‘American Idol’s Carrie Underwood Booed in Hollywood Week: Was It Because of Trump Support?

Alyssa Norwin February 19, 2026, 10:02 am

What To Know

Carrie Underwood revealed the American Idol audience ‘booed’ her during Hollywood Week.
Fans reacted to the confession, with many theorizing it was because of her apparent support for Donald Trump.
Underwood sang at Trump’s Inauguration in January 2025.

The auditions are over and Hollywood Week begins during the Monday, February 23, episode of American Idol. For the first time ever, this year’s Hollywood Week is heading to Music City and will be taking place in Nashville, Tennessee, but Carrie Underwood admittedly didn’t receive the warmest welcome from her home base.

“Spoiler alert…I get booed A LOT from our Hollywood Week audience. 😳 @AmericanIdol,” she wrote on X after previews for the first Hollywood Week episode aired on February 16.

While this may have just been due to her critiques of some of the artists’ performances, many fans jumped into the replies of her post to voice a different theory: that the backlash from the audience was actually due to Underwood’s apparent support of Donald Trump. While Underwood is mostly quiet about her political views, she sang “America the Beautiful” at the president’s Inauguration in January 2025.

“I’ve been booing you since the inauguration,” one person wrote, and another said, “Hmmmmm I wonder why sweetie….. 😒😒😒 read the room.” Someone else posted a video of Underwood’s Inauguration performance and wrote, “I wonder why,” and another X user tweeted, “They should’ve brought eggs to throw too tbh.”

Many supporters came to Underwood’s defense, though, and told her that getting booed means she’s “doing something right.” Several pro-Trump users also brought politics into the conversation by including American Flags in their tweets of support for the country singer.

Inside Carrie Underwood's Education After 'American Idol' Class Rank Reveal

When Underwood was announced as a Trump Inauguration performer in mid-January 2025, she received a lot of backlash. In response, she said in a statement, “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. 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.”

American Idol, Season 24, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC