Host and network owner Oprah Winfrey travels to Nashville, Tenn., to talk to the Checotah-born music superstar and her National Hockey League husband inside their cabin. Underwood, 2005 winner of "American Idol," with five Grammys and more than 14 million albums sold, looks back on her rise to stardom. The couple also talks about balancing successful careers with their two-year marriage, and they take Winfrey to the land where they plan to build their dream home.

Underwood's new album, "Blown Away," recently debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country and All-Genre sales charts. The Top Country Albums chart debut made her only the second country artist in the 47-year history of the chart (after Miranda Lambert) to have her first four albums debut at No. 1.

Underwood has sold more than 14 million albums with 2005's "Some Hearts," 2007's "Carnival Ride," and 2009's "Play On," making her the best-selling "American Idol" contestant in the United States. She also has had 14 No. 1 singles, six of which she co-wrote, and she became the first country artist and the only "American Idol" winner to achieve 10 No. 1 singles from her first two albums. She is leading the nominations for the upcoming CMT Music Awards with five.

She is a two-time Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year, a three-time Country Music Association and ACM Female Vocalist winner, and a member of the Grand Ole Opry. CMT Offstage on cmt.com referred Monday to a recent Glamour magazine article that had the singer talking about her faith and her music. Asked how she felt about launching her career with a song about Jesus ("Jesus, Take the Wheel"), she said it never occurred to her to worry.

"Country music just has a Bible Belt-ness about it," she explained, noting that she's not the first person to sing about God, Jesus and faith. Nor will she be the last, the story reported. She said in the magazine article that religion is a big part of her life.

"Every Wednesday, my husband and I have a study group with our friends. I attend church. We try to devote time in the morning, say a prayer," she said. "I'm not a big reader, though. I have to feel it, hear it, touch it, be involved in it."

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The wildly popular ‘Dancing with the Stars’ reality show is going country on Tuesday (May 15), with superstar Carrie Underwood scheduled to take the big stage to perform her latest Top 10 chart-climber, ‘Good Girl.’ A choreographed routine will accompany Underwood’s performance of the pop-country anthem.

The high-profile performance slot is one of many media blitz moments this month for the singer, with Underwood currently promoting the release of her fourth studio album, ‘Blown Away,’ which dropped on May 1. The 14-song collection made a big debut, selling more than 267,000 copies, propelling the album to No. 1 on the country and all-genre Hot 100 chart.

Underwood’s latest feat makes her the second country artist in the 47-year history of the chart to have each of their first four albums debut at No. 1 on the country albums sector. ‘Blown Away’ is the Oklahoma native’s third consecutive project to bow at the top of the all-genre Hot 100.

Speaking on her new album, Underwood tells Reuters,”I feel like so many people get stuck. They write, they get songs together, they make an album, they go on tour. Then they do it all over again,” says the superstar. “I just wanted to change things up. I can’t have stuff to write about if I don’t have a life,” she adds.

In between television performances and media appearances, Underwood is making last-minute preparations for her 2012 Blown Away Tour, which will take the superstar to the UK and Australia for the first time as a headlining act. There, Underwood will entertain her overseas fans before returning to North America for a 54-date tour with rising singer Hunter Hayes opening the show.

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Country superstar Carrie Underwood took to the Grand Ole Opry stage. As part of her Blown Away promotional tour, she performed several album cuts -- including "Blown Away," "Thank God for Homtowns," and current smash "Good Girl" -- which currently sits in the Top 5 of the Mediabase Country charts.

Also, fans were treated to a special cover of Alan Jackson's "Remember When." This track was penned by Jackson and released in October 2003 as the second single of his Greatest Hits Volume II album.

Underwood's setlist also included her No. 1 smash "Undo It" from 2009's Play On. Recently, she celebrated her fourth anniversary of becoming an Opry member on May 10. As a surprise, fellow Country crooner Brad Paisley joined Underwood on stage for a lovely rendition of their duet "Remind Me." She closed her second show with album highlight "Leave Love Alone."

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While decked out in a hot red little number and heels, Carrie Underwood strutted onto the outdoor Jimmy Kimmel Live stage in Hollywood last night and belted out “Good Girl”, the lead single from her current chart-topping album Blown Away. The American Idol alum has been doing the promo rounds this week in L.A., where she also swung by The Ellen DeGeneres Show to try to make on-air amends after previously branding her husband a “hoarder”. Catch Carrie’s performance of “Good Girl” above and Blown Away track “Leave Love Alone” after the jump.

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Carrie Underwood's "Blown Away" blew onto the U.S. album chart at No. 1 this week, easily doubling the numbers of No. 2 debutante, Norah Jones. "American Idol" alum Underwood's Sony Nashville album, which led six new titles into the top 10, arrived at the top with a 267,000-copy debut week, according to Nielsen SoundScan data for the week ending May 6.

It was the third of the country singer's four studio albums to reach the chart pinnacle; only her 2005 debut, "Some Hearts," failed to turn the trick, peaking at No. 2.

