Did Carrie Underwood Really Throw Shade At Erika Kirk? The Truth About The Rumor

There's a viral rumor circulating on social media claiming that country music star Carrie Underwood has a harsh opinion of Erika Kirk, the widow and mother of two, whose husband, Charlie Kirk, was shot and killed at an event on the campus of Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025. Charlie was the CEO of Turning Point USA, an organization aimed at promoting conservative MAGA politics among young adults. Since her husband's death, Kirk was named the CEO of Turning Point USA and became a more public figure thanks to support from Donald Trump at events honoring Charlie and a viral hug with Vice President JD Vance.

According to the viral rumor, Underwood said, "I won't fake sympathy," referring to Kirk in a social media post. Write-ups about the alleged post charged the "Cry Pretty" singer with breaking Nashville's silence about Erika and Charlie Kirk, and said that Underwood directly called out Erika for allegedly profiting off of Charlie's death. But Underwood never made such a post — there is no verifiable evidence that it exists. So, any articles claiming that it's authentic are fake. 

Carrie Underwood is no stranger to controversial moments. Most recently, she faced backlash for performing "America the Beautiful" at Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025, an appearance that was reportedly a disaster behind the scenes. Per a 2012 Us Weekly article, the "Before He Cheats" singer is a registered Republican. Although it's reasonable to make assumptions based on her participation in an event celebrating Trump, a person's voter registration doesn't dictate the vote they cast, and Underwood has never claimed allegiance to a political party.

In a 2019 interview, Underwood told The Guardian, "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." She also supported same sex marriage in a 2012 interview with The Independent. "I definitely think we should all have the right to love, and love publicly, the people that we want to love," she said in part, adding that her church welcomes same sex couples. Yet, in The Guardian, the Grammy winner denied that her song "The Bullet," about shooting deaths, was taking a stance on gun control. "It was more about the lives that were changed by something terrible happening," she said. 

The bottom line is that Underwood dislikes being politically pigeonholed. No matter her beliefs or the beliefs of others, it's a stretch to claim she'd make such an extreme statement about Erika Kirk and her motives amid such a tragic time in Kirk's life.