Carrie Underwood brought her Denim & Rhinestones Tour to Nashville’s Bridgestone arena on Wednesday (March 1). The two-hour spectacle found the eight-time GRAMMY winner showcasing her impeccable vocals and commanding stage presence while bringing her biggest hits to life with larger-than-life production elements.
Underwood opened the show with her 2012 hit, “Good Girl.” The sold-out crowd erupted with cheers as she arose from the stage on a platform and streamers rained down from above.
“This is our hometown show. Are you gonna help us blow the roof off of this place tonight?,” she questioned as the capacity crowd answered back through roaring applause.
Carrie Underwood; Photo by Jeff Johnson
Career-Spanning Setlist
For approximately 120 minutes, Underwood delivered non-stop hits through a setlist that spanned her wildly successful career, including “Church Bells,” “Undo It,” “Cowboy Cassanova,” and her latest chart-climbing release, “Hate My Heart.”
Underwood’s show included several outfit changes, many of which featured – you guessed it – Denim & Rhinestones. The changes were quick and many of the looks mirrored moments of the show.
For example, for her performance of the traditional-leaning cheating song, “She Don’t Know,” the superstar donned a cowboy hat and a fringe jacket while sipping on a glass of red wine.
“We’re so country, we’ve got ourselves two fiddles,” she said with a laugh.
Carrie Underwood; Photo by Jeff Johnson
Jaw-Dropping Production Elements
She returned to the stage sans hat and jacket for performances of “Blown Away,” “Burn,” and “Cry Pretty.” The final note of the latter earned the vocal powerhouse a standing ovation. After a little curtsy and another costume change, Underwood took the show to new heights as she rode on a giant swing across the room to a b-stage where fans on the opposite side of the arena were given a front-row seat to the action.
Underwood rode a giant sphere to make her way back to the main stage where she continued to stun the audience with high-energy, rock-infused renditions of songs like “Flat On The Floor” and “Poor Everybody Else.”
Underwood continued to showcase her rock influences with a rousing cover of Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome To The Jungle” before closing out the night with her signature hit, “Before He Cheats.”
Jason Aldean and Carrie Underwood; Photo by Jeff Johnson
Special Guests
It wouldn’t be a Nashville show without special guests and Underwood more than delivered with surprise appearances from Jason Aldean and Brad Paisley.
First, Aldean joined Underwood to sing their GRAMMY-nominated duet, “If I Didn’t Love You.” The superstars joined together on the main stage and made their way to the massive catwalk as they belted out the lyrics to the chart-topping hit.
Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley; Photo by Jeff Johnson
Later in the show, Underwood teamed up with Brad Paisley to reprise “Paisleywood” – the moniker given to the 11-time CMA Awards co-hosts. They thrilled fans with a parody song to the tune of Paisley’s breakout hit, “I’m Gonna Miss Her.” The entire arena got quite the laugh as they sang the jingle poking fun at recent CMA co-hosts Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning. The longtime friends also reprised their 2011 duet, “Remind Me.”
Jimmie Allen returned to the stage to perform “Denim & Rhinestones” alongside Underwood. The tourmates even treated fans to a few choreographed dance moves while on stage together.
Carrie Underwood, Jimmie Allen; Photo by Jeff Johnson
A Must-See Event
Simply put, Carrie Underwood’s Denim & Rhinestones Tour is more than just a show. It’s an experience. It’s evident that Underwood and her team put a lot of thought into every moment, from pyrotechnics to fire, to ariel displays and stunning visuals, and more.
With each of her recent headlining treks, 2016’s Storyteller Tour and 2019’s Cry Pretty Tour included, Underwood somehow manages to top herself and she did that yet again with the Denim & Rhinestones Tour, proving once again that she is one of the genre’s top vocalists and entertainers.
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