Carrie Underwood Denies Feud Rumors with Nikki Glaser on American Idol

Carrie Underwood dismissed rumors of a feud with comedian Nikki Glaser after fans spotted supposed tension during a Taylor Swift-themed episode of American Idol.

Glaser, a self-proclaimed Swiftie, served as guest judge on the episode. Underwood, who joined American Idol as a judge in 2025, addressed the speculation during an appearance on The Highway with Cody Alan. She shared an Instagram photo with Glaser and captioned it, "Had a fun night with the beautiful hilarious Nikki Glaser joining us as a guest judge tonight on 'American Idol.'"

Fans questioned the post's sincerity. One wrote, "Carrie didn’t look like she enjoyed Nikki sitting next to her. Rarely looked at her during the show." Another said, "Why are you so fake? … during Keyla’s performance just when @nikkiglaser was about to comment on judging for Keyla you did a side eye to @lionelrichie and rolled your eyes … like it was so noticeable … be kind Carrie do better and you too Lionel."

Alan expressed frustration with the online chatter about the Before He Cheats singer. "They want to cause a cat fight over the smallest things," he said. Underwood replied, "I'm very used to that. Cause I feel like if you have two ladies in the same room together, somebody's going to try to make something of it."

She praised Glaser's performance. "She was wonderful and I think she did such a great job, cause it's not an easy thing to come sit behind that desk and try to think of, you know, constructive things to say. I feel like she did everything wonderfully. No, there's no beef. I have no beef."

Alan asked about Underwood's experience as the Season 4 winner of American Idol and whether she still felt stage nerves. "It's evolved over time," she said. "My time on 'Idol,' you know, we kind of had message boards and things like that. It was kind of the beginning of just meanness online."

The mother of two said modern contestants face more pressure. "We just kind of are in a world right now where we forget that we're watching human beings do things," she explained. "It's so easy to talk about that, but now it's so easy for them to see that. It's no longer like water cooler chats that I never would have known about what people were talking about in school or whatever, and now you can just say it online."

She added, "That's the thing that everybody has to navigate. I'm like, 'I promise you some day you won't care,' but right now I know they do care."