Country star Underwood enjoys fast-moving "Ride"

By Deborah Evans Price

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - In a pale blue BCBG Max Azria designer dress and impressively high heels, Carrie Underwood is the picture-perfect hostess as she graciously chats with the throng of well-wishers gathered at the Country Music Hall of Fame to celebrate the multiplatinum success of her debut album, "Some Hearts."

Some artists might remain cloistered in a velvet-roped side room during such events. But Underwood -- who in May 2005 became the fourth-season winner of "American Idol" -- seems happy to mingle with the crowd, thanking radio personnel, retailers, journalists and anyone else who has played a role in her fairy-tale rise to superstardom. As the 24-year-old pride of Checotah, Okla., poses for pictures and shakes hands, her mother, Carole -- a retired schoolteacher who still lives in Checotah with Underwood's retired paper-mill worker dad, Steve -- beams proudly.

Everyone loves the girl next door. And when you're noting factors that spurred Underwood's groundbreaking success, her fresh-faced enthusiasm and accessible demeanor have proved as beneficial as her powerhouse vocals. Such qualities were a magnet to the "American Idol" crowd, and they've continued to serve Underwood well as her career has shifted into high gear.

'WHEEL' TURNING

The whirlwind that has become Underwood's life is about to accelerate even more as the October 23 release date approaches for her second album, "Carnival Ride" (19 Recordings/Arista Nashville). Since her "Idol" victory, Underwood has sold nearly 6 million copies of "Some Hearts." But her new album, she feels, is an even stronger reflection of who she is.

"My favorite line on the whole album pretty much sums up everything that I've been through, and I think everybody could find something in this particular line: 'God put us here on this carnival ride/We close our eyes never knowing where it will take us next,"' Underwood says of the tune "Wheel of the World," which was penned by Hillary Lindsey, Chris Lindsey and Aimee Mayo. "It's beautiful and so true. We don't know what we're doing or where we're headed. We just kind of trust and hope that whatever ride we're on in life takes us where we need to go."

On this particular late August day, Underwood knows where she's headed -- to Paris for a much-needed vacation. The previous night, she'd performed a private show for Target in Minneapolis; after chatting with Billboard about her new disc, she'll embark on her French adventure.

"I have never been anywhere in that direction before, so I just had a little bit of time and I figured I better take a vacation before things get really crazy. I consider myself a pretty uncultured person," she says. "If you want to get a taste of culture, I hear France is pretty nice."