If anyone understands the struggle of balancing constructive criticism with audience feedback as a judge on American Idol, it’s Luke Bryan — which is why the country star came to Carrie Underwood‘s defense after she was booed by fans on the show in March.
On the Wednesday (April 8) episode of the official American Idol podcast, the two musicians appeared alongside co-judge Lionel Richie to break down parts of season 24 so far — including the moment Underwood was met with boos when she questioned a contestant’s choice to perform an original song on the competition’s “Hollywood Week in Music City – Part 2.” Shortly afterward, the vocalist had written on X, “Boo me. I don’t care.”
More from Billboard
Underwood said the same thing on the podcast. “I don’t care,” she told host Danielle Fishel. “I can’t lie, I’m a terrible liar. As a fan of the show, if there was ever somebody that kind of had an off night and everybody’s like, ‘Oh, my God that’s so great,’ I’m sitting at home being like, ‘What? Liars!’”
But even though Underwood isn’t losing any sleep over the negative reception, Bryan jumped in to defend his costar. “It’s tough to do as a judge,” he said on the podcast. “It takes a lot of confidence in yourself, and you don’t want to say something that’s going to tank them in the competition. It’s just something that they need to be thinking about if they go forward.”
The “Play It Again” singer had also come to her defense in the moment. When fans started booing on the March episode, Bryan was sure to point out to the crowd that Underwood knows what she’s talking about, having won the show’s fourth season and all. “She only won this,” he said at the time. “She knows.”
American Idol is currently down to 11 finalists on season 24. The next episode airs at 8 p.m. on Monday (April 13) on ABC and will be available for streaming the next day on Hulu.
Watch Underwood and Bryan discuss the booing above.
Billboard VIP Pass
Best of Billboard
Sign up for Billboard’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
