Carly Pearce Checks Off A ‘Bucket List’ Item In Her Home State

Carly Pearce will sing the national anthem at the 149th Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve on Saturday, May 6, 2023.

Carly is the thirteenth major artist to perform the "Star-Spangled Banner" at the iconic horse race. Expected to reach more than 16 million fans worldwide, the performance will take place just after 5:00 p.m. EDT and be broadcast live as part of NBC's Kentucky Derby coverage.

Pearce posted to Instagram, "Being from Kentucky, this is a major bucket list moment for me! I'm so excited to announce I will be performing the National Anthem at the 149th @kentuckyderby. Tune in to NBC on May 6 to catch my performance ahead of the Run for the Roses. @churchilldowns #KentuckyDerby #ChurchillDowns #KD149 #KentuckyDerby149 #NationalAnthem #KyDerby."

See that post here.

Pearce recently made her 100th performance at the Grand Ole Opry (4/11) since making her debut in 2015.

The special set from Carly closed out the night at the Opry and featured many surprise special guest performances. Ashley McBryde joined Pearce to perform their GRAMMY Award-winning hit "Never Wanted To Be That Girl," while fellow Kentucky native Ricky Skaggs performed a rendition of Bill Monroe's "Blue Moon of Kentucky."

The Isaacs' Ben and Sonja Isaacs lent their voices on her "Easy Going" performance while Lady A's Charles Kelley joined Carly for her second No. 1 "I Hope You're Happy Now." The two first performed the song together at the 54th Annual CMA Awards in November 2020 when Lee Brice, who originally sang on the song, was sick and could not perform.

Pearce performed her most recent No. 1 song, "What He Didn't Do," solo and was also honored with plaques backstage before her set by executives from Big Machine Label Group, Opry Entertainment, and RIAA commemorating the song's RIAA platinum certification.

Not all country stars, or country superstars for that matter, can say they are Grammy winners. It's arguably the most coveted award in the music business and is voted on by music peers. Some artists never get a single Grammy nod in their careers, even though they sell millions and millions of albums worldwide.

That is not the case for Carly Pearce. She won her first Grammy earlier this year (2023) in the "Best Duo/Group Performance" category for "Never Wanted To Be That Girl," a duet with Ashley McBryde.

Carly said shortly after she won her Grammy with her friend Ashley, "We just learned that this is the first time that all females have won this award in this particular category. I always loved Ashley's music. I just was a fan and asked her if she'd write a song with me. So, to see this song do what it's done. And just continue to show the girls that are coming up behind us that you can write your truth, and you can do everything that you want in this business. I feel very, very lucky and to do it with somebody that I respect so much as an artist and as a person."

As Pearce celebrates her 33rd birthday today (4/24), we rank seven of her best songs, many of which led her to Grammy stardom, including the song she won the honor for.