Cry Pretty Music Video

The light splatter of a shower, muted cheers, and the silhouette and sombre vocals of Carrie Underwood open up Cry Pretty.

However, besides all Underwood’s pop-style glamour, and dynamic stage presence was one rather inescapable detail; her eyes – covered in glittering tears.

This seemingly minute detail became the theme in key moments in the video, and along with the lyrics, give clear indication of a much deeper story, as we see Underwood sigh her way through all the changing video scenes of performance prep.

In the lead-up to the video and subsequent album of the same name, Underwood experienced two difficult situations. One was a heart-breaking series of miscarriages, and the other was a freak fall that required stitches to her face, and forced her out of public sight for some time.

There was indeed reason aplenty for the raw emotion displayed throughout this video, that isn’t typical of Carrie Underwood’s other material, with self-assured hits like ‘Before He Cheats’ or ‘Good Girl’.

In a genre like country music where guitar-strumming, and a feel-good voice usually conveys the intended story, one does not expect the full-throated belts Underwood delivers on the bridge as she wails, “You can’t turn off the flood, when the dam breaks,” and then confidently unleashes, “…when things get ugly, you just gotta face, that you can’t cry pretty...”

At the same time, it is those bold vocal moments, that have set Underwood apart, making her one of the most successful female country artists today. However, throw in the plot twist of grief, turned into strength.

And while Underwood’s other music videos contain plenty of equally phenomenal vocal moments, meticulous production, and great showmanship, it’s quite hard not to say that ‘Cry Pretty’ ranks high as one of her most vulnerable, authentic, and yet so relatable.