Carrie Underwood‘s debut single from her freshman Some Hearts album is still one of her favorite songs, even after all these years. Underwood released “Jesus, Take the Wheel” in 2005, fresh off of her American Idol win. Although at the very beginning of her now-legendary career, Underwood had a feeling, even then, that the song would change everything for her.
“I remember hearing ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel’ very early on in my career. Literally, on tour with American Idol, and just being drawn to the song immediately,” Underwood recalls to CMT. “It just made me want to cry in the best way, and I knew I had to sing it, but I honestly think the song kind of picked me.”
“Jesus, Take the Wheel” was also the first video Underwood ever shot, and by her own admission, she had no idea what she was doing.
“It was pretty interesting filming the “Jesus, Take the Wheel’ video, because they’d be like, ‘All right, take one. Roll. Playback,’ and I’d be like, ‘I don’t know how to do this. Am I singing along with it?'” Underwood remembers with a laugh. “I never made a music video before, so they had to [remember], ‘Oh yeah, she’s a rookie.’ But now, many, many videos later, I don’t know if I would change anything. I felt like I learned so much, and was surrounded by the nicest, most incredible people. It was a great experience.”
Underwood has since recorded plenty more songs, but it’s “Jesus, Take the Wheel” that remains a fan favorite, and with good reason.
“I always hear stories about ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel,'” Underwood shares. “A lot of it is how the song showed up for somebody at just the right time, having a difficult moment in their life, or period in their life, and turn on the radio and there it was. I feel like that’s what great songs and great music is about, is knowing what to say when people might not. I know that that song’s been there for me … I’m really glad that it could be there for other people as well.”
The 41-year-old is so glad she is the one who got to record the song, written by Hillary Lindsey, Gordie Sampson and Brett James, and that she still gets to perform it, night after night.
“Every time I sing it on stage, it’s like the first time. It still means so much to me,” Underwood says. “I think this song will never die, because its principles will never die. We are human, and we are all full of mistakes, and sometimes we just need to let go, and ask God for help, and He will provide that. So I think that’s why the song will always be relatable.”
Find “Jesus, Take the Wheel” and all of Underwood’s music and upcoming shows at CarrieUnderwoodOfficial.com.