Carrie Underwood gives shout-out to SC girl for her ‘amazing’ cover of ‘Cry Pretty’

What started out as a kid singing along to one of her favorites songs in the backseat of a car has turned into a social media frenzy that has drawn praise from people around the world, including the artist on the radio — country music superstar Carrie Underwood.

That’s how impressed people have been by 12-year-old Ansley Burns.

The seventh grader from Easley, S.C. has become a social media star with her compelling rendition of Underwood’s latest hit, “Cry Pretty.”

Stephanie Burns started filming her daughter midway through the song with her cellphone so she could share the clip with family and friends on Facebook to get their opinions on her child’s singing ability, she told The State.

They were so impressed that they shared the video and it has quickly turned into an avalanche of support.

The video posted Aug. 20 of Ansley singing has been viewed more than 817,000 times on Facebook, where it also has garnered 14,000-plus shares, nearly 7,000 reactions and 75 comments.

Not too bad for a South Carolina girl who was headed to watch a high school football game.

“I can’t believe it,” Burns said in a Tuesday interview with The State. “Our friends and family started sharing it and it started to circulate on Facebook. I’ve gotten messages from all over, including from Australia and Canada.”

Even Underwood shared her appreciation for Ansley’s performance. The seven-time Grammy Award winning artist heaped praise on Ansley on Twitter.

“Ansley, this is amazing! Everybody keep your eyes out for this girl!” Underwood tweeted Monday.

When she saw Underwood’s post, Burns said called Ansley into the room to share the news, but her daughter thought she was in trouble.

Far from it.

“For Carrie Underwood to acknowledge Ansley is validation for us that she really can sing, and showed us she’s doing the right thing,” Burns said of her daughter, who has been taking music lessons since she was 3 years old. “We couldn’t always understand the words she was singing, but she was always in tune and on pitch.”

This was not the first time Ansley attempted to sing the challenging Underwood hit, which Country Rebel said is “near impossible for anyone to sing,” because of the song’s “endless loops of high notes.”

A member of her middle school chorus, Ansley has been taking vocal lessons with her current teacher for 3 to 4 years, Burns estimates. She said “Cry Pretty” has been a song that her daughter has been practicing to perform at upcoming singing competitions.

Singing and winning talent shows and competitions is something Ansley has been doing for a while, according to her mother. She’s following in Underwood’s footsteps in that regard.

The superstar won “American Idol” in 2005, and since then has topped the charts.

Ansley has auditioned for “America’s Got Talent” two times, and has plans to try out for NBC’s hit program again, WYFF-4 reported. The 12-year-old Upstate girl is also hopeful another celebrity sees her viral video.

“She has hopes for going on ‘Ellen,’ “ Stephanie told The State. “She asked me, ‘Mom, if Ellen calls, will you come get me out of school?’ ”

They are already planning to participate in another big show, even if it’s just as members of the audience.

Underwood will perform in Columbia in 2019, when she brings “The Cry Pretty Tour 360” to Colonial Life Arena on Sept. 29. Burns said she and Ansley will be there.

“We have plans to go, and I hope she would meet us,” Burns said. It will be the first big concert Ansley will attend. “She’s still a down-home, small-town girl. We’re not used to all of this, but it’s all she has ever wanted to do.”

This story was originally published September 5, 2018 at 7:35 AM.