Carrie Underwood Brings Crowd to Tears During Grand Ole Opry 100th Anniversary Special
Photo by: Disney/Gizelle Hernandez Reading Time: 2 minutes
American Idol star Carrie Underwood recently performed a tribute to fellow country star Randy Travis for a special celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Grand Ole Opry. The event also featured performances from The Voice stars Kelsea Ballerini and Blake Shelton.
Carrie Underwood Performs at Grand Ole Opry Anniversary
Earlier this week, a special called Opry 100: A Live Celebration was broadcast live on NBC from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. Underwood was among the performers, paying tribute to Randy Travis — who invited her to become a member of the Opry in 2008.
Underwood performed her favorite Travis songs “Three Wooden Crosses“ and “Forever and Ever Amen.” At the end of the second song, Underwood stepped off the stage and approached Travis, who was smiling in the front row. She held up the microphone so he could sing the final word of the song: “Amen.”
The two singers hugged as the crowd stood up to applaud Underwood’s performance. Members of the audience could be seen wiping away tears following the touching tribute. Travis, who suffered a stroke in 2013 that affected his ability to sing, couldn’t stop smiling.
SEE ALSO: CARRIE UNDERWOOD REACTS TO HER FIRST ‘AMERICAN IDOL’ AUDITION
Kelsea Ballerini, Blake Shelton Also Performed
The Voice coach Kelsea Ballerini also performed during the 100th anniversary celebration, paying tribute to Barbara Mandrell with a performance of her 1981 song “I Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool.” Mandrell sat on the stage while Ballerini performed.
At the end of the song, Ballerini approached Mandrell and switched the lyrics to, “She was country when country wasn’t cool.” The two smiling singers embraced, as the crowd gave the performance a standing ovation.
The special also featured a performance from former The Voice coach Blake Shelton. He sang “Pickup Man” by Joe Diffie, who passed away in 2020. The audience clapped along to the upbeat song as Shelton performed.
Shelton’s wife Gwen Stefani and former The Voice coach Reba McEntire could be seen sitting next to each other in the crowd, smiling and clapping for his performance. Shelton finished the song by shouting, “God bless Joe Diffie!”
