Kelly Clarkson Was Never The Same After Her Divorce. Here's Why

Kelly Clarkson became America's sweetheart when she won the inaugural season of "American Idol" in September 2002, and she became Brandon Blackstock's sweetheart when the pair started dating a decade after that. The couple first met all the way back in 2006, but the talent manager was married to his first wife at the time. Clarkson next ran into (a divorced) Blackstock at the Super Bowl in February 2012, and the two went on their first date a week after that. Things moved quickly from there, and they were engaged by the end of the year. Clarkson and Blackstock wed in October 2013, one month before announcing they were expecting. Daughter River Rose was born in June 2014, and son Remington Alexander followed just under two years later.

The family, which also included two older children from Blackstock's first marriage, appeared picture perfect for a good while — until they didn't. Clarkson filed for divorce during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the two entered into a very messy battle over money, kids, property, and business. 

Clarkson struggled in the aftermath of the split but within a couple of years, she was doing better than ever. "Sometimes you don't know what life has in store for you, and you think your life is going to go one way, and it's OK that it doesn't," she told People in January 2024. "You never know how beautiful that might be." Keep reading for a look at Kelly Clarkson's life changes after her messy divorce from Brandon Blackstock.

Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock were married for nearly seven years by the time the singer filed for divorce in June 2020. From there, the drama came quickly. As Clarkson confessed on "Sunday Today" in September 2020, she was going through it at the time. "My life has been a little bit of a dumpster," she said. "Personally, it's been a little hard the last couple months." 

Clarkson and Blackstock spent years in court, over everything from custody of their children to ownership of their ranch to deals brokered by Blackstock's company on Clarkson's behalf. On the business front, Blackstock was originally found responsible for the repayment of over $2.6 million in fees he took but was not legally owed. He appealed, Clarkson fired back, and the parties eventually settled out of court with terms unknown.

Though there was a prenuptial agreement in place when the couple wed, things did not go according to plan for Clarkson when she hit the quit button for the marriage. She got to keep her ranch, but not without a nasty fight. Blackstock also fought Clarkson's request to not pay spousal support, and the singer ended up paying him both a lump sum of roughly $1.3 million as well as $115,000 a month for a period of two years. The court also granted Blackstock $45,601 monthly in child support, even though he only has custody of his children one weekend per month.

Kelly Clarkson is known for her easygoing and down-to-earth vibe, as well as her tendency to tell it like it is. She kept her cards uncharacteristically close to her vest when going through her divorce, however, as she was concerned about the impact that speaking out too much might have on her children. "You see yourself growing old with someone and then life has a different path. "It's so hard on everyone, and you know me, I'm really open. I try to be open and share," she said on "Today" in September 2020. "It's just a tricky thing to navigate." The singer has continued to talk about her split mostly in abstract terms, never divulging bitter specifics or badmouthing her ex.

Clarkson has been much more specific about the way that her divorce affected her personally, detailing a depression that had her reeling for a long time. She eventually bounced back, in part by leaning on those around her — including some four-legged friends. "Ever since I've been separated, now divorced, my dogs have been, like, ruling my bed. So I think they would hate the next person that came in," the star said on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in December 2023. "I would cry a lot, as you do when grief happens, and my dog ... Henry would come in and force his head under my arm and just sit there with me." In addition to canine companionship, Clarkson also went on the antidepressant Lexapro for a few months.

Kelly Clarkson is also a big believer in therapy when it comes to looking out for mental health. And while the star attends traditional therapy sessions with a trained professional, she also turns to her own personal form of therapy to navigate tough times: music. Like many songwriters, Clarkson channels her real-life emotions into her writing — but for her, the primary purpose has to do more with self-reflection than producing a hit record. "I cannot express how appreciative I feel for having that kind of healthy outlet. Because the level of depression and things that come with divorce or grieving is extraordinarily hard," Clarkson told People in 2024. "You feel alone, and it's just a blessing to be able to have that outlet for those emotions that are overwhelming."

Clarkson spent the period after her split from Brandon Blackstock writing songs for what would eventually become the album "Chemistry." She refused to write a traditional break-up album, instead choosing to focus on tracing the relationship through both its high and its lows. "It's all in there, the ride. The beauty is in there, as well. Now there's a lot of pain, but that's what happens for all of us," she said on "Today" in 2023. Though Clarkson wrote and recorded "Chemistry" when her emotions were raw, she refused to release the album until three years after her divorce, once things had settled and she felt she could properly do promotion.

