Carrie Underwood is driven to tears in a new preview for Season 23 of American Idol on ABC.

The 39-year-old singer won the fourth season way back in 2005, and now the eight-time Grammy winner is returning to the hit show as a judge.

ABC – the show’s home since 2017 – released a new trailer that featured Underwood revealing she was ‘not OK’ after hearing a contestant’s powerful story.

The trailer comes as Underwood came under fire for performing at President Trump’s inauguration festivities.

The waterworks started flowing after Underwood heard a male singer say that his grandparents, ‘raised me from the moment I turned two.’

Underwood was seen wiping tears away as the man hugged his grandma and said, ‘She put everything she had in me all those years,’ as the grandma was crying too.

Carrie was seen crying at the judge’s table as Luke Bryan asked if she was OK, and as she was wiping tears away said, ‘I’m not,’ as Bryan and Lionel Richie hugged her.

Lionel Richie told the young man that, ‘you need to be heard,’ as all three of the judges sent him on to the Hollywood round.

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The trailer began with brief snippets of several contestant, including a young woman who says, ‘I’m ready for my life to change.’

Another young man is seen saying, ‘It’s what I’ve wanted since I was a little kid,’ while a Black woman says, ‘It would bring back the hope that I lost.’

The trailer also shows a number of other contestants, along with host Ryan Seacrest, who’s seen telling one contestant to come back with a ‘Golden Ticket.’

Another woman sings James Brown’s It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World, which brings all three judges to their feet, as Richie enthuses, ‘My goodness!’

The trailer shows a number of other singers coming away with a Golden Ticket as Underwood tells one contestant, ‘This show is for people who have the talent, have the dream, and they just need a chance,’ as the trailer comes to an end.

The new trailer comes just hours after Underwood and her fellow judges were spotted in Hawaii.
Underwood, Lionel Richie, Luke Bryan and the show’s longtime host Ryan Seacrest were seen filming scenes from the new season in Oahu, Hawaii.

Underwood was spotted shooting scenes for the singing competition’s upcoming 25th season on Wednesday at Disney’s Aulani Resort and Spa — months after fans got their first look at her as a judge.

The singer, 41, looked radiant in a flowing, green gown complete with a cape that cascaded over her shoulders and a traditional lei around her neck.

The new season of American Idol debuts Sunday, March 9 at 8 PM ET only on ABC.