Career-wise, it feels like there’s very little that Kelly Clarkson hasn’t done. Since finding fame as the very first winner of American Idol, she has starred in a movie, toured all over the world, become a mom, provided commentary at the Olympics, started a talk show and won Emmy Awards for it. There is no venue too big for Clarkson’s powerhouse vocals, but of everything she’s accomplished, there was just one audience that left her “terrified” — her child’s classroom.
Kelly Clarkson is used to the spotlight, but apparently, it feels different when all of those looks are coming from children — and not just any children, but the ones your own kid has to see every day. She opened up about the harrowing experience when Saturday Night Live comedian (and new children’s book author) Kenan Thompson visited The Kelly Clarkson Show, admitting to him:
We have done many things, right? On stage, performed for so many people, right? The moment I had to read for my kid’s classroom, I was terrified. I have performed for a pope. I have performed for, like, many things, and in that moment, that was the moment that I was gonna die. I was so nervous.
Yes, I left “sang for the pope” off the above list of Kelly Clarkson's accomplishments, but that’s a pretty good example to describe just how much pressure she felt going in front of a classroom to read a book. Maybe if she’d been up there to sing, rather than read, she would have felt slightly more at home.
Kenan Thompson agreed that reading for children is terrifying because at that young age, they have no filter, and they’re not afraid to share their opinions, no matter how brutal the truth could be.
Neither Kelly Clarkson nor Kenan Thompson seemed to actually have had a bad experience with any of the students, thankfully, because I can understand the main reason Clarkson would be nervous. She said:
You don’t want your kid to be like, ‘My mom is such a moron.’ You know? You don’t want your kid to think you’re an idiot, but I was so nervous.
Kelly Clarkson has two children, 11-year-old River and 9-year-old Remington, whom she shared with her ex-husband. Brandon Blackstock died in August after a long, private battle with cancer, and sources say that while Clarkson’s children have always been her priority, she’s especially focused on being present now.
I wonder if that means more trips to the classroom might be in order!
Either way, even those outside of her kids’ school will be able to see more of Kelly Clarkson soon, as she’s returning as a coach on The Voice when Season 29 hits the 2026 TV schedule next month. She’s joining fellow veterans Adam Levine and John Legend for a revamped season dubbed “Battle of Champions.”
Catch the premiere at 9 p.m. ET Monday, February 23, on NBC and streaming the next day with a Peacock subscription. You can also continue to see Kelly Clarkson weekdays on her talk show (check your local listings for time and channel).
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