth with me on the little monitor. Technology has made it possible for him to be here with us. We’re learning how to do things in a different way, which is never a bad thing.”
Carrie admits it might not have been the easiest time to record My Gift, but she is certain the new project couldn’t be more timely.
“Now more than ever, we all need to focus on what Christmas is about, rely more on our family,” Carrie said. “Even though it has been a tough year, sometimes I feel like the greatest realizations can come in the worst times or the most stressful times, and it makes you more thankful for the things that you do have.”
The album title was inspired by one of her favorite Christmas carols.
“It’s really hard naming a Christmas album,” Carrie conceded. “I tried to think about the songs that were in it. I started thinking about individual songs. One of my favorites is ‘Little Drummer Boy.’ It’s one of my favorites because the sentiment behind it is just so honest. There’s a little boy, and of course I think of my five-year-old Isaiah. They’re bringing gifts to baby Jesus. He doesn’t have anything; he’s poor. So he says, ‘I know. I’m gonna play my drum for Him. That’s what I have.’
“To me, that’s a gift that was given to him by God, his love of music,” she continued. “I imagine he was a good little drummer. I love music; I love singing. That is my personal little gift that I get to do, that I’m so blessed to do. I want to use that gift, and I want to give it back to Jesus. That’s why I landed on My Gift as an album title.”
My Gift will be available on September 25. It will also be released on vinyl on October 30. Pre-order the album here.
