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Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson
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The winner of Fox TV's first American Idol competition during the summer of 2002, Kelly Clarkson went from an anonymous talent to a nationally known singer in a matter of months, performing for an audience of millions. One of the show's most naturally gifted singers, the affable Texan then went on to enjoy a successful pop career, with only Carrie Underwood rivaling her as American Idol's most commercial export.

Clarkson was born in Forth Worth and raised in Burleson, TX, and her vocal talents were discovered in seventh grade, when a music teacher heard her voice and urged Clarkson to join the school choir. After high school, she opted to skip college and went to Hollywood to make her name; she appeared as an extra on an episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, but no other opportunities materialized. Upon returning to Burleson, Clarkson worked at a movie theater, promoted Red Bull energy drinks, and ultimately worked as a cocktail waitress at a comedy club before entering the American Idol contest.

One of 10,000 aspiring singers, Clarkson distinguished herself not only with her big, surprisingly mature voice, but also with her down-to-earth charm and sense of humor; at one of her auditions, she switched places with judge Randy Jackson, who did an impromptu version of R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly." Over the course of the 13-week show, her consistently strong performances of songs like "Respect," "Natural Woman," "Stuff Like That There," and "Without You" earned Clarkson enough audience votes to claim one of the contest's two finalist positions. After singing "A Moment Like This" and "Before Your Love," both of which were written for the show, Clarkson won the American Idol contest with 58 percent of the audience's votes. In addition to the show's prize of one million dollars and a recording contract with RCA, Clarkson secured a deal with Creative Artists Agency and several bookings, including the national American Idol tour and a performance of the national anthem at the September 11 commemoration at Washington, D.C.'s Lincoln Memorial.

Despite her newfound fame, Clarkson opted to remain in Texas rather than move to New York or Los Angeles. Her first single, "A Moment Like This," was released just two weeks after she won the contest and quickly earned platinum sales. Clarkson's debut full-length, Thankful, was released in spring of 2003, just in time to coincide with the second season of American Idol (and right before the American Idol movie, From Justin to Kelly). Breakaway followed in late 2004 and was a huge success, selling over five million copies (making it the third best-selling album of 2005) and spawning the hit singles "Because of You," "Behind These Hazel Eyes," and the enormously popular "Since U Been Gone." That song and Breakaway earned Grammys for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album, respectively, at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards in early 2006. Clarkson continued her busy touring schedule into the summer and announced plans for her third album.

Clarkson released My December, the studio follow-up to Breakaway, in 2007. Notable as Clarkson's first foray into songwriting, My December featured a darker, more rock-oriented edge than its predecessor and even featured a guest appearance by punk icon bassist Mike Watt. However, label exec Clive Davis openly disapproved of the album's direction, claiming that it lacked the commercial appeal of Breakaway. A public feud ensued, and Clarkson was dealt another blow when poor ticket sales resulted in the cancellation of her upcoming tour. The leadoff single "Never Again" nevertheless became a Top Ten pop hit, and My December climbed its way to platinum status by the year's end.

Kelly Clarkson returned to the top of the charts in early 2009, when the sugary single "My Life Would Suck Without You" set a record for the largest leap to number one. Composed by songwriting vets Max Martin, Lukasz Gottwald, and Claude Kelly, the song also set the stage for her fourth album, All I Ever Wanted, whose pop-minded material was mostly produced by OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder. ~ Heather Phares, All Music GuideMore

Official Profile

Kelly Clarkson
"I just want to be able to look back at this album and be proud, and to think, 'Man, that was a...
Songs: 1, Videos: 2, Playlists: 1, Blog Posts: 0, Polls: 0, Battles: 0

Most Popular Music Videos (13)

Because Of You
(Duration: 3:42)
Jun 28th, 11:47pm
Behind These Hazel Eyes
(Duration: 3:16)
Jun 29th, 11:09pm
Walk Away
(Duration: 3:11)
Jun 19th, 11:43pm
Breakaway
(Duration: 3:55)
Jun 28th, 11:44pm
Miss Independent
(Duration: 3:32)
Jun 20th, 1:08am
Since U Been Gone
(Duration: 3:12)
Jun 20th, 12:46am
view all

Fan Comments

Oct 14th, 9:02pm
Kelly has sucha a beautiful voice :)
She's so inspirational.
Oct 11th, 10:10pm
Hey guys! Miranda Lambert's new album is out and awesome! Check her out: http://www.imeem.com/tag/miranda%20lambert/music
Oct 6th, 4:04am
New Kelly Clarkson iPhone karaoke application “Open Mic” Downloading this app also allows you to enter to win a chance to meet Kelly on tour

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j50/Joe_College/ioeDr.gif
Sep 28th, 8:34pm
You're an inspirational singer. You have a beautiful and strong voice=).
Sep 22nd, 2:03pm
Do they have Gone?
Jul 30th, 4:35pm
hey Brittany, why don't you try reading a few articles before making a comment. Kelly didn't steal this song. Ryan Tedder of One Republic wrote both songs and actually wrote the song for Kelly first. She recorded it first & Beyonce liked it. So, she asked Tedder to write a song for her. Beyonce just managed to get her album and Halo out faster than Kelly got her album out. If you don't believe me, just click this link and read the story or just type: Already Gone Kelly Clarkson in your google search bar and you will find articles about it.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2001074/kelly_clarksons_already_gone_causes.html?cat=33
Jul 28th, 1:21pm
thou shalt not steal....im just sayin you know...
i did like you but you kinda disappointed me with already gone.....
Jul 10th, 1:51pm
Hey Kelly fans! Want to see her perform live at a private event in NYC? Visit our blog for more details!
Jun 2nd, 8:25am
i love ur song damn much...u hve a good voice!!!!!
May 31st, 9:26am
✿ hi kelly..

✿ i love ur new song ^o^