Underwood is the Perfect Choice for New Grand Ole Opry

Leann, I think that you’re being a bit too dismissive of the talent disparity between Underwood and Flatts/Chesney. That is an important consideration. There are some Opry members who are not consistent traditionalists (e.g., Ronnie Milsap), but I’m having trouble thinking of an Opry member who is not very talented, and many Opry members are sensational talents.

But I think the most important thing is that neither Rascal Flatts nor Kenny Chesney have shown much interest in playing the Opry, and I think that’s the single most important criterion as far as Opry management is concerned. Each appear every once in awhile, but with nowhere near the frequency that Carrie has. If Kenny had played the Opry often in his early years, when he was releasing generally strong and country material, I think that he would’ve stood a decent chance at induction. Now that he’s gone all Jimmy Buffett, any chance that he had is gone.

The fact that she has so much more talent than KC and RF and that she obviously reveres the Opry by singing there often is what allows me to be okay with her joining the Opry. That’s why I’m fine with Ronnie being in it too. Don’t worry, I’m not meaning to dismiss her in any way. She has really grown on me over time. In fact, I’m one of the few people who forgets to associate her with American Idol, because I never tuned into the show when she was on it. I was just a little surprised, in a way, that it happened so soon and that her music isn’t more traditional. I understand the balance between commercial appeal and traditionalism that the Opry is trying to strike though.

What exactly is the benefit to Carrie of becoming a member of the Opry? Is this one more reason for LeAnn to hate her?

Matt, I agree that Underwood is the perfect choice for the Opry. She’s a pleasent,pretty safe choice that continues the Opry on the road of irrelevance when it come to showcasing the best music available.

Even the always dependably bland Grammys shook things up a bit by giving the best album to a 50 year old Herbie Hancock. AWESOME!

I also agree that the Opry had a calculated eye on Underwood to partially be a “must-see tourist attraction” that is if you can’t make it to Branson.

I am incredibly disappointed that Carrie Underwood was invited to join the Opry. I think the girl does have great talent, but I attended the late show of the Opry last night to see Lady Antebellum and Little Big Town. Those two groups exude energy and talent and a connection with their fans, and they were incredibly entertaining to watch. As was surprise guest Randy Travis, who did a great job.

Carrie, on the other hand, is incredibly boring on stage, to say the least. While her vocals were dead on and amazing, she has no stage presence. She said nothing to the audience when she came onstage, nothing between her songs, and nothing when she left the stage. Every other artist on the Opry at least acknowledges the crowd with a “Hey ya’ll!”, but not Carrie. I don’t see the passion in her eyes when she performs that I see in other top artists. Vince Gill stepped out on stage (it seemed to be unplanned) to sing harmony on “I Told You So”, and she barely acknowledged him. While most artists would be thrilled to have the legendary Vince on stage with them, she didn’t think anything of it.

There are other reasons, but I am very upset about this decision, as I feel it is incredibly political and not based on someone who is deserving and passionate about country music. I feel like she was thrust into this fame and just did it because people told her she was good at it, not because she truly loves it. While I do see why the Opry is trying to ensure their longevity, I do not see why they had to do it at the expense of diluting the Grand Ole Opry name.

For the record, I am not a person that has been around the Opry for a long time; I am only 22 years old and I feel this way, if that says anything to you all. Thanks!

Oh, I must have not said, I attended the late show at 9:30, not the televised one that starts at 6:30. Carrie was in the middle of the show with Vince Gill as the host and seemed like she didn’t care to be there. They did show the footage of the actual invitation from earlier though, and Randy came out to talk to her again. Another thing that bothered me was he made a comment about how she is one of the greatest voices to come out in a long time, but she didn’t even say thank you, just stood there and smiled. Maybe it’s just me, but I dislike it when people are acknowledged by important people for their talent and don’t even acknowledge and thank them in return.

emilie, i am going to have to disagree with you on a couple of points, several memebers of carrie’s fan club have video of carrie singing with vince, they were interacting very well, lots of smiles and he almost made her laugh out loud at one point in the song so im not sure where i see what you are talking about, also video of her and randy from the 9:30 show she seemed genuinely appreciative,obviously i wasn’t there but those were just my impressions from the video

from my view carrie wasn’t acting any different than her normal admitidly reserved self, but im sorry that was boring for you
again just a difference in view points

doh! my sarcasm HTML links didn’t show up. My point was that the Grammys aimed low and still came out more interesting then anything the Opry has done in decades.

