Carrie Underwood:

The Cover Story

Carrie Underwood:

The Cover Story

Photo credit: Jeremy Cowart

Photo credit: Jeremy Cowart

Anyone who has followed Carrie Underwood’s career knows that faith has always played an important role in her life and music. With hit songs like “See You Again,” “Temporary Home,” “Something in the Water” and of course, her breakthrough single “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” the Oklahoma born superstar has always unabashedly shared her heart and her beliefs. Now with the March 26 release of My Savior, Underwood returns to the songs that have helped provide the foundation for her faith.

“Faith has always been a huge part of my music because it’s such a huge part of me,” Underwood tells Sounds Like Nashville. “I feel anyone that knows me or anyone that’s been a fan of mine for any length of time knows that an album celebrating gospel hymns has been coming. We had been planning both of these albums since I came off the Cry Pretty tour in 2019 and when I was recording my Christmas album, My Gift, I remember thinking that I didn’t want the feeling that music gave me to end so I was so grateful to get to keep that going with this album. These are some of my favorite hymns I grew up with and love singing and they are so special to me.”

My Savior begins with a beautiful instrumental version of “Jesus Loves Me” and features such beloved hymns as “Nothing But the Blood of Jesus,” “I Surrender All,” “Because He Lives,” “Victory in Jesus,” “Amazing Grace” and “The Old Rugged Cross.” Underwood admits she had a hard time narrowing it down to the 13 tracks that appear on the album. “It was very difficult to choose from all the hymns that exist, especially the ones I grew up singing and loving,” she says. “We had a huge list, but I definitely had certain pillars I knew had to be in there – ‘How Great Thou Art,’ ‘Blessed Assurance,’ ‘Just As I Am,’ to name a few. We also wanted to choose songs that would work well together and complement the ones that I knew I had to have on there. Each one is special in its own way.”

Among the songs with the most personal significance is the timeless “Just As I Am.” “Just As I Am’ was our altar call at the church I grew up in, the song that was played when the pastor invited people to come in front of the congregation to publicly give their life to Christ,” she shares. “It was the song that was playing when I decided to take that walk, so it is very special to me.”

Growing up singing in church with her family is among Underwood’s earliest memories. “I don’t know if I could single out one specific memory of singing one of these songs because this music has literally been in my life since birth,” she says. “My memories are more about standing with my family among the wooden pews in our little church in Checotah, Oklahoma. My mom would always sing the alto part, so I remember her singing harmony. Those were my earliest musical memories, being in that congregation singing these songs.”

Though her Christmas album, My Gift, included some new songs, Underwood chose to just record well known material for My Savior. “I wanted this album to be all traditional hymns. It’s all about that feeling of home and comfort and the familiar,” she says. “There are so many incredible hymns that have truly stood the test of time that I didn’t feel the need to try to create something new for this album. The challenge was making these songs, most of which are very old, feel fresh without losing that feeling of familiarity. I think my co-producer, David Garcia, and I accomplished that with the arrangements. That was important to us.”

Anyone who has followed Carrie Underwood’s career knows that faith has always played an important role in her life and music. With hit songs like “See You Again,” “Temporary Home,” “Something in the Water” and of course, her breakthrough single “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” the Oklahoma born superstar has always unabashedly shared her heart and her beliefs. Now with the March 26 release of My Savior, Underwood returns to the songs that have helped provide the foundation for her faith.

“Faith has always been a huge part of my music because it’s such a huge part of me,” Underwood tells Sounds Like Nashville. “I feel anyone that knows me or anyone that’s been a fan of mine for any length of time knows that an album celebrating gospel hymns has been coming. We had been planning both of these albums since I came off the Cry Pretty tour in 2019 and when I was recording my Christmas album, My Gift, I remember thinking that I didn’t want the feeling that music gave me to end so I was so grateful to get to keep that going with this album. These are some of my favorite hymns I grew up with and love singing and they are so special to me.”

