Carrie Underwood is making fans do a double take with her latest selfie — and fresh hairstyle.
“Every child deserves hope,” Underwood, 45, captioned an Instagram photo on Friday, December 12, to raise awareness for Music Gives to St. Jude Kids’ fundraising efforts ahead of the holidays. “Become a Partner in Hope with @stjude and get your @musicgives shirt at musicgives.org and help kids facing cancer. ❤️.”
While many fans were excited to see the American Idol alum teaming up with the children’s hospital and promoting the nonprofit, several users didn’t recognize Underwood in the snap.
“Still very pretty but looks like a different person,” one user wrote in the comments section, seemingly referring to Underwood’s darker hair, which she parted down the middle and styled in beachy waves.
Another person replied, “Didn’t even look like Carrie,” which a third fan agreed with. “It doesn’t look like her. 🤷🏻♀️,” the third user wrote.
“Who is this a picture of?” another person asked in the comments section.
A separate fan confessed, “If this pic wasn’t on her page, I’d never know who this person is.”
The confusion over Underwood’s hairstyle could be explained by the fact that from the moment the musician was introduced to fans on American Idol in 2004, she was blonde.
Over the years, Underwood’s shade of blonde has varied, but it usually skews toward platinum or golden.
In August, the Grammy winner unveiled her hair switch, trading in her iconic blonde for “bronde.”
“Well, the last time I saw my natural hair color, I was probably about 12 years old, but I thought it might be time to give it a second chance,” Underwood wrote via Instagram at the time. “Thanks, @hairbykatelin_ at @parlour3beauty for helping me get back to my roots! #NewOldMe #Bronde.”
Despite stepping out for several public appearances over the last month with her bronde ‘do, many fans were surprised to see Underwood’s browner locks close up in Friday’s upload. (Her latest selfie appears to be a shade darker than her August hairstyle.)
“Who????? This is not Carrie Underwood stop,” one user wrote in the comments section on the singer’s Friday snap.
Other fans, however, fully embraced Underwood’s choice to go darker, with one person writing, “Love your hair color. 💞.”
“Beautiful! Love the hair color! You do you!!!🔥,” a separate user responded in the comments section.
A third fan called Underwood’s fresh style “super cute,” while a fourth individual replied, “Your hair is super cute that color, love it 😊🩷.”
“Loooove the low lit hair 💕 flattering,” a different user gushed.
Another person called Underwood’s shade “inspiration” for their own color change. “Love your hair I’m wanting to go darker as well! Your an Inspiration , thank you for all that you do! ❤️,” they added.
More than a decade prior to her hair update, Underwood revealed she was open to ditching her signature blonde, telling Refinery29 in 2012, “I’d love to do a little more with hair color. I’ve always been blonde! The problem is, I don’t want to shock people.”
She explained, “If I dyed my hair brown, I don’t want people think I’m turning dark and serious. I wish I had started changing my hair around in the beginning, then it wouldn’t be such a big shock if I did something like that now.”
