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Carrie Underwood reflected on a powerhouse performance “from the Idol vault.”
Underwood performed “Love Is a Battlefield” by Pat Benatar as a contestant on American Idol in 2005. Benatar released the iconic anthem in 1983. Underwood, who returned to the competition show as a judge 20 years after her career-launching victory, resurfaced the clip in honor of Idol’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame night on Monday (April 13). The Grammy-winning country star wrote in a caption on Instagram that she was “excited to see [Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo] mentor and perform,” during that episode. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame legends took the stage with “Heartbreaker” and “Ring of Fire” on American Idol earlier this week.
Underwood kicked off the show with Billy Idol and guitarist Steve Stevens, performing Idol’s ‘80s classic, “Rebel Yell.” Longtime American Idol host Ryan Seacrest revealed after the performance, “huge breaking news… Billy Idol and longtime collaborator Steve Stevens will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2026.” The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on November 14 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony will be available to watch at a later date on ABC and Disney+. See the full list of 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees here.
American Idol airs on ABC on Monday nights from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET/PT. It’s available to stream the next day on Hulu.
American Idol judge Luke Bryan is part of the star-studded lineup of the 2026 iHeartCountry Festival. The show also includes Carly Pearce, Kane Brown, Parker McCollum, Riley Green, Shaboozey, Dylan Scott, Russell Dickerson, Gretchen Wilson, Chase Matthew, Lauren Alaina and special guest George Birge. iHeartRadio's Bobby Bones is returning as the event’s host. The show will take place on May 2 at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. Tickets to the show are available as of January 23. Fans across the country will be able to catch all the action as the 2026 iHeartCountry Festival will be broadcast live across iHeartCountry stations nationwide and the free iHeartRadio app on Saturday, May 2nd at 8pm ET/5pm PT (7pm CT).