Carrie Underwood’s haunting live performance of “Ghost Story” included breathtaking, Las Vegas-worthy elements during the 2022 CMT Music Awards. The powerhouse country artist ascended into the air in silk ribbons by the end of the song, delivering on her promise earlier in the day to take “my performance to new heights and will be doing something I’ve NEVER DONE BEFORE!”
Underwood is in the midst of her Las Vegas residency, which kicks up again in May. She previously took fans behind-the-scenes of her show, saying: “There’s something glitzy and glamour-y about women in country music. We love our rhinestones, we love our wardrobe changes, we’ve been doing our own version of Vegas in Nashville for generations.” The award-winning artist made another jaw-dropping, Vegas-worthy impression on stage last month during a performance with Jason Aldean.
Underwood finally announced earlier this month that her next album, Denim & Rhinestones, is set to release on June 10. She debuted the song “Ghost Story” first, a haunting revenge anthem that swaps “smashing his headlights with a baseball bat” for “haunt(ing) his every waking moment.” Next came “Denim & Rhinestones,” an upbeat track that gave fans major “80s vibes” and stirred anticipation for the whole album.
“We have a lot of songs that could be kind of considered ‘throwback’ type songs, but they sound so super fresh,” Underwood explained in a trailer for her upcoming 12-track album. “These are just influences that are in me and work their way out, and I just decided this time not to get in my way. I feel like this one ended up being a bigger reflection of me as a person, as an artist. I grew up listening to so many different kinds of music. I feel like that is extremely evident in this body of work.”
Underwood is one of many artists included in the star-studded lineup at the iHeartCountry Festival presented by Capital One, set for May 7 in Austin, Texas. Fans can tune in and stream the 2022 iHeartCountry Festival on iHeartMedia's Country music radio stations in local markets across the country, as well as on iHeartRadio.com and the iHeartRadio app on May 7th at 8pm ET/5pm PT (7pm CT). Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster.com.
Relive Underwood's jaw-dropping performance here: