Carrie Underwood has all the proponents of a queer icon: great hair, a glamorous wardrobe and a song catalogue you can’t help but belt on karaoke. After taking a public stance in support of gay marriage back in 2012 (a depressingly risky move for a country music star with a largely conservative fanbase back then), she cemented her place among the musical greats of queer history. And yet now, she’s made the one decision that could take her firmly out of favour with the LGBTQ+ community: she’s performing at Donald Trump’s inauguration tonight.
Underwood will take the stage to perform America the Beautiful, telling Yahoo she feels ‘honoured’ to be a part of the ceremony. ‘I love our country,’ she said. ‘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.’
Underwood didn’t publicly support any political party during the election and has previously said that she stays out of talking about politics because not all of her opinions are relayed with the necessary nuance.
‘I feel like more people try to pin me places politically,’ she told the Guardian in 2019. ‘I try to stay far out of politics, if possible, at least in public, because nobody wins. It’s crazy. Everybody tries to sum everything up and put a bow on it, like it’s black and white. And it’s not like that.’
Also performing at the inauguration is opera singer Christopher Macchio and country singer and saxophonist Lee Greenwood, while other singers are performing at various inauguration events include Billy Ray Cyrus, Nelly and Snoop Dogg. According to reports, Celina Dion, Elton John and Andrea Bocelli also declined invitations to perform.
Those who have chosen to take part have unsurprisingly faced criticism from fans. Underwood in particular is facing backlash from her largely female audience, and the queer community that she has professed to support.
‘As a married person myself, I don't know what it's like to be told I can't marry somebody I love, and want to marry,’ Underwood said of the need to legalise gay marriage back in 2012. ‘I can't imagine how that must feel. I definitely think we should all have the right to love, and love publicly, the people that we want to love.’
She’s also been a staunch defender of women, in her industry in particular, calling for greater representation of women in country music for years. ‘Even when I was growing up, I wished there was more women on the radio, you know,’ she said in 2018. ‘And I had a lot more that there are today.’
Now, Underwood’s comment section on Instagram is flooded with questions from fans asking why she has chosen to perform at the inauguration of a man who opposed the Equality Act (in 2020, which was put forward to prohibit discrimination based on sexuality and gender identity), has made a slew of vile comments about women, appointed anti-LGBTQ+ judges into the Supreme Court and in appointing those same judges overturned Roe vs Wade, rowing women’s rights back by decades. Politically, he is firmly anti-women and anti-LGBTQ+, and personally, who can support a man who was found liable for sexual assault?
To be clear, all of the criticism that’s being poured onto Underwood should also extend to the many men performing at inauguration events - the irony is, she’s one of very few women who has been chosen or at least agreed to perform.
Ultimately, her decision, while defending herself through claims that she wants ‘unity’ at a divisive time, has only caused more division in her fanbase.