STAYING STRONG
Kelly Clarkson is healing after her split
Even in the face of a very public split, Kelly Clarkson is as gracious as ever. On June 26 – 22 days after she filed for divorce from music manager Brandon Blackstock – the singer thanked her ex on Twitter following her first Daytime Emmy win. “Thank you so much to @BBlackstock for believing in me & convincing me to do @KellyClarksonTV show,” wrote Clarkson, who picked up the award for outstanding entertainment talk show host for The Kelly Clarkson Show.
While some fans expressed surprise at her comment, sources say the gesture wasn’t so unexpected. “Brandon’s confidence in her talent and his ability to push the right buttons for her has been great for her career,” says a Clarkson friend. “Kelly’s excited, proud and grateful.”
Despite the personal upheaval, Clarkson is determined to carry on. One day after her big win, The Voice coach, 38, made her first public appearance since filing for divorce to participate in a telethon for Project Angel Food, a Los Angeles-based organisation that cooks and delivers healthy meals to those in need. Performing a passionate cover of U2’s ‘I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For’, Clarkson thanked the organisation for helping those who are “most vulnerable” during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Kelly is a doer, a pusher, someone who forges ahead even when it’s difficult for her,” says a Clarkson insider. “Being busy is a blessing, and she knows that.”
Though Clarkson’s days are packed as she works on her talk show and gears up for the new season of The Voice, the star – who’s back in Los Angeles after self-isolating in Montana with Blackstock, 43, and their kids – is prioritising her children River Rose, 6, and Remington Alexander, 4. “The quarantine in Montana was hard on her, but she was strong enough to keep going and do what was best for her and the children,” says another source.
Clarkson is also working on an album she began writing earlier this year. “Music builds her up even if her songs are confronting her troubles,” says the friend. At the end of the day, says the source, “Kelly will come out of this a stronger person.”