Carrie Underwood's Christian fans are sharing mixed reactions to her plans to perform at President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration.
Trump is scheduled to take office Monday as the 47th president of the United States, four years after losing his re-election bid to President Joe Biden. The former president remains a divisive figure in the entertainment industry, with most influential performers staunchly opposing him.
As rumors swirled about Underwood's participation in the inaugural ceremony, she addressed her plans for Inauguration Day in a statement to Entertainment Weekly released Monday. "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," she said.
Underwood added, "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."
The Trump Vance Inaugural Committee released the list of performers for the inauguration and inauguration-related events on Wednesday. Underwood is slated to perform "America the Beautiful" at the swearing-in ceremony where Trump will take the oath of office.
Underwood, the 2005 winner of the reality TV singing competition "American Idol," has frequently spoken about her Christian faith in recent years. In a 2019 interview with People magazine, Underwood declared, "the best moments in my life are when I say, 'Hey, I can't control everything, and that's OK. God is in control.'"
In 2021, Underwood released a gospel album. She has also spoken out in favor of same-sex marriage despite biblical opposition to homosexuality.
Gabriel Hughes, the pastor of Providence Baptist Church in Arizona, wrote a post on X suggesting that Underwood's support for same-sex marriage calls into question her Christian witness. "Carrie Underwood is for gay marriage and supports the gay and lesbian alliance," he stated, responding to an X post about the popular country singer's upcoming performance at Trump's swearing in, adding: "Once claiming to be a conservative Christian, she sold her soul for the fame."
Hughes is not the only Christian public figure to raise questions about Underwood's Christian witness ahead of her forthcoming performance at the inauguration.
Progressive Christian author John Pavlovitz, a former pastor, published an open letter to Underwood on his Substack account called "The Beautiful Mess." Pavlovitz began by noting how Underwood has spoken "eloquently" about her Christian faith in the past in addition to performing "a song about the beautiful mystery of baptism" and has urged Jesus to "take the wheel" in her life.
"Given these things, as a former pastor and the father of a girl myself, I wonder how you reconcile your personal faith with a performance at the Inauguration of Donald Trump," he wrote. Pavlovitz listed what he characterized as Trump's shortcomings, including the accusations of "assault, harassment, and misconduct" against him as well as his purported failure to "live a love and compassion that bear any resemblance to Jesus."
Pavlovitz lamented that Underwood, "an incredibly influential, talented woman who has chosen to wear her faith proudly on her sleeve," had elected to "use her gifts for an event devoted to perhaps the most predatory, most divisive, and least Christlike human being on the planet." He urged the singer to explain to him how she felt Jesus was "steering" her to perform at the inauguration.
Conversely, John Rich, a country musician and practicing Christian, had a different view of Underwood's participation in the inauguration. In one X post, he called her a "patriot" while in another, he asked his followers to "Repost this if you're PROUD of @carrieunderwood for agreeing to sing at the Trump inauguration," insisting that "She needs to hear from the masses."
Rich also asserted in a separate social media post that "There are several top tier country artists who support Trump, and I wish they'd finally have the balls to come forward and be counted."
Referring to the widespread opposition to Trump in the entertainment industry, he stressed that there "Ain't nothing outlaw about keeping your mouth shut to appease the record label" before admonishing Trump-supporting country artists who have refused to publicly show their support that "Carrie Underwood is making you look like a bunch of sissy boys."
Underwood is not the only prominent Christian to have a role in Monday's inaugural events. The Rev. Franklin Graham, CEO of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, confirmed in an X post Thursday that he will give an invocation at the ceremony.
Additional performers at the inauguration and inauguration-related events taking place over the next few days include Billy Ray Cyrus, outspoken Trump supporter Lee Greenwood, Jason Aldean, Gavin DeGraw and the bands Rascal Flatts and the Village People. The latter group's song "YMCA" has become a frequent fixture at Trump campaign rallies and events.