Carrie Underwood Says She Struggles With 1 Aspect of Being an ‘Idol’ Judge

As an “American Idol” winner herself, you’d think Carrie Underwood would be confident as the new judge of the singing competition. Despite her experience on the other side of the table as a contestant, she admits she struggles with one thing as a judge.

Carrie Underwood Admits She’s a People Pleaser

In a March 2025 “Extra” video, Underwood chatted about her experience as a judge on “American Idol,” sharing the one part of the gig that she finds difficult.

The country singer shared, “It’s been good. I definitely was nervous walking in for my first day.”

When asked if her experience as a contestant impacts how she will critique people, Underwood was honest. “It’s part of me and it’s part of my history, so hopefully I’ve learned a lot from my experience on the show and everything that happened afterward,” she shared.

“So hopefully I can bring that into my advice for the people that are standing in front of us,” Underwood noted.

The singer did admit that she’s “a people pleaser,” which makes it hard to say no to people.

“Whenever somebody is saying, ‘I can sing another one. I have this song, I have this song’ … I did one yesterday, I was like, ‘Okay.’ But then it’s like that’s even worse because now it’s, ‘It’s still a no.’ It’s hard.”

“Idol” judge Lionel Richie added, “Giving them hope, knowing it’s hopeless is very difficult.”

Luke Bryan noted that they all started from a softer place with judging. “I remember day 1, we were all softies because it takes … It’s not natural to just be firm and mean with a no.”

He shared, “It’s hard enough to be firm with your kids with ‘no,’ but when you have to send them away, it’s tough.”

Richie chimed in, saying, “We told [Underwood], wait until Hollywood week, when we have to cut, say 30 or 40 [people].” Needless to say, the job is very challenging.

Carrie Underwood Explains How Different ‘Idol’ Is Now

In a February 2025 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Underwood talked about how different “American Idol” is now compared to her experience 20 years ago.

“It was a different time in the show — in the world in general — and there was a decent chance you might get super-duper humiliated in front of tens of millions of people,” she said.

“It’s changed a lot, and hopefully people can leave with some information that will make them better — no matter how long they are on the show,” Underwood added.