Carrie Underwood‘s nine-year-old son Isaiah has had a superstar mom for his entire life, but he was never all that impressed by her accomplishments, awards or celebrity collaborations — until now.
Nope, it’s not her many CMA and ACM trophies, her sweeping Las Vegas Reflection residency or even her just-announced stint as a judge on American Idol. During an interview on Good Morning America, Underwood says that the only thing she’s done that has truly impressed Isaiah is to collaborate with ’90s rock legends Papa Roach.
“My nine-year-old son, who’s a massive fan of Papa Roach, I finally am doing something cool to him,” she jokes. “He thinks his mom’s cool, for probably one minute. But I’ll take it.”
Papa Roach might not be typical fare for the under-10 crowd, but Isaiah has good reason to have rock-leaning musical tastes: His mom is a huge rock fan, and she says she’s been listening to Papa Roach since she was a teen herself. Underwood has often talked about her love of rock music, and she’s even duetted with artists like Joan Jett and Guns N’ Roses.
Underwood’s new Papa Roach duet is a version of the band’s “Leave a Light On (Talk Away the Dark),” which was released in 2022. The song is part of Papa Roach’s “Talk Away the Dark” campaign, and finds them partnering with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
All royalties from the song will be donated to the AFSP, in perpetuity.
“For them to ask me to be a part of this song specifically was just absolutely incredible,” Underwood notes. “I love the song. I was like, ‘I already know the song, so let’s do it.'”
The song’s message makes it even more special, she explains: “[Singer] Jacoby [Maddix] makes it a point during their shows to take a second to talk to the audience, one-on-one: ‘These are the things that I’ve been through,'” Underwood says. “And he wants to use those things to help other people, which I think is absolutely amazing. So that’s what we’re doing.”
Underwood and Papa Roach put out their new version of “Leave a Light On” last week.
Carena Liptak is an Associate Editor and staff writer at Taste of Country. She specializes in breaking country music news, interviews and lists. In particular, she’s got a soft spot for sad songs — check out her roundup of the 50 Saddest Country Songs of All Time!
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