I am THRILLED beyond words that carrie was invited! I cried for like an hour- Randy Travis is Carrie’s favorite artist- her hero. She said once that she met him at a concert she opened for him in California- and cried like a crazy fan just being in his presence. lol The entire night was so moving and special.

Carrie will be a great addition to the opry- she is classy, sweet, super talented- hard working, and most of all- she respects the past. She is in awe of the opry and its legends.

Though she may not be traditional country- and therefore not your cup of tea- she still has high moral standards, and a strong christian faith. She possesses every quality that an opry member should. She doesn’t smoke or do drugs or drink much. She is not a party girl- she is clearly the marrying kind who any man would be lucky to have.

Contemporary pop country is still country music. She grew up on a farm and started singing in church- just like many of you all. So it is frustrating to hear her bashed for not being “country.” Country music has many different facets- not all of it is johnny cash or hank williams. But she is country- and she will do the opry proud.

Emilie- you are absolutely wrong about carrie’s performance last night. I saw both performances on video tape in full- and she did talk and laugh, smile with Vince gill. The whole duet is on video in entirety. MEthinks you just hate carrie and are exagerrating to bash her.

She totally talked to the crowd - especially on the first set of the show. Everyone there loved her- and she was not boring at all.

I have seen her live 10 times now- and each time, I left with a feeling of joy and happiness- because she put on such a good show.

She is a little more shy then some- sure! But she does interact with the crowd- and she is not boring.

You should be careful of making comments like that- when the entire show- both sets- are already on youtube and fansites for all to see. Take a look– you will see carrie and vince laughing at each other while singing- and smiling. My friend had 7th row I think and videotaped the entire show. She was incredible.

I should have known that the bashers would come out in full force today. Jealousy can be ugly.

Cheryl, is you name really Theresa? you sound just like someone who ALWAYS brings up Taylor and you really need to stop….lol

Emilie, I think you’re full of it….just thought I would point that out. I’m sure your “credible” sources are also.

I saw the videos and The chemistry between Vince and Carrie was cute and Carrie is the most genuine person I’ve ever met. To each their own I guess.

Can someone point me to an online site to view the video of Carrie and Vince at the Opry? Thanks!

Carrie will make a great ambassador for the Opry. Spot on post Matt.

I was elated that Carrie got invited as member of the Opry.. I dont think she is the youngest but I think she may be the shortest career inductee.

Carrie Underwood youtube has a pretty good vid of her first performance on Opry..and when Randy T invited her as member and there are some related vids below .

I didnt see any vids on Youtube with Vince Gill in second performance, but did see a persons home video. When Vince was singing with her- I thought the 2 of them were interacting and smiling at each other during the song.. and she gave him recognition and thanks after the song.

From what I had seen Carrie acknowleded Randy T and she seemed very excited and surprised to see him there. She gave him her attention, respect and appreciation. .

I had also noticed that Carrie was waving to people in audience and talking to them in between songs..And thanked the audience for being a part of the special night

I recall when Josh T. was asked to be a member he didnt say much after or between songs..

I suspect it is hard to sing or talk after one’s dream comes true.

Tara — I fully realize that Carrie wouldnt condone violence or keying cars or acting as in “Last Name!”

