Carrie Underwood Shares the Reason She Named Her Holiday Album ‘My Gift’

Carrie Underwood is releasing her very first holiday album on Sept. 25, announcing last week that the project will be titled My Gift. In a trailer promoting the album, the Grammy winner shared the reason behind the album’s name, revealing that it was a “hard” decision but that she was ultimately inspired by the classic carol “Little Drummer Boy.”

“The sentiment behind it is just so honest,” she explained. “There’s a little boy, and of course I think of my 5-year-old [son], Isaiah. They’re bringing gifts to baby Jesus, he doesn’t have anything, he’s poor. So he says, ‘I know, I’m going to play my drum for him, that’s what I have.’ To me, that’s a gift that was given to him by God. His love of music. I imagine he was a good little drummer. I love music, I love singing, that is my personal gift that I have that I get to do, that I’m so blessed to do, and I want to use that gift and I want to give it back to Jesus.”

My Gift will contain “a combination of beloved traditional favorites celebrating her faith and the spiritual nature of the holiday, as well as original material,” according to a press release. Underwood worked on the album with Greg Wells, who produced and arranged the album, and David Campbell, who led the orchestra accompanying Underwood on the project. My Gift‘s full track listing will be announced at a later date.

“I’ve always wanted to make a Christmas album and it’s been a long time coming,” Underwood said in a statement. “I knew this would be my next music project after wrapping my tour last year, and I think it’s turned out to be the perfect time for an album like this, in this period of such personal and spiritual reflection. For me, it’s more important than ever to focus on the true meaning of Christmas in a project like this. Even though it has been a tough year for all of us, sometimes I feel like the greatest realizations can be inspired by the most difficult times, and make us more grateful for the things we do have and for what truly matters.” Pre-order My Gift here.