You've become the latest "American Idol." Now what?

Each winner of the FOX singing contest has answered that in his or her own way, and it's no surprise Carrie Underwood has paid a few visits to Nashville, Tenn., lately. As the first country-oriented "Idol," she has found Country Music Television an ideal venue for her first major home-screen appearances since her victory in May. Before she is profiled in an upcoming episode of "CMT in the Moment," she performs on the six-hour special "CMT 100 Greatest Duets" Saturday, Sept. 17.

Underwood teams with Jamie O'Neal to sing "Does He Love You," originally recorded by Reba McEntire and Linda Davis, during the two-hour concert that caps the special and features a countdown of the top 12 songs. Other concert highlights include Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in a reunion, singing their early-'80s hit "Islands in the Stream"; spouses Clint Black and Lisa Hartman Black reprising their successful song "When I Said I Do"; and Patty Loveless and Travis Tritt crooning the Loretta Lynn-Conway Twitty tune "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man."

Terri Clark and Trace Adkins host the concert. Other artists performing include Montgomery Gentry, Lee Ann Womack, Crystal Gayle, Blake Shelton, Marty Stuart, Keith Anderson, Miranda Lambert, Joe Nichols and Rebecca Lynn Howard.

Now starring in high-profile ads for shoes and candy bars, Oklahoma native Underwood mainly has been on an "American Idol" concert tour with last season's other nine finalists since her win. "I haven't really gotten to do a lot of other things," she says, adding that she enjoyed taping the "CMT 100 Greatest Duets" special several weeks after her "Idol" triumph. "It went really well. The crowd was receptive and wonderful, and I got to meet a lot of [famous] people."

For the upcoming "In the Moment" special, CMT cameras followed Underwood constantly, but she claims that sort of frenzy has "kind of died down. For a while, there were cameras just all around, and I was like, 'Where are these people from? What are they doing?' I wouldn't say you get used to it, because people don't act normal when they're on camera. It's impossible. It's when you start acting normal that's the problem, because you forget the cameras are there and you probably say something stupid."

Even with all the attention she's received, the wholesome Underwood doesn't think she stands out all that much when she's not on stage. "I'm a really good blender," she reasons. "I blend in with other people very well. I can walk around and sometimes nobody will say a word to me. Other times, I'll get the 'You know who you look like?' thing. I just say, 'You know, I get that a lot.' "

Clearly as down-to-earth as she seemed when millions of viewers voted her in as the fourth "American Idol" over rocker Bo Bice, Underwood is racking up other titles, too. She recently was named "World's Sexiest Vegetarian" by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).

"I'm honored," she says with a degree of bemusement. "I didn't know there was such a contest, and when I heard that a poll was taken, I thought, 'There can't be that many [well-known] vegetarians.' I checked, and there were a whole lot more than I thought." Indeed, Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin shares this year's award; others in the running included Reese Witherspoon, Avril Lavigne and Prince.

Underwood's final moments on "American Idol" remain a blur to her, given the high emotion involved and the need for her to perform once more as the credits rolled. Nevertheless, she says, "I still get goose bumps when I think about Ryan [Seacrest] standing there between me and Bo to announce the winner. It was all such a whirlwind. My mother has always told me I wear my emotions on my face, and while I try so hard not to, my thoughts are all right there to be read."

With the "American Idol" tour drawing to a close, Underwood is ready to hit the recording studio to make the debut album (due in November) that will follow her "Idol"-winning single, "Inside Your Heaven." She maintains her fellow finalists also "want to see what they can do on their own now. It's going to be really interesting to see where everybody ends up. I'm not going to get any rest between the end of the tour and making my album, but I'm just looking forward to getting in there and doing it.

"The single was a big test for me, because a lot of people watched the television show and voted, but I wondered how I would fare outside of that. It made me feel really good that I still had so much support behind me, and that people would go out and buy my song. Now it's like, 'OK, I'll make my album, and I hope it really does well.' It's all been such a wonderful experience that even if I don't get to do anything else after this, I've had the time of my life."