While Las Vegas residencies were at one point seen as being for washed up has-beens, they have become all of the rage with A-listers over the course of the last decade. This type of showcase is especially popular amongst musical artists whose voice is the main draw, as they offer more intimate settings of a few thousand rather than, say, an arena seating 10 or 20 times that amount. Céline Dion, Mariah Carey, Adele and other vocal powerhouses have all taken on Vegas, so why not Kelly Clarkson? She is not only one of best vocalists of her generation, but she boasts a deep catalog of hits and finds creative ways to cover others' songs. What's not to love? 

Clarkson was set to make her Vegas residency debut in 2020, in line with her album "Invincible," before COVID-19 forced its postponement. The pandemic went on for so long that the "Invincible" residency never happened.

However, Clarkson managed to find her way to Nevada a couple of years later when she released "Chemistry." The residency — which marked the first time the star had performed live regularly since 2019 — began at the Bakkt Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in July 2023. Though "Chemistry: An Intimate Evening" was initially supposed to be 10 dates, Clarkson later added four additional shows: two to celebrate New Year's Eve 2024 and two to mark Super Bowl weekend that February.

While a small handful of "American Idol" alumni have gone on to have success in the music industry, very few have become bona fide superstars. After winning Season 1, Kelly Clarkson's career took off like a rocket. The bar was officially set.

With 31 songs charted on Billboard's Hot 100 — with 11 of them making it to the Top 10 and three hitting number one — Clarkson has proven herself a force to be reckoned with. Throw in her popular talk show, time spent as a judge on "The Voice" and other singing shows, Wayfair partnership, and a host of other endeavors and Clarkson has shown she is by no means limited to music.

For her efforts, Clarkson has been nominated for 17 Grammys (winning three), 11 Daytime Emmy Awards (winning eight), and a slew of other awards. But perhaps her biggest honor is the star she received on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2022. Clarkson was supposed to be given the honor the year prior, but the delay from COVID-19 actually had a silver lining — the way it worked out, she was awarded the star exactly 20 years after her "American Idol" win. "I can honestly say to you, thanks to you, I'm here today... because you validated what we did," Simon Cowell said to Clarkson at the induction ceremony.

Kelly Clarkson was a coach on "The Voice" for Seasons 14 through 21 and, after taking a season off, returned for a victory lap in Season 23. She coached four winners — more than any other coaches save for Blake Shelton — and by all accounts got along swimmingly with everyone on set. In fact, Clarkson has said she adored the people at "The Voice" despite leaving the show for good in 2023.

Clarkson has said that while she was on "The Voice," Los Angeles became an unbearably lonely and miserable place for her. She eventually realized that she simply could not do it anymore, so she picked up her life and moved to New York City — relocating the show she could ("The Kelly Clarkson Show") and leaving behind the one she could not ("The Voice"). "I've learned a lot about what I'm capable of handling, and also what you should not handle. That was me saying 'bye' to 'The Voice' and having this big move," she told USA Today. "I love that family, but I was like, 'I'm struggling. I can't smile anymore. I don't feel like smiling.'"

If "The Kelly Clarkson Show" did not exist, Kelly Clarkson would likely live at her ranch in Montana. But because she could not film a show of that magnitude in the middle of nowhere, she chose New York City as her target destination after deciding she needed to get out of Los Angeles. "I literally called one of the [network] heads and was like, 'Listen, my life has been a dumpster fire and I'm really unhappy in L.A. and I don't know if I'll continue in L.A. What are our thoughts about possibly moving this to New York?'" Clarkson recalled in a 2023 chat with Andy Cohen for a SiriusXM Town Hall. The star has said that her entire family lives on the East Coast and that she felt lonely in California, where neither she nor her children were thriving.

The desire to move to NYC was sparked by a work trip. As Clarkson told Cohen, "I came here for upfronts ... and I was like, 'Why have I never lived here?' I know why. My ex does not like living in a city like this, but I just never had done it." Clarkson and her kids, Remy and River, are big fans of the city's walkability, as well as the subway system.

Luckily, all family members took to life in the Big Apple like ducks to Central Park Lake. Clarkson rented a swanky place near Central Park and hit the ground running, going to comedy shows and sports games and everything in between.

