Carrie Underwood Shares Snap from Her 20-Year-Old American Idol Audition

Carrie Underwood shared a nostalgic snap of herself on Monday, showing her glued to a Nokia phone moments before auditioning for American Idol on August 11, 2004. This comes ahead of her upcoming role as a judge on the ABC singing competition.

Back then, Underwood was only 21 when she walked into the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark in St. Louis, MO to showcase her impressive three-octave soprano range to judges Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell.

’20 years ago I auditioned for the judges of @americanidol,’ Carrie captioned the photo, shared with her 38.3M social media followers. ‘And today I am now one of those judges searching for someone who wants to be an idol! It all starts with an audition…will we [see you on Idol?]’

Commenting on the ease of virtual auditions now available, Underwood joked, ‘I wish @americanidol auditions were this easy back in my day!’

Nationwide auditions for season 23 of American Idol have already kicked off, and Underwood, an eight-time Grammy winner, is eager to join current judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie. She will replace Katy Perry, who reportedly earned $25M per season. Bryan and Richie earn $12M and $10M per season, respectively.

Underwood will make history as the first-ever American Idol winner to judge the competition. ‘I mean it feels like home! There’s so many people that even still work on the show that were there when I was a contestant,’ she told GMA on August 2. ‘So I feel like being on both sides of the coin, I’ll be able to hopefully offer some insight and help.’

As for her judging style, Underwood said she aims to be honest yet constructive and encouraging. ‘I can’t lie. I just can’t. It’s not you can tell. I feel like I’ll be very honest, but hopefully you know I can be very constructive and encouraging,’. However, she assured that she wouldn’t be too harsh. ‘Oh gosh no. I mean, just ask my kids. I feel like I’m not too [harsh].’

Underwood shares two sons, Isaiah Michael, 9, and Jacob Bryan, 5, with her husband Mike Fisher, a former NHL star who now owns Catchin’ Deers.

The Drinking Alone singer met Fisher backstage at one of her concerts in 2008.

According to insider sources, the search for the perfect judge took an interesting twist when rival series The Voice tried to lure Underwood. Nevertheless, her loyalty remained with American Idol.

Speaking to DailyMail.com, an insider disclosed that Underwood has been invited to judge American Idol in the past, but timing, money, and other commitments stood in the way. ‘She has been asked to coach on The Voice as well, but it just never seemed right.

‘Even with the opening she has to speak to the same people at NBC by working with Sunday Night Football, she has always felt that she needed to be loyal to American Idol.’ Underwood sees herself as the most successful star to come out of American Idol and believes that judging the show will further solidify her legacy.

‘She is looking forward to every joy she gets from giving back and is more than ready to make the show the monster show it once was,’ the insider added.

But before her stint as a judge begins, Underwood – who gets 9.8M monthly listeners on Spotify – will resume her on/off Reflection residency at Resorts World Las Vegas this Wednesday.

Source: Daily Mail