Photo credit: Jeremy Cowart

My Savior begins with a beautiful instrumental version of “Jesus Loves Me” and features such beloved hymns as “Nothing But the Blood of Jesus,” “I Surrender All,” “Because He Lives,” “Victory in Jesus,” “Amazing Grace” and “The Old Rugged Cross.” Underwood admits she had a hard time narrowing it down to the 13 tracks that appear on the album. “It was very difficult to choose from all the hymns that exist, especially the ones I grew up singing and loving,” she says. “We had a huge list, but I definitely had certain pillars I knew had to be in there – ‘How Great Thou Art,’ ‘Blessed Assurance,’ ‘Just As I Am,’ to name a few. We also wanted to choose songs that would work well together and complement the ones that I knew I had to have on there. Each one is special in its own way.”

Among the songs with the most personal significance is the timeless “Just As I Am.” “Just As I Am’ was our altar call at the church I grew up in, the song that was played when the pastor invited people to come in front of the congregation to publicly give their life to Christ,” she shares. “It was the song that was playing when I decided to take that walk, so it is very special to me.”

Growing up singing in church with her family is among Underwood’s earliest memories. “I don’t know if I could single out one specific memory of singing one of these songs because this music has literally been in my life since birth,” she says. “My memories are more about standing with my family among the wooden pews in our little church in Checotah, Oklahoma. My mom would always sing the alto part, so I remember her singing harmony. Those were my earliest musical memories, being in that congregation singing these songs.”

Though her Christmas album, My Gift, included some new songs, Underwood chose to just record well known material for My Savior. “I wanted this album to be all traditional hymns. It’s all about that feeling of home and comfort and the familiar,” she says. “There are so many incredible hymns that have truly stood the test of time that I didn’t feel the need to try to create something new for this album. The challenge was making these songs, most of which are very old, feel fresh without losing that feeling of familiarity. I think my co-producer, David Garcia, and I accomplished that with the arrangements. That was important to us.”

Video credit: UMG

Striking that balance between familiar and fresh is always a challenge when recording well known songs, but Underwood and Garcia met the challenge and succeeded beautifully in recreating the beloved standards, infusing them with warmth and heart that makes the artist’s reverence for her subject matter palpable. “It was interesting to listen to these songs I know so well and figure out how I fit into them,” the seven-time Grammy winner says. “We wanted to keep them traditional but also feel current without losing the essence of them and still bring my voice and what I do to them. We wanted to take the listener on a musical journey, without the songs sounding the same because a lot of them were written in the same time period with the same available instruments.”

My Savior marks the second album that Underwood has collaborated with Garcia, with whom she co-produced 2018’s Cry Pretty, her seventh album to be certified Platinum or Multi-Platinum by the RIAA. Garcia himself boasts an impressive resume. A four-time Grammy winner with roots in the Christian music community, Garcia has won nine Gospel Music Association Dove Awards and has more than 20 No. 1 songs to his credit, including three ASCAP Award winners for Christian Music Song of The Year. He has twice been named ASCAP’s Christian Music Songwriter of the Year (2015 and 2019).

“David and I produced my Cry Pretty album together and I knew he would be the perfect fit for My Savior, not only because we work so well together, but we grew up the same in a lot of ways,” she says. “He was very familiar with all of these songs and knew what I wanted to accomplish as far as preserving the heart of them. He put the same importance on the music and how these songs should feel and what they mean to people as I did. It wasn’t just about making technically good music, we wanted the same things for this album.” 

My Savior is the second album Underwood has recorded during the pandemic so the quarantine recording experience wasn’t new to her. “I feel the thing I learned from recording My Gift and brought to My Savior is that we can do anything,” she says.  “It’s definitely had its challenges, working in a different way and being mindful of how many people we can have together.  We’ve had to scale things back a lot, but in a lot of ways that made things more intimate and personal. It wasn’t what we were used to, but somehow made it all that much more special.”    

