NEED TO KNOW
- Hannah Harper revealed that Carrie Underwood gifted her jewelry from Tiffany & Co. in a Facebook post
- “Y’all, she’s as down-to-earth and genuine as they come,” Harper said of Underwood
- Underwood was moved to tears during Harper’s audition, where she sang an original song
Carrie Underwood just made an American Idol contestant’s day.
Hannah Harper revealed in a Facebook post on Monday, April 13 that the “Before He Cheats” singer gave her a special gift with a handwritten note — a kindness she extended to all contestants that made the Top 11.
“Didn’t think my first piece of Tiffany & Co. jewelry would come from Carrie Underwood,” Harper, 25, said.
“But truly, the part that got me the most was the handwritten note,” she continued. “That meant more than anything. Just her taking the time to do that… it says everything about who she is.”
She concluded, “Y’all, she’s as down-to-earth and genuine as they come. Just a good, kind human. I love her dearly.”
In the handwritten note, Underwood congratulated Harper for making the Top 11 on the singing competition show — and called her an “inspiration” to women and moms everywhere.
“I cannot wait to see what God has in store for you [and] I am so blessed to have a front row seat,” the “Jesus, Take the Wheel” singer, 43, wrote.
Keyla Richardson also shared her message from Underwood, thanking the country star in an Instagram post.
“Your kindness and generosity mean more than words can express,” Richardson wrote. “The fact that you took the time to bless someone like that speaks to the incredible woman and class act that you are. American Idol gave us all a gift when it gave us YOU and your legacy continues to inspire every artist who walks through those doors.”
In her note to Richardson, 29, Underwood told her she was “just getting started” and shouted out her “sweet family.”
Underwood was first moved by Harper during her audition, where she sang an original song called “String Cheese” about a personal struggle with postpartum depression.
“You’re, like, my favorite person,” Underwood said before Harper sang. “You’re wearing homemade clothes, you’re singing songs called ‘String Cheese.'”
Harper, who’s a stay-at-home mom from Willow Springs, Mo., got choked up as she explained the meaning behind her song.
“I was sitting on my couch wallowing, and you have boys, you know. Everybody wants to touch you, and I didn’t want to be touched. And my youngest son, I was just having a pity party, praying that the Lord would calm my spirit, and my son kept coming up to me,” she said. “He said, ‘Mom, open this. Open my cheese.’ I’m like, ‘Leave me alone with the doggone cheese.’”
Harper continued, “And I finally opened his cheese, and when I did I realized God had put me in that place, and that where I was in my house was the biggest ministry that I could ever have in being a mom. So, I gathered myself, and I got up off the couch, and I quit throwing a pity party, and I realized that was exactly what I wanted.”
Disney/Eric McCandless
“And I kind of kicked the postpartum depression in the butt, and I said, ‘I ain’t doing it,'” she concluded, as her eyes filled with tears.
As the performance came to an end, Underwood also began to cry. “Do you have more tissues? My turn,” she said. “Well, that’s about the most relatable song I think I’ve ever heard.”
“You might be my favorite person that’s walked through those doors in the past three days,” the country singer said. “You’re gorgeous. Like, you look famous already. I just think you have a beautiful simplicity to your voice. You’re one that I’m going to think about when we leave here, like, ‘I wonder what song she’s gonna sing next.’”
