Carrie Underwood Turns Velocity Festival Into a Nu-Metal Singalong With Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park and Papa Roach Covers
Carrie Underwood gave fans at Iowa’s Velocity Festival an unexpected dose of nu-metal on Saturday, September 5, mixing her country hits with songs from Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Papa Roach and Collective Soul.
Headlining the second day of the three-day festival at the Field of Dreams movie site in Dyersville, Iowa, Underwood broke from her usual country repertoire to perform four rock covers: Collective Soul’s “Shine,” Papa Roach’s “Scars,” Linkin Park’s “One Step Closer” and Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff.” Her appearance was scheduled for the festival’s second night, following Shinedown’s Friday headline performance.
Carrie Underwood Embraces Limp Bizkit
The most striking moment came when Underwood tackled Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff,” the band’s 1999 hit.
She leaned into the song’s unmistakable visual style as well, wearing a backwards red cap as a nod to Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst.
The choice might have caught some country fans off guard, but Underwood’s affection for rock music is hardly new. Throughout her career, she has repeatedly stepped outside the country world to perform with major rock artists and incorporate heavier influences into her live shows.
Her Velocity Festival set also included “Shine,” “Scars” and “One Step Closer,” giving the Iowa crowd a compact run through some of the most recognizable songs associated with the late-1990s and 2000s rock scene.
A Longstanding Love of Rock
Underwood’s rock detours have become a recurring part of her career.
She has performed multiple times with Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose and brought Joan Jett onstage during her 2019 CMA Fest performance. She has also regularly performed Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades” during her concerts.
Her connection with Papa Roach has been particularly notable. In 2024, Underwood teamed up with the band for an updated version of “Leave a Light On (Talk Away the Dark).” She later joined Papa Roach onstage during their Las Vegas show in 2025, where they performed the collaboration as well as the band’s hit “Last Resort.”
That history made “Scars” a natural addition to her Velocity Festival set, even if the appearance of multiple nu-metal covers in a country star’s headline performance remained an unusual sight.
Underwood and Mötley Crüe Reunited on American Idol
Her recent performances have continued to highlight her interest in rock.
Earlier this year, during the May 11 finale of American Idol, Underwood joined Mötley Crüe for performances of “Home Sweet Home” and “Kickstart My Heart.”
“Home Sweet Home” carried an additional connection to the singer. Underwood had recorded her own version of the song in 2009, when it was used as the farewell song for American Idol Season 8.
A Rock-Heavy Weekend at the Field of Dreams
Underwood’s performance was the centerpiece of Saturday’s lineup at the 2026 Velocity Festival, which ran September 4 through September 6 at the Field of Dreams movie site in Dyersville. The event brought together artists from country and rock across its three days.
Shinedown headlined Friday’s opening night alongside Lynyrd Skynyrd. Underwood took the Saturday headline slot, with Collective Soul, Maggie Rose, Default, Danny Worsnop, 10 Years and Roseland also appearing that day. Creed closed the festival on Sunday, joined by Nate Smith and Filter among the day’s performers.
For Underwood, the weekend offered a chance to put a different side of her musical taste front and center. Her combination of country material and rock covers made her headline set one of the festival’s more unexpected performances, with “Break Stuff,” “One Step Closer,” “Scars” and “Shine” providing a clear reminder that her musical range extends well beyond country.