Carrie Underwood has become one of the greatest country singers of our time. Dating back to when she was a child, she loved to sing for her family and in school plays. In 2005, Underwood was a contestant on television's "American Idol" and instantly became a favorite among the fans. The finale to the show was on May 25, 2005 and Underwood was declared America's new idol. Following after, she signed onto 19 Recordings/ Arista Records and released her first hit single "Inside Your Heaven," which debuted as the best selling song in the nation. The song sold $170,000. Also, she broke BIllboard chart history as the first country artist ever to debut as Number One on the Hot 100. From that point on, she continued to produce music that her fans loved and had her first album "Some Hearts" drop only 6 months after winning American Idol. That album had hits such as "Dont Forget to Remember Me" and "Before he Cheats." Her second album was released in 2007 titled "Carnival Ride" with hit singles "Last Name", "So Small", and "American Girl". Underwood's hit "So Small" describes how no matter how angry or hurt you are, you should put those feelings aside because love is all that truly matters.
"So Small" contains many poetic devices that make the song sound stronger and helps the listener feel more connected to the lines. The first lines read, " What you got if you ain't got love? The kind that you just want to give away." This indicates that the song is written in 3rd person point of view. Underwood goes on to say, " It's okay to open up, Go ahead and let the light shine through." This is an example of hyperbole in the sense that light is not actually shining through the person, but rather figuratively. Opening up your emotions is like opening a door and letting light come through. The next lines read, "I know its hard on a rainy day, You wanna shut the world out and just be left alone." This is another example of hyperbole because you cannot literally shut a door on the world. No matter how much you want to avoid the earth and it's people, you are always going to be in it. This song has universal relevance in the lines "Cause sometimes that mountain you've been climbing is just a grain of sand." Everyone at some point in their life knows what it is like to overreact and make a bigger scene over something that is not that major to begin with. Underwood states in the chorus that, "When you figure out love is all that matters after all, it sure makes everything else, seem so small." The last part, "seem so small," is an example of alliteration. Following after, Underwood writes that life problems are so easy to make a big part of your life and, "Its like a river that's so wide it swallows you whole." This is an example of personification because a river is given the life like quality of swallowing something. A cliche' is seen in the lyrics, "Time's flying by, moving so fast." The expression that "time flies" is one that is very popular in today's culture. The last lines in the chorus is another example of hyperbole when it says, " And what you've been out there searching for forever, is in your hands." No one can hold forever in their hands, but this is a figure of speech that one can hold their future in the palms of their hands.
Carrie Underwood has made a large impact on today's country music. Her strong vocals make her stand out as an individualist and her beauty draws her fans in to watch her carefully. Since appearing on "American Idol" she has blossomed into a country superstar and nothing is going to hold her back now. She has tours all over the country with her fans going crazy for more. Her songs about love, hardship, cheating, etc are ones that everyone can relate to.