Striking that balance between familiar and fresh is always a challenge when recording well known songs, but Underwood and Garcia met the challenge and succeeded beautifully in recreating the beloved standards, infusing them with warmth and heart that makes the artist’s reverence for her subject matter palpable. “It was interesting to listen to these songs I know so well and figure out how I fit into them,” the seven-time Grammy winner says. “We wanted to keep them traditional but also feel current without losing the essence of them and still bring my voice and what I do to them. We wanted to take the listener on a musical journey, without the songs sounding the same because a lot of them were written in the same time period with the same available instruments.”

My Savior marks the second album that Underwood has collaborated with Garcia, with whom she co-produced 2018’s Cry Pretty, her seventh album to be certified Platinum or Multi-Platinum by the RIAA. Garcia himself boasts an impressive resume. A four-time Grammy winner with roots in the Christian music community, Garcia has won nine Gospel Music Association Dove Awards and has more than 20 No. 1 songs to his credit, including three ASCAP Award winners for Christian Music Song of The Year. He has twice been named ASCAP’s Christian Music Songwriter of the Year (2015 and 2019).

“David and I produced my Cry Pretty album together and I knew he would be the perfect fit for My Savior, not only because we work so well together, but we grew up the same in a lot of ways,” she says. “He was very familiar with all of these songs and knew what I wanted to accomplish as far as preserving the heart of them. He put the same importance on the music and how these songs should feel and what they mean to people as I did. It wasn’t just about making technically good music, we wanted the same things for this album.” 

My Savior is the second album Underwood has recorded during the pandemic so the quarantine recording experience wasn’t new to her. “I feel the thing I learned from recording My Gift and brought to My Savior is that we can do anything,” she says. “It’s definitely had its challenges, working in a different way and being mindful of how many people we can have together. We’ve had to scale things back a lot, but in a lot of ways that made things more intimate and personal. It wasn’t what we were used to, but somehow made it all that much more special.”    

In addition to working with Garcia, Underwood also recruited two other pillars of the Christian music community to join her on My Savior. She and CeCe Winans duet on “Great is Thy Faithfulness” and NEEDTOBREATHE frontman Bear Rinehart sings on “Nothing But the Blood of Jesus.” “When we were talking about ‘Nothing But The Blood Of Jesus’ and the feeling we hoped to create with that song, we wanted to get it to move, with a bit more tempo than the traditional arrangement,” Underwood explains. “The whole time, David and I talked about hearing Bear’s voice on it. I’ve been a fan of NEEDTOBREATHE for a while and I just think he has such a cool voice. We asked if he’d like to come add some harmonies to that song and were so thrilled that he did.  He sounded exactly how we imagined it could.”

Winans recalls meeting Underwood early in her career during an appearance at the White House and says she’s long been a fan. When Winans was putting together Compassion International’s special livestream “An Evening of Thanksgiving,” she recruited Underwood to perform on the February 2021 event where she delivered a memorable performance of “Jesus, Take the Wheel.” “My manager reached out to her management to see if she would do it and when they called her, her manager was like, ‘Oh my goodness! She’s trying to reach out to CeCe right now because she’s doing a hymns record and she wants CeCe to sing ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’ with her,’” Winans recalls. “They couldn’t believe that we were reaching out to them and they were reaching out to me at the same time.”

In addition to working with Garcia, Underwood also recruited two other pillars of the Christian music community to join her on My Savior. She and CeCe Winans duet on “Great is Thy Faithfulness” and NEEDTOBREATHE frontman Bear Rinehart sings on “Nothing But the Blood of Jesus.” “When we were talking about ‘Nothing But The Blood Of Jesus’ and the feeling we hoped to create with that song, we wanted to get it to move, with a bit more tempo than the traditional arrangement,” Underwood explains. “The whole time, David and I talked about hearing Bear’s voice on it. I’ve been a fan of NEEDTOBREATHE for a while and I just think he has such a cool voice. We asked if he’d like to come add some harmonies to that song and were so thrilled that he did. He sounded exactly how we imagined it could.”

