These days it's hard to find a busier woman in country music than Carrie Underwood. Her new album, 'Play On,' will be hitting the streets Nov. 3, and the lead single, 'Cowboy Casanova,' is already burning up the charts, having sold more than 110,000 in digital sales during its first week of release. On Nov. 11, the Checotah, Okla. native will once again co-host this year's Country Music Association Awards with Brad Paisley, and later in the month fans can catch Carrie starring, for the first time, in her very own television special.
As busy as she is, Carrie took time to sit down with The Boot at a Nashville recording studio to chat about life, fame and what gives her nightmares.
What is the craziest gift a fan has ever given you?
This isn't crazy -- it's crazy fun. I recently got a gift certificate to skydive. He told me he was going off to be in the military. He said, "This is the last thing I'm going to get to come to, so I bought you a present." It may be next year before I'm able to do it, but it doesn't expire until next summer, so I'm good. I've always wanted to. I can't remember if I talked about this in an interview or he just thought that would be fun. It was really nice!
What is your idea of a perfect romantic date?
I love sporting events and popcorn and pizza and being outside, like at a baseball or football game. I love amusement parks, going to ride roller coasters. I also love -- not all the time, but occasionally -- getting really dressed up and going on a proper date, where he picks you up and you're wearing a nice dress and you both smell real nice, and you made a big effort to get looking pretty for this person.
What are your guilty pleasures?
I love chocolate, and I love to shop -- just give me a good boutique. I like mall scenarios, too, because there's more right there at hand. I think Nashville could use some better shopping!
If there were a fire, what would be the one thing you would grab while fleeing from the house?
I would grab [my dog] Ace. I would grab my journals. I've been journaling since I was on '[American] Idol.' I went through so many when I was on there. I keep it up.
Age: 26 Why she's hot: This small-town Oklahoma beauty rose to fame after winning 2005's American Idol and has since become a multi-platinum selling artist, four-time Grammy award winner and the first country artist in history to achieve 10 No.1 singles from her first two records. Just last month, Underwood was inducted to the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. Her third album, Play On, is slated for release on Nov. 3, 2009. She'll host the CMA Awards alongside Brad Paisley for the second time. Plus, she's dating Canadian hockey hunk Mike Fisher of the Ottawa Senators.
Age: 26 Why she's hot: This small-town Oklahoma beauty rose to fame after winning 2005's American Idol and has since become a multi-platinum selling artist, four-time Grammy award winner and the first country artist in history to achieve 10 No.1 singles from her first two records. Just last month, Underwood was inducted to the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. Her third album, Play On, is slated for release on Nov. 3, 2009. She'll host the CMA Awards alongside Brad Paisley for the second time. Plus, she's dating Canadian hockey hunk Mike Fisher of the Ottawa Senators.
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Taylor Swift
Age: 19 Why she's hot: At 16, this country cutie charmed audiences everywhere with a self-titled debut album for which she co-wrote every track. Now, Swift is country royalty. Her latest studio album, *Fearless*, was released on Nov. 11, 2008 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart. Its sales were the highest debut of all country artists that year. This year, Swift won "Video of the Year" at the CMT Music Awards. Not to mention, handled the infamous MTV Video Music Awards Kanye jab with a poise and maturity beyond her years.
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Gloriana
Ages: (from left) Cheyenne Kimball, 19; Rachel Reinhert,19; Tom Gossin, 27; Mike Gossin, 24 Why they're hot: This fine-looking foursome, who met and joined forces in Nashville, are the newest artists our list. Once they started working together, Gloriana took off on a period of intensive songwriting and live performances. Their debut, self-titled album has been enormously successful, with its first single "Wild At Heart" becoming the highest-selling country music single of 2009. The album's sophomore track, "How Far Do You Wanna Go?" was released last month. The vocal group has been touring with Taylor Swift on her Fearless tour (2009).
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Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton
Ages: 25 and 33 Why they're hot: Forget Faith and Tim, Miranda and Blake are country's freshest twosome. Miranda remains one of country music's toughest (and sexiest) females, making firearms seem like a perfectly feminine accessory. Her third studio album, Revolution, was released last month and is packed with as much punch as her previous two. Blake Shelton's album, Startin' Fires (2008), includes "Bare Skin Rug", a duet with Lambert. The sweethearts met at CMT's 100 Greatest Duets Concert and together lead country's next generation of stars.
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Miley Cyrus
Age: 16 Why she's hot: She's the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, but made a name for herself as 'Hannah Montana,' the lead in Disney's hit kid's series of the same name. Her second studio album, Breakout, landed the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart within the first week of sales. Though she's been panged by controversy-for her topless Vanity Fair cover and for dating older guys-her career is stronger than ever. The Time of Our Lives, released in August, was a critical success. She's currently filming The Last Song, based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks, in which she plays a teenage rebel girl who spends a quiet summer with her estranged father.