Jones' "Little Broken Hearts" took the "place" position with out-of-the-box sales of 110,000. Singer's debut position bests the No. 3 bow of her 2009 collection "The Fall," but failed to reach the apex, a feat performed by her first three studio albums in 2002-07.

The reliable "Now That's What I Call Music" hits franchise sailed in at No. 3 with a 95,000-unit tally. Distributed by Capitol, latest package contains bestselling singles by Madonna, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, Chris Brown and others.

Only familiar title in the week's top five is Adele's "21" (Columbia). Finally showing some signs of flagging, the long-running hit sold 77,000 in its 63rd chart week, good for No. 4. It should top the domestic 9 million mark next week.

Rapper B.o.B.'s sophomore collection "Strange Clouds" (Atlantic) entered at No. 5, shifting 76,000. Performance is a far cry from his previous personal best: His 2010 debut set "B.o.B. Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray" entered at No. 1.

Lionel Richie's country set "Tuskegee" (Mercury Nashville) slid three rungs to No. 6 with 64,000 sold (off 18%). Last week's No. 1 album, rocker Jack White's "Blunderbuss" (Third Man/Columbia), dropped six posts to No. 7, losing 60% to sell 56,000. Boy band One Direction's "Up All Night" (Columbia) also gave up ground, falling four positions to No. 8 behind sales of 45,000 (down 10%).

NBC's musical drama "Smash" has spawned a chart hit: The Columbia set "The Music of Smash," featuring performances by series stars Katharine McPhee and Megan Hilty, entered at No. 9 with 39,000 sold.

Wrapping the top 10, dependable ghoul Marilyn Manson's "Born Villain" (Downtown), which took No. 10 with a 28,000-unit week. Hard rocker's last release, 2009's "The High End of Low," peaked at No. 4.

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Carrie Underwood may exude a flawless and poised persona on stage, but that's in part because she learned early on in her career how important it is to be extra-careful in front of a crowd or a camera.

"I'm glad I can present a polished version of myself when it counts," the "Good Girl" singer maintains (quote via CBS News). "When I was on ['American] 'Idol,' I said some dumb stuff, and learned what that could do, and that stuff lives on. It seemed like every single solitary stupid thing I said was aired and featured and replayed over and over and over again."

Carrie has since learned to watch her words on stage, but she hasn't necessarily learned the same lesson in her personal life. "My husband [professional hockey player Mike Fisher] calls me 'the queen of awkward moments,'" Carrie acknowledges. "If something can be said to make an awkward moment even worse, I'm going to say it."

The couple have enjoyed plenty of time together while Carrie has been off the road and working on her latest album, Blown Away, but that's all about to change. She hits the road later this month to begin her worldwide Blown Away tour, which will include stops in Canada, the UK and Australia. Most of her globe-trotting will be done without her supportive husband, who will be busy with his own career with the Nashville Predators, but Carrie says they're well-prepared for the separation.

"Everything we are at this very moment is a culmination of everything that we've done in our entire lives," she tells The Boot. "You never know what curve balls life is going to throw you and there's no way I can predict anything or make any assumptions about what the rest of my life is going to be like. My husband and I both live pretty unpredictable careers, so I don't know. I'll take it one step at a time and after this album comes out, we'll go on tour and figure out what's next."

Carrie's Blown Away tour, which will include Hunter Hayes as her opening act, kicks off May 26 in Baton Rouge, La. Keep track of her tour schedule here.

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On May 1, superstar Carrie Underwood announced during her appearance on Good Morning America that she will headline a North American arena tour this fall. The Blown Away Tour includes a stop at Ottawa's Scotiabank Place on Saturday, Dec. 8.

The tour will also include an international run of shows this summer sponsored by Olay, including her first-ever United Kingdom concert taking place at the prestigious Royal Albert Hall in London on June 21, which sold out its show in 90 minutes. Additional international concert dates will be announced soon.

The North American tour dates will be presented and hydrated by vitaminwater(R), sponsored by Olay and promoted by AEG Live. Special guest Hunter Hayes will open for Underwood. "I can't wait to get back out on the road and perform new music from my new album (Blown Away) for my fans," says Underwood. "We have a lot of exciting things planned."

Underwood is donating $1 from each ticket sold on the North American leg of The Blown Away Tour to support Red Cross disaster relief. Every year, the American Red Cross prepares for and responds to nearly 70,000 disasters across the United States. This donation will help the Red Cross provide shelter, food and emotional support for those in need during such crisis situations. Proceeds from her Canadian concerts will be donated to the Canadian Red Cross.

Underwood's two previous headline tours, 2008's Carnival Ride Tour and 2010's Play On Tour, performed for a combined total of nearly 250 shows and attracted 2.2 million fans. She finished both years as the top-ranked female country touring artist.

