Carrie Underwood Debuts ‘Cry Pretty’ Video During ‘American Idol’

Carrie Underwood is getting back to her roots, releasing the music video for her new single “Cry Pretty” during the airing of American Idol on May 6.

The Idol winner shared a few seconds of the emotional, cinematic music video on ABC during the broadcast of the show Sunday night, in what is her first studio music video since 2016’s “Dirty Laundry” off Storyteller.

The video shows Underwood performing on stage and going through a slew of emotions, while baring her soul and crying in several scenes. The 35-year-old has had a difficult few months, detailing her traumatic fall this past January that left her with 40 stitches to her face.

The song, which Underwood wrote with Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna and Liz Rose (who together make up the Love Junkies), is part of a new album that features Underwood as a co-producer.

“Hillary came in with the title and a few lines and we all just loved it,” Underwood said in a past press release. “I mean we’re all women in different places in our lives and kind of have all lived different lives and from different places, but we all love music and we all love sharing our heart in our music. Off we went.

“I left that day so excited and feeling so good about and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it, as an artist and also as a producer,” she continued. “So, it’s come a long way since the day we wrote it, but it’s something I’m very proud of.”

Underwood released “Cry Pretty” on Wednesday, April 11, a song with emotional lines such as: “I’m sorry, but I’m just a girl / Not usually the kind to show my heart to the world / I’m pretty good at keeping it together / And hold my composure, for worse or for better / So I apologize if you don’t like what you see / But sometimes my emotions get the best of me / And falling apart is as human as it gets.”

The lyrics were based on personal experience, she said.

“The first single is a song I love so much and can’t wait to share with you,” Underwood said. “The title refers to when emotions take over and you just can’t hold them back. It really speaks to a lot of things that have happened in the past year and I hope when you hear it, you can relate those feelings to those times in your life. It’s emotional. It’s real. And it ROCKS!”

The Oklahoma native hasn’t revealed when her new record will be out, but she does hint that she will hit the road after it is released.

“Needless to say, I am beyond excited for this new album and everything that comes with it…more on that soon,” says Underwood. “Of course, we’re already talking about a tour, but that’s a blog for another day! Thank you all so much for your love and support this year and always. I feel it and I appreciate it. And I can’t wait to start this new chapter with you!”

Photo credit: Instagram/Carrie Underwood