Winans recalls meeting Underwood early in her career during an appearance at the White House and says she’s long been a fan. When Winans was putting together Compassion International’s special livestream “An Evening of Thanksgiving,” she recruited Underwood to perform on the February 2021 event where she delivered a memorable performance of “Jesus, Take the Wheel.” “My manager reached out to her management to see if she would do it and when they called her, her manager was like, ‘Oh my goodness! She’s trying to reach out to CeCe right now because she’s doing a hymns record and she wants CeCe to sing ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’ with her,’” Winans recalls. “They couldn’t believe that we were reaching out to them and they were reaching out to me at the same time.”

Underwood and Winans’ soaring vocals on “Great is Thy Faithfulness” are stunning, and are among the album’s most tingle-producing highlights. “As far as CeCe goes, she’s CeCe Winans! She is gospel royalty, and I knew it would be a dream to get to sing with her,” Underwood says. “We had talked about having her record ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness,’ which is such a wonderful song. It’s all about waking up every day knowing we are here, we’re alive and that God is with us and is faithful to us, through good times and bad. We asked her if she would do it and we were literally in the studio within days recording it. CeCe radiates such positivity and her God-given instrument just takes the song to a whole other level. I feel blessed to have gotten to work with both of them.”

Winans thoroughly enjoyed working with Underwood and feels others will be blessed by what Underwood has created. “It was amazing. I said, ‘Are you ready for what God is going to do with this record?’… We all know how powerful the hymns are and with a voice like that,” Winans says, praising Underwood’s vocal talent. “I’m just praying that God will use this record to connect with a new generation. I just pray that salvations will come and that God will do something extra special through this hymns record of hers. I’m honored to be a part of it. She’s amazing!”

Underwood and Winans’ soaring vocals on “Great is Thy Faithfulness” are stunning, and are among the album’s most tingle-producing highlights. “As far as CeCe goes, she’s CeCe Winans! She is gospel royalty, and I knew it would be a dream to get to sing with her,” Underwood says. “We had talked about having her record ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness,’ which is such a wonderful song. It’s all about waking up every day knowing we are here, we’re alive and that God is with us and is faithful to us, through good times and bad. We asked her if she would do it and we were literally in the studio within days recording it. CeCe radiates such positivity and her God-given instrument just takes the song to a whole other level.  I feel blessed to have gotten to work with both of them.”

Winans thoroughly enjoyed working with Underwood and feels others will be blessed by what Underwood has created. “It was amazing. I said, ‘Are you ready for what God is going to do with this record?’… We all know how powerful the hymns are and with a voice like that,” Winans says, praising Underwood’s vocal talent. “I’m just praying that God will use this record to connect with a new generation. I just pray that salvations will come and that God will do something extra special through this hymns record of hers. I’m honored to be a part of it. She’s amazing!”

Winans and Rinehart as well as musicians Buddy Greene and Mac McAnally, who both appear on My Savior, will perform with Underwood during “My Savior: Live From the Ryman,” a special concert streaming globally on Underwood’s Facebook page on Easter Sunday, April 4th at 11 central. Donations from the event will benefit Save the Children.

When asked if she plans to record another faith-based album, Underwood responds, “Well, I’ve learned never to say never. There are no plans right now, but just like recording my Christmas album, there is so much beautiful, inspirational music out there and many more songs to be sung.”

Underwood says Christian music is a staple in her home. “We listen to pretty much everything in our house, and we really do enjoy a lot of praise and worship music,” she says.“Besides CeCe, of course, we listen to Kari Jobe and Chris Tomlin. I love Matthew West’s voice.  I’ve had the pleasure of singing with Michael W. Smith in the past, so he’s someone I always enjoy listening to.”

With the project releasing just before Easter, the timing is special to Underwood. “This album is all about thanking Jesus for His love and praising him,” she says. “The meaning of Easter is such an important part of my Christian faith, the fact that He rose from the dead is something to be celebrated. I love that we are releasing this album around Easter. Growing up, we always went to Easter service, which we do with our boys. We enjoy the fun stuff around Easter as well, but it’s important that our sons understand and celebrate the true meaning of Easter.  

