CARRIE UNDERWOOD ANNOUNCES 2016 TOUR

October 27, 2015

Nashville, TN – (October 27, 2015) – Seven-time Grammy winner and Pollstar’s three-time top female country touring artist, Carrie Underwood, who just released her fifth studio album, Storyteller, will launch a new arena tour in 2016 to take her new music on the road. The Storyteller Tour – Stories in the Round, in association with award-winning cosmetics brand ALMAY, will kick off on January 30 in Jacksonville, Florida, playing 40 arenas across the U.S. and Canada.

“I can’t wait to play new music from Storyteller for the fans,” shares Underwood. “I am so blessed to have this career and get to do to the things I do, but there is nothing like that moment when I get to step onto the stage to sing and all the fans are singing along with me.”

The Storyteller Tour – Stories in the Round will be Underwood’s first tour “in the round.”  With the stage in the middle of the arena floor, the 360-degree setting will allow fans on all sides of the arena to get a very intimate and unique concert experience.  Barry Lather (Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Usher, Michael Jackson) is the tour’s Creative Director and Butch Allen (Metallica, The Eagles, Eric Church, No Doubt) is Production Designer.

The North American tour, promoted by AEG Live, will include special guests Easton Corbin and The Swon Brothers. Tickets will be available for The Storyteller Tour beginning Friday, November 6 at 10am local time at www.aeglive.com. Fans who buy Carrie’s new album, Storyteller, through her online store, www.carrieunderwood.fm, will receive a code for early access to tour tickets. Please go to www.carrieunderwood.fm for up-to-date information including on-sale timing and soon-to-be-announced VIP packages.

Underwood has arranged for a donation of $1 from each ticket sold at the U.S. dates of The Storyteller Tour to be contributed to the C.A.T.S Foundation to help aid its causes including Checotah, Oklahoma’s education and literacy programs. Established in 2009, the C.A.T.S. (Checotah Animal, Town, and School) Foundation helps with general causes, needs, and services in the area of Checotah, Oklahoma, Carrie’s hometown, to directly impact the community.

Each of Carrie’s three previous headline arena tours, 2008’s Carnival Ride Tour, the Play On Tour in 2010, and 2012-2013’s Blown Away Tour played for over one million fans. When the “Blown Away Tour” wrapped in 2013, Carrie had performed 112 shows in 110 cities across three continents and six countries, including sold-out shows at London’s prestigious Royal Albert Hall, and two nights at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia.

Carrie’s new album, Storyteller, has been heralded by Rolling Stone as “the most anticipated country album of the year.” The album was produced by Jay Joyce, Mark Bright, and Zach Crowell with six of its 13 songs co-written by Carrie, including the record-breaking first single, “Smoke Break.”

About Carrie Underwood:  Carrie Underwood emerged from the promise of her 2005 American Idol win to become a true multi-format, multi-media superstar, spanning achievements in music, television, and film.  A seven-time GRAMMY® Award winner, she has amassed nearly 100 major honors, sold 58 million records worldwide, and recorded 21 #1 singles, 11 of which she co-wrote.  The first female artist to be twice named the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year, Underwood was recognized as Pollstar’s top female country touring artist for her headlining tours in 2008, 2010, and 2012.  Her four studio albums, Some HeartsCarnival RidePlay On, and Blown Away – each certified multi-Platinum or Platinum, and each an American Music Awards winner as Country Album of the Year – tallied 38 weeks at #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart with songs that have been streamed more than 1.5 billion times worldwide.  In 2013, she starred as Maria von Trapp in NBC’s three-hour holiday blockbuster, the Emmy®-winning The Sound of Music Live!, whose airings attracted 44 million viewers.  In late 2014, the Grand Ole Opry member released her first hits collection, Greatest Hits: Decade #1.  Celebrating her first 10 years of music, the 25 songs included two new hits co-written by Underwood: the Platinum-certified, GRAMMY-winning “Something in the Water,” as well as the #1 smash “Little Toy Guns.”  In September of 2015, she began her third season as the voice of primetime television’s #1 program, Sunday Night Football, and on November 4, she’ll return for an eighth consecutive year as co-host of the CMA Awards.  Underwood is at radio now with her record-breaking single “Smoke Break,” the first single released from her fifth studio album, Storyteller, out worldwide now.

About Easton Corbin: Mercury Nashville recording artist Easton Corbin is lauded for his traditional country sound, authentic lyrics and mastery of understatement. American Songwriter says, “Easton Corbin has one of those rare, glorious voices that was made—just made—for singing country music.” His self-titled debut album released in 2010 and spawned back-to-back hits “A Little More Country Than That” and “Roll With It;” making him the first country male artist in 17 years to have his first two consecutive singles reach No. 1.  In 2012 the Gilchrist County Florida native released his sophomore album, All Over The Road, which included the Top 5 hits “Lovin’ You Is Fun” and “All Over The Road.”  Corbin set a career-best debut on Country Airplay with his top 5 hit single, “Baby Be My Love Song,” from his No. 1 debuting album About To Get Real.  His current single “Yup” is climbing the country singles chart.

About The Swon Brothers: Following their Top 15 debut hit, “Later On,” The Swon Brothers (Zach and Colton) are continuing to climb into the spotlight, playing to capacity crowds all over the country.  The duo released their major-label debut, THE SWON BROTHERS, on October 14, 2014, putting their stamp on the 11-song collection by co-producing with Mark Bright (Carrie Underwood, Sara Evans).  In 2014 the brothers received a CMA Award nomination for “Vocal Duo of the Year.”  They also received an ACM Award nomination for “Vocal Duo of the Year” followed by a CMT Music Award nomination for “Duo Video of the Year” this year.  Honored with the Rising Star award by the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2013, the Muskogee, OK, natives have been charming fans with their incredible sibling harmonies and fun-loving personalities since childhood. The duo hit the road on the winter 2015 leg of Brad Paisley’s Country Nation World Tour, and they’re currently playing a slate of “Swoncerts” at fairs and major festivals nationwide and working on brand new music with hit songwriter and producer Derek George (Randy Houser, Joe Nichols.)