Carrie Underwood: What I've Learned

Since stepping into the spotlight on season four of American Idol, Carrie Underwood has grown up a lot and learned some tough lessons – and now she’s telling Esquire what she’s learned!

Here’s what the 26-year-old singer had to share:

On being scared to leave home: “I was so nervous when I was on my way to L.A. I’d never been on a plane, and I was going alone. I kind of got teary-eyed. My dad was driving, and he said, “If you want to go home, we can go home, and you never have to think about this again.” And I thought, If I don’t go, I’m choosing for this not to happen. It will be my choice. So I figured it would be easier for me to get kicked off American Idol than to have it be my own decision.”

On releasing “Jesus, Take the Wheel”: “[P]eople started saying, Oh, it’s kind of risky. You’re coming out with a religious song. And I was thinking, Really? I grew up in Oklahoma, I always had a close relationship with God. I never thought it was risky in the least. If anything, I thought it was the safest thing I could do.”

On whether “Cowboy Casanova” is about the Dallas Cowboys quarterback: “No. I would never immortalize a guy that did me wrong. I would never give him that much credit.”

For more from Carrie, check out Esquire.com!