Carrie Underwood has one big regret about her time on American Idol. In an interview with Billboard, the singer—who won season four of the show on which she now serves as a judge—revealed what she’d change about her time on the competition series.
“I’m very angry with myself because when I was on the show, I wasn’t taking any pictures,” Underwood revealed. “I’m thinking, ‘Why? Why didn’t you do that? Why didn’t you save these things?’”
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Underwood was reminded of her past lack of sentimentality by one Idol contestant.
“We had a girl come in that had a pair of jeans that I wore on the show. She told me, ‘My grandpa bought these at a charity auction and I wore them on the show,’” Underwood recalled. “I asked, ‘Can I buy them back from you?’”
Underwood continued by questioning, “Why did I let them go? Why didn’t I keep more things and just document things a little better?”
Now, Underwood has transitioned from a contestant to a judge. In her new role, she’s been blown away by the talent on Idol‘s 24th season.
“There is a huge diversity of uniqueness. We have interesting voices,” she said. “It’s not, ‘You remind me of this person’ or ‘You sound like this person,’ like, ‘I want to pigeonhole you in this lane.’”
She added, “There are some people that really stand out—and a lot of inexperience, but in a really great way, raw and just starting out.”
What’s Ahead on Season 24 of American Idol
Last week, Underwood and her fellow Idol judges—Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie—made the largest cut in the show’s history. Now, the Top 30 of season 24 will travel to Hawaii for the all-new Ohana Round.
Designed as the ultimate focus group, the Ohana Round blends peer respect, emotional support, and professional insight before the competition moves on to America’s Vote.
In this new round, the Top 30 will perform for industry tastemakers including Sasha Farber, Loren Gray, Cheryl Porter, and Kelly Sutton, as well as their peers, family members and friends.
At the end of the round, only 20 contestants will remain. Those left standing will get the chance to work with celebrity mentors Keke Palmer and Brad Paisley.
American Idol airs Mondays on ABC.
Photo by Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images
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