Since releasing Some Hearts in 2005, Underwood has sold more than 14 million albums, with Some Hearts, 2007's Carnival Ride and 2009's Play On. She's amassed 14 No. 1 singles, six of which she co-wrote, and became the first country artist in history and the only American Idol winner ever to achieve 10 No. 1 singles from their first two albums. Underwood currently leads the nominations for the upcoming CMT Music Awards with five. She is a five-time Grammy winner, a two-time Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year, a three-time Country Music Association and ACM Female Vocalist winner and a proud member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Hunter Hayes, the multi-talented writer, musician, producer and performer, is the only country artist to play every instrument, write/co-write every song and co-produce his critically acclaimed self-titled debut album. As the 2012 ACM New Artist of the Year nominee, Hunter has been touring and performing live for decades, most recently selling out venues across the U.S. and Canada on his Most Wanted headline tour. This multi-instrumentalist, who continues to garner praise from fans and critics alike, made his world-premiere national television debut on CBS' Late Show with David Letterman and also performed with The Roots on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and on Good Morning America. The Louisiana native has shared the stage with Taylor Swift, Rascal Flatts, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum, Trace Adkins, Brad Paisley and Hank Williams Jr., to name a few. His current Top 40 hit Wanted is quickly climbing the radio charts and has held the unprecedented No. 1 slot for three weeks in a row on GAC's Top 20 Countdown.

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Oklahoma country music star Carrie Underwood’s schedule is filling up fast following last week’s release of her fourth album, “Blown Away.”Just moments ago, Underwood’s publicist announced in an email that the Checotah native will head overseas this summer to headline her first concert dates in Australia. This goes along with the previously announced news that the 2005 “American Idol” winner will headline her first concert in the United Kingdom in late June in support of “Blown Away.”

The new CD was released May 4 in Australia, and a special U.K. edition will be released there on June 18, according to the news release. The five-time Grammy winner’s first U.K. show sold out in 90 minutes. It will take place at London’s prestigious Royal Albert Hall on June 21. Her Australia tour dates will take her to Melbourne, Tamworth, Brisbane, and Sydney, wrapping at the iconic Sydney Opera House, according to the announcement. Underwood, 29, made her first promotional visit to Australia last summer in support of the release of the deluxe edition of her previous album, “Play On,” which went on to reach gold certification status in Australia.

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Thousands of Carrie Underwood fans have been downloading and snapping up copies of the singer's latest album, Blown Away, but in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, Carrie singles out several of the songs and albums by favorite artists that have played a significant role in her own life.

The blonde belter reveals that although she doesn't remember it, the first song she sang in public was "Jesus Loves Me." "I have photographic evidence of me singing [it] ...in church with another kid," She recalls. "And apparently I stole the mic and brought the house down. But the first one I remember singing on stage was "Somewhere Out There" from "An American Tail." I was around 7 and my choir teacher at school asked me if I would sing it. My parents told me that I needed to move around the stage, so for the entire time I just walked back and forth from side to side while I was singing -- there's videotape of it. I watched it recently, and I don't know why on earth Mrs. Cooper would have asked me to sing. I don't think I would've been like, 'Yes! This child needs to have a solo!'"

Other musical memories Carrie shares are the album that reminds her of her first crush, Matchbox Twenty's Yourself or Someone Like You: "When I was in seventh grade, I totally had a crush on a guy who was older than me, and he listened to alternative music. So he was into Days of the New and stuff like that, and more poppy stuff, too, like Matchbox Twenty.

As far as an album fans might not expect the the Oklahoma native to love, she points to the mid-'90s' discs, Live Through This and Celebrity Skin by Hole, the rock band fronted by Courtney Love. "When I got into all the grunge stuff, I really liked Hole," she explains. "I actually saw them in concert when I was a sophomore in high school. It was kind of rare to see a successful female rocker get down and dirty with the guys. And Courtney Love did. It was fun to be a fan of something different.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Carrie acknowledges that the song for which she'd like to be remembered is "Jesus, Take the Wheel." "I would pick and important one. Not 'Before He Cheats' or 'Good Girl,' none of that. Something that somebody can hear and it would make them feel better or help them through an important time or a tough time in their life."

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Seven years after she won the fourth season of “American Idol,” Carrie Underwood has been a top-tier country star for long enough that she can advise a friend to “turn off the static on the TV” (as she does in her new album’s pep-talky “Nobody Ever Told You”) without sounding like an ingrate. Yet if Underwood has undoubtedly established herself beyond the talent-show realm, she’s been less successful embodying a persona more complex than Top-Tier Country Star: When Mitt Romney published a playlist of favorite campaign-trail tunes in March, it made sense that the sometimes-wooden presidential hopeful included Underwood’s “All-American Girl.”

“Blown Away,” the singer’s fourth album, has been described as a turn toward darkness from a singer who first topped the country chart with “Jesus, Take the Wheel.” And insofar as the moody title track finds her willing death-by-tornado upon an abusive father, that’s true. (Elsewhere, “Two Black Cadillacs” offers a bleaker spin on the revenge fantasy in Underwood’s 2006 smash “Before He Cheats.”)

Mostly, though, “Blown Away” finds her using her remarkable voice to deliver feel-good bromides like those in the lightly reggae-inflected “One Way Ticket,” which includes lines such as “Life is like a ride on a party bus” and “We’re headed to a heaven where the beat don’t stop.” Who knew the victor’s circle would be so dull?

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