I wonder how country fans see it, though. When George Jones or Waylon Jennings sings about getting drunk and behaving badly, we can imagine that the songs come from experience. When Carrie sings similarly, we imagine that it must be “acting.” Now, I certainly approve of Carries lifestyle more than George or Waylon’s. I’d rather that people sing about keying cars than actually key cars. I suspect, though, that some fans who want “authenticity” may be disappointed with Carrie. I don’t know though, just throwing it out.

That’s a fun point, hairandtonails. It would be cool if Carrie had a little Miranda Lambert attitude in her.:)

Let’s just make Dale Watson emperor and get it over with.

I respect Dale for his devotion and respect to the history of country music. I remember reading about a member of Cowboy Crush who was asked a question about Mother Maybelle Carter her reply was “Who is that?

Congrats to her.

I’m not some crazy fan or anything. I simply respect Carrie’s talent. Here’s a performance that shows personality.

Sweet Child Of Mine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwRXPMOpUE8

But she is sooooooooooooo boring. My shoes have more soul.

Lanibug65, I understand that you don’t like the girl, but give her a break. Fake crying? Come on! You could clearly see her break down with emotion if you watched this on tv. She can’t win. She is criticized for being boring and not showing enough emotion, and when she does, people say she is being fake.

I have to say that Carrie’s new single is very much traditionalist country as far as I’m concerned. The production may be a bit more pumped up. But that’s to be expected for female country stars following after Shania Twain. I am surprised it took somebody as long as Underwood to follow in that direction. But the fact is that it’s a story song. It conveys humor, satire, and American life, albeit cheesy. But come on, the girl is singing about getting married in Vegas to a guy that drives a Pinto. That’s country in my book. This song reminds me a lot of Alan Jackson’s ‘I Don’t Even Know Your Name’. And while neither song will be in heavy rotation on my iPod, I cannot deny the commercial viability of these tunes.

And Amen to the man that said the Opry needs acts like Underwood to remind the rest of the world that the Opry is still the standard to which country artists aspire to. The Opry is our most-esteemed national treasure, and should be exalted thusly. We, as country music aficionados of course, knew that all along.

I think Carrie is certainly talented enough to be invited to join the Opry. My only problem with it, is that there are a LOT of country artists - legends even - that deserve to be inducted first. I’m not saying that Carrie shouldnt be there — just not ‘yet’.

Throwing Ashton Shepherd’s name into the article you sly devil you.

Anyway, Carrie is talented beyond most, if not all of the new pack of female singers. Dierks Bentley is rapidly growing his popularity and is only going up. Josh Turner brings in the guys like me, actual country fans who knew what the Opry was before they knew who Josh Turner was. They’re all beneficial and they’re all talented.

Dierks is tricky, he grabbed me with his first album with his neotraditional sound and reeled me in for the rest. This still won’t prevent me from kicking some rec league hockey butt come this fall. That’s right Iceholes, I’m out to get ya!

The Opry usually has little problems being full on Tuesdays. If they truly start to suffer, there’s one man they can call to fix that. Starts with a G ends with an arth.

Razor x,

lets put it this way…. the opry needs Carrie Underwood a lot more than she needs the Opry. She is doing them a favor by joining. they are falling apart, there old singers, who have payed there dues are at the ends of their careers and are croaking. its a smart move. she has always shown initiative in performing there, has done so 2 weeks after winning american idol. she respects the past, and knows what an honor this is. plus, she is amazingly talented , and has the best voice is in all of country music right now. she has all the potential in the world, and judging from her performances, especially the Eddie Arnold tribute on the ACMAS, is only going to keep getting better.
save your scorn for Taylor Swift.

Raxor: Chill. The Ryman is the Mother Church of Country.

I believe those “passive means” lead to a lawsuit, and if they are adding all the flavors of the month, who will they play in their stead?

I personally think that Carrie Underwood is not only a fantastic and soulful singer, but she also performs as an artist, not a competitive athelete.

Too often we’ve turned the industry into a competition…nobody wins.