Carrie Underwood divides fans as she shares then-and-now photos ahead of 'American Idol' return

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Carrie Underwood, the winner of 'American Idol' Season 4, is set to return to the singing competition 20 years later as a judge.

The 'Before He Cheats' singer decided to celebrate the forthcoming season, which begins airing on March 9, by sharing a throwback picture of hers from the show as a contestant alongside a new one as a judge, according to Hello Magazine.

Carrie Underwood shares then-and-now pictures ahead of 'American Idol' return

The 'Somethin' Bad' singer took to Instagram and posted the two pictures—one as a 21-year-old newbie and the other a recent photo of herself.

The throwback picture showed her in curly locks, a pink T-shirt, and blue jeans whereas in the most recent snap, Underwood could be seen wearing waist-length tresses and a hot pink, caped ensemble. 

In the latest snap, Underwood recreated her pose from 20 years ago. 

She captioned the Instagram post, "'Then' as a contestant vs. 'Now' as a judge 20 years later! Counting down the days as we’re one month away from the March 9 season premiere of @americanidol on @abc and Stream on @hulu!"

Underwood was most recently seen during President Donald Trump's inauguration where she sang an a cappella version of 'America the Beautiful' after her performance got delayed due to technical difficulties.

She was originally supposed to be accompanied by the Armed Forces Chorus and the United States Naval Academy Glee Club for her performance, per the outlet.

Underwood has mostly stayed out of political discussions throughout her career. In 2019, she told The Guardian, "I like 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."

However, the singer's decision to perform at Trump's inauguration stirred controversy as people questioned her political stance.

Fans divided as Carrie Underwood shares then-and-now pictures ahead of 'American Idol' return

Fans and netizens had mixed reactions to Carrie Underwood celebrating her 'American Idol' return on Instagram. Notably, several fans had threatened to boycott Season 23 of 'American Idol' after Underwood decided to perform at Trump's second inauguration. 

One Instagram user commented, "The only difference between than and now is her voice is even more unbelievable," while one added, "I will be watching EVERY episode for the first time in 15 years."

"What a full circle moment! Can’t wait!" noted a person, while someone else said, "Man, I remember me and my mom voting for you, what a time to be alive! Definitely going to watch again!"

One who clearly wasn't looking forward to seeing Underwood on the show wrote, "I’m out!" "No thanks! Anyone that sings willingly for an insurrectionist is not worth watching!" read another comment. 

"Disappointed no longer listening to your music," expressed a person, while one declared, "She’s canceled." 

"Skipping this season for sure! 🤮🤮🤮," wrote one more. 

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