Carrie Underwood’s Fourth of July performance at a golf course failed to impress her fans, who debated her perceived “fall from grace” amid speculation about her political views.
A now-viral video shows the country hitmaker performing her song Before He Cheats at the John Deere Classic golf tournament, an annual tournament held as part of the PGA Tour.
Though the hit tells the story of a woman getting revenge on her unfaithful ex, her rendition wasn’t powerful enough to convince fans.
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Reacting to the video, one fan claimed that Carrie, who has sold out famous venues including the Madison Square Garden and Chicago‘s Allstate Arena, performed for just “a couple dozen people” over the weekend.
One person wrote, “How is she not embarrassed by this? The decline of Carrie’s career in the past year needs to be studied.”
“Never thought I’d see the day she would sound bad,” another critic said.
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Others attributed the apparent low turnout to her political views, writing, “Carrie Underwood used to sell out large arenas, went full MAGA, and now performs for tens of people on a golf course.”
A separate viewer chimed in, “That’s what going MAGA will do to ya!”
While the American Idol judge has not publicly identified herself as a Democrat or Republican, she performed America the Beautiful at President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, leading fans to believe she is a Republican.
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Several people also rushed to her defense, writing, “I don’t know why you guys are hating; this was a private event on a golf course.”
“She’s still Carrie Underwood and that’s an achievement in itself,” wrote one fan.
Though the viral video showed a small crowd, a report by the Quad-City Times stated that Carrie performed for around 12,000 people.
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The 43-year-old singer appeared to brush off the criticism in a social media post about the performance.
“Such a fantastic show here in Illinois,” Carrie said in a video shared on X. “Great 4th of July crowd. I love seeing all the flags and stars and stripes in the audience. It made my heart so happy. Thank you for coming out! Happy 4th of July!”
Carrie’s life changed dramatically in 2005 when she went from being a college student in Oklahoma to winning the fourth season of American Idol.
After winning the singing competition, she released her debut single, Inside Your Heaven, which became a hit.
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She is also known for songs including Jesus, Take the Wheel, Cowboy Casanova, and Something in the Water.
Her first album, Some Hearts, became the best-selling debut album of all time by a solo female country artist in 2005 and earned the musician three Grammy Awards.
Time named her as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2014, while Forbes declared her the most successful American Idol winner.
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The Muskogee-born star still maintains a busy schedule, which includes judging aspiring singers on American Idol, her businesses, and hosting her radio channel Carrie’s Country.
She also completed a three-year Las Vegas residency, Reflection, which concluded in 2025 after 72 performances.
“I have always loved touring, but having the chance to play for an extended period of time in one place has really been satisfying,” Carrie told People magazine. “I love that we get to do this show for people who have come to Las Vegas from all over the world.”
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Though the singer did not publicly endorse any candidate ahead of the 2024 election, she faced backlash for performing at the White House last year.
Responding to the criticism, she stressed that her rendition of America the Beautiful was purely patriotic and did not reflect any partisan views.
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“I love our country and am honored to have been asked to sing at the Inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event,” Carrie said at the time.
“I am humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future.”
In 2017, the star performed a parody version of Before He Cheats with musician Brad Paisley at the Country Music Awards that was perceived as mocking Trump’s social media habits.
“In the middle of the night from the private seat of a gold-plated White House toilet seat, he writes, ‘Liddle Bob Corker,’ ‘NFL’ and ‘covfefe,’” the country duo sang.
Brad finished the song by singing, “It’s fun to watch it, that’s for sure, until little Rocket Man starts a war. Then maybe next time he’ll think before he tweets.”
The star previously poked fun at Donald Trump during a Country Music Awards skit
Carrie previously faced criticism in 2021 for liking an anti-mask video on X.
Created by blogger Matt Walsh, the video blasted what he described as “the cruel and indefensible mask mandate for children” in Nashville.
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