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Josh Turner
Age: 31 Why he's hot: With tender ballads like "Your Man" and "Would You Go With Me," Turner has won his way into the hearts of women everywhere. His last three studio albums have been certified gold or higher and nine of his singles have made it on the Billboard country charts. He's the second youngest member of the Grand Ole Opry after Carrie Underwood. Fact: Turner graduated from Nashville's Belmont University in 2001 with a degree in vocal performance.
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Lady Antebellum
Ages: Dave Haywood, twenties; Hilary Scott, 23; Charles Kelley, 27 Why they're hot: Comprised of singers Hilary Scott and Charles Kelley; and multi-instrumentalist Dave Haywood, this Grammy-nominated musical threesome has been dominating country charts since their inception. Formed in Nashville, Lady Antebellum released their first single "Love Don't Live Here" in 2007; and their debut self-titled album in 2008. They've been awarded Top New Group by the Academy of Country Music and New Artist of the Year by the Country Music Association. Fact: Charles Kelley is the brother of musician Josh Kelley, who is married to Katherine Heigl of Grey's Anatomy.
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Jake Owen
Age: 28 (RCA, Grammy nominated) Why he's hot: Owen, with his bright smile and tousled mop, makes the girls yell "Y-E-E-H-A-W!" just like he did on his debut single of the same name. His sophomore release, Easy Does It (2009), has produced two hit singles: "Don't Think I Can't Love You" and "Eight Second Ride." He's toured for several country acts, including Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley and Little Big Town. Oh, and he's single.
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Chris Young
Age: 24 Why he's hot: Young's claim to fame was winning season four of Nashville Star-but he was making music years before that, with an already hefty fan-base. His deep, baritone voice in hits like "You're Gonna Love Me" has become his trademark. The Man I Want to Be, Young's most recent album, was released Sept. 1, 2009 and includes "Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)," which has reached No. 1 on the country charts.
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Kellie Pickler
Age: 23 Why she's hot: This southern belle first tasted fame as part of American Idol's fifth season. Though she finished sixth, the former Miss North Carolina contestant has become a country music icon. Her first album debuted at No. 1 on the country charts. Her self-titled second album, released in 2008, has spawned hit singles like "Don't You Know You're Beautiful" and "Best Days of Your Life," which she co-wrote with good friend Taylor Swift. Also a PETA activist, Pickler was named "World's Sexiest Vegetarian" in May 2009.
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Why don't you use Twitter?
It just sounds like organized stalking to me. I talk to my fan club members and I blog, and they know what's going on. But as far as Twitter, I'll be in a restaurant and I'll get home and somebody tweeted and they talked about what I ordered and what I was wearing. In some cases, that could be dangerous, because you don't want everybody to know where you are every second of every day. It's a wee bit of an invasion of privacy.
What's your favorite movie, and why?
I love scary movies. I like blood and gore, and I love Halloween movies. Ninety percent of my movies are horror movies like 'Halloween,' 'Friday the 13th' and all the originals like 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre.' I'll be watching them on planes, and I know the people behind me can lean over and see what I'm watching. They are going to think I'm weird, but I love it. It serves me right, too. I have nightmares where there's always somebody chasing me down.
Who do you think is the most underrated singer in country music?
Miranda Lambert! She gets attention and people know who she is, of course, but I'd lose an award to her any day. I just think she's super-talented and really sweet and fun. I think she deserves more accolades. She gets some, but she deserves more.
If you could have dinner with anybody, living or dead, who would it be?
I would pick my family. I really didn't know my dad's dad, and my dad was the last of six boys. I never met my great-grandparents and really didn't know the one side of my grandparents really well. I'd just like to know where I came from, so I'd pick great-grandparents or great great-grandparents -- somebody from my past that I never got the chance to have a conversation with or know what they look like. Nobody took pictures, or they didn't have enough money for a camera. A lot of people do get to see pictures of their great-grandparents. I have no idea what they look like.
What's your worst habit?
I am stubborn. It's not a habit, either; it's a character flaw. I don't have too many habits. I'm sloppy in some areas of my life and weirdly organized in other areas. Things have to go back where they came from. They have to be put back in the correct place.
If a movie was made about your life, who would you want to play you?
If I died tomorrow and they were going to make a movie immediately, I would want someone like Reese Witherspoon. That would be perfect. She has the blond hair and she's a Southern girl.
What do you think is the biggest misconception about you?
Because I'm quiet, [my] shyness can be taken wrong. I'm really even-keeled. I get excited about stuff, but I'm such a thinker and a processor that if somebody comes up to me with good news, I'm like, "Oh, cool." I'm processing, but I think sometimes [because] I'm quiet and shy, I can be misperceived and taken as I'm not very nice. I think somebody has to be really close to me to understand ... I really need to work on that because I don't want people to just know what they see. I would really like to, of course, keep the super-private stuff super-private but kind of let people into my world. The new album has done that a little more, and I'm going to keep working on it myself because I would like people to know about me as a person.
The Boot will have more of our exclusive interview with Carrie -- including an in-depth look at her new album, 'Play On' -- next week.
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