Winans and Rinehart as well as musicians Buddy Greene and Mac McAnally, who both appear on My Savior, will perform with Underwood during “My Savior: Live From the Ryman,” a special concert streaming globally on Underwood’s Facebook page on Easter Sunday, April 4th at 11 central. Donations from the event will benefit Save the Children.

When asked if she plans to record another faith-based album, Underwood responds, “Well, I’ve learned never to say never. There are no plans right now, but just like recording my Christmas album, there is so much beautiful, inspirational music out there and many more songs to be sung.”

Underwood says Christian music is a staple in her home. “We listen to pretty much everything in our house, and we really do enjoy a lot of praise and worship music,” she says. “Besides CeCe, of course, we listen to Kari Jobe and Chris Tomlin. I love Matthew West’s voice. I’ve had the pleasure of singing with Michael W. Smith in the past, so he’s someone I always enjoy listening to.”

With the project releasing just before Easter, the timing is special to Underwood. “This album is all about thanking Jesus for His love and praising him,” she says.  “The meaning of Easter is such an important part of my Christian faith, the fact that He rose from the dead is something to be celebrated.  I love that we are releasing this album around Easter.  Growing up, we always went to Easter service, which we do with our boys.  We enjoy the fun stuff around Easter as well, but it’s important that our sons understand and celebrate the true meaning of Easter.  

 “I hope people will listen to these songs and feel hope,” she continues. “I want them to feel inspired. I want them to feel uplifted and to feel God’s presence around them.”

Recording the gospel album was a longtime goal for Underwood and she’s happy with the way it turned out. “Just like recording a Christmas album last year, an album celebrating the gospel hymns I grew up with is truly a bucket list project for me,” she says. “I’ve always wanted to make an album like this because these songs feel so good to sing and this music shaped me as a person and as an artist. I’m so grateful that all of us, the whole team around me, was able to come together and make this happen now. I feel for so many reasons that it turned out to be even better than I hoped it would be.”

Though she’s just checked a big item off her bucket list, Underwood has no plans to rest on her laurels. “I’m excited just to celebrate this album I’m so proud of, but there’s a lot of exciting stuff coming up. There is always something going on with CALIA. We just celebrated our sixth anniversary,” she says of her fitness apparel brand, “and my fit52 app, which we launched last year, right before the world shut down. I’ve just started a new partnership with BODYARMOR Sports Drink. Health and fitness is such a passion for me and I feel so lucky to get to combine that passion with my business. I also loved getting to record ‘Tears of Gold’ with Spanish artist David Bisbal and of course, getting to sing with Loretta Lynn and Reba on ‘Still Woman Enough’ – another bucket list situation with two women that mean the world to me.  We’ve got a lot more cool stuff in the works, so stay tuned!”

Video credit: UMG

 “I hope people will listen to these songs and feel hope,” she continues. “I want them to feel inspired. I want them to feel uplifted and to feel God’s presence around them.”

Recording the gospel album was a longtime goal for Underwood and she’s happy with the way it turned out. “Just like recording a Christmas album last year, an album celebrating the gospel hymns I grew up with is truly a bucket list project for me,” she says. “I’ve always wanted to make an album like this because these songs feel so good to sing and this music shaped me as a person and as an artist.  I’m so grateful that all of us, the whole team around me, was able to come together and make this happen now. I feel for so many reasons that it turned out to be even better than I hoped it would be.”

Though she’s just checked a big item off her bucket list, Underwood has no plans to rest on her laurels. “I’m excited just to celebrate this album I’m so proud of, but there’s a lot of exciting stuff coming up. There is always something going on with CALIA. We just celebrated our sixth anniversary,” she says of her fitness apparel brand, “and my fit52 app, which we launched last year, right before the world shut down. I’ve just started a new partnership with BODYARMOR Sports Drink. Health and fitness is such a passion for me and I feel so lucky to get to combine that passion with my business. I also loved getting to record ‘Tears of Gold’ with Spanish artist David Bisbal and of course, getting to sing with Loretta Lynn and Reba on ‘Still Woman Enough’ – another bucket list situation with two women that mean the world to me. We’ve got a lot more cool stuff in the works, so stay tuned!”