"The Kelly Clarkson Show" has always been a hit — it started in 2019 and eventually moved into the coveted "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" timeslot — but the powers-that-be experienced a bout of controversy in early 2023 when Rolling Stone reported on a toxic workplace environment. Clarkson was reportedly unaware of a lot of the issues, but quickly took accountability and got to work on making widespread changes. Though not the original purpose, the show's move to New York City shortly after the Rolling Stone piece dropped provided for a much-needed breath of fresh air and a very convenient distraction in the news cycle.

"The Kelly Clarkson Show" began its 5th season from its new studio at the iconic 30 Rockefeller Center (a.k.a. 30 Rock), and show insiders immediately noticed a shift in Clarkson's vibe, which was contagious on set. "Moving to New York has given us all a renewed sense of energy. We can tell Kelly just has this spark in her step right now that's exciting to see," longtime music director Jason Halbert — who has been with the star since 2003 — reported to USA Today a couple months after the move. Clarkson made sure to thank NBC for considering her mental health when she won yet another Daytime Emmy in June 2024. "They really wrapped their arms around us, and they helped us move," she said in her speech (via People). "The move has been so great, not just for me and my family, but our whole show."

Though she knew that her marriage was not working, Kelly Clarkson stayed with Brandon Blackstock for longer than she should've because she thought it was best for their kids. It is a story to which many can relate, especially parents who themselves come from broken homes and desperately want to end the generational cycle of divorce. It was because of this fear of repeating her childhood reality — which the star has discussed many times in interviews and documented in hit songs like "Because of You" and "Piece by Piece" — that Clarkson talked herself into remaining in her marriage past its expiration date. "It becomes a little bit of your ego that gets in the way," Clarkson explained on the podcast "We Can Do Hard Things," in relation to her mindset. "If I'm being completely honest, we don't want to do what we saw done."

Despite her fear, Clarkson has found that splitting from Blackstock was the best thing for her family. Above all else, she has said that focusing on herself and working toward finding happiness improved her parenting. "I can say that after [the divorce], I'm a far better mother. Because I think when you're honest with yourself you're able to be honest with others," she told Glennon Doyle and the other "We Can Do Hard Things" hosts. In a different interview with People, posted to the publication's Instagram account in January 2024, Clarkson explained how she is unyielding about scheduling so that she can be present for her children.

In the years since her divorce, Kelly Clarkson has reevaluated her approach health and wellness. The star has dropped a significant amount of weight since her split, partially due to a weight loss drug that she began taking after she found out she was prediabetic. "I ended up having to do that because my blood work got so bad," she told Whoopi Goldberg on a 2024 episode of her show. Clarkson added that she was never unhappy with her size, but once it was clear her health was on the line, she was ready to make a change.

Clarkson has also noted that living in New York City has lead to an increase in physical activity. As she told People, "Walking in the city is quite the workout." What's more, she adjusted her approach to food. "I eat a healthy mix," she added. "I dropped weight because I've been listening to my doctor — a couple years I didn't. And 90 percent of the time I'm really good at it because a protein diet is good for me anyway. I'm a Texas girl, so I like meat — sorry, vegetarians in the world!" She told People that she has also started doing things like taking cold plunges and using infrared saunas, both known for their many positive impacts on body and mind.

Kelly Clarkson obviously truly loved her one-time husband Brandon Blackstock, otherwise she never would have grieved their time together. But the star has admitted that the sadness she felt before and after her split was anything but surprising, as she has never been a romantic. "I've always known that love is hard. For me, love has always come with this elephant in the room of sadness. I've known love is not forever," she told People in 2024. "I don't mean that to sound depressing, but I think we put a lot of pressure on that word. Sometimes love is looking at someone and going, 'This is not good for you. This is not good for me.' That's a hard thing to face. But when you do, I think you grow."

Clarkson may have married despite these rather pessimistic views on love, but it does not look like she will again — at least not for a long while. She has expressed being open to the idea of marrying once her kids leave the nest but is not especially keen on the prospect. "I need a little bit of work on me in a relationship to make sure I take care of myself at the same time as somebody else," she said on a December 2023 episode of "The Kelly Clarkson Show." "But also, I love me, and I love spending time with me." It's as a wise woman once sang: "Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone."

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.