Kelly Clarkson reveals how her talk show ‘saved’ her ahead of final episode

Kelly Clarkson has opened up about the unexpected lifeline her talk show provided during some of the most turbulent years of her personal life.

The 44-year-old singer is preparing to say goodbye to The Kelly Clarkson Show after seven seasons, with its final episode set to air on Monday, August 31.

Looking back on the extraordinary period since the show launched in 2019, Kelly acknowledged just how much has changed – both in the world and behind the scenes in her own life.

“A lot has happened in my personal life,” she reflected in a new video shared ahead of the finale.

From navigating the pandemic to her difficult divorce from Brandon Blackstock, relocating her family across the country and later losing her ex-husband to cancer, Kelly admitted that having somewhere to go each day – and other people to focus on – became unexpectedly important.

“I think that saved me, honestly, a lot of times,” she said of the show.

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Kelly launched the NBC daytime series in September 2019, following her success as a coach on The Voice.

Just months later, the pandemic transformed the way the program was produced, while Kelly’s personal life was also undergoing enormous change.

She filed for divorce from Brandon in 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage, with the former couple eventually finalising their split in 2022. Kelly later relocated from Los Angeles to New York with their two children, River Rose, now 12, and Remington, ten.

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Brandon died aged 48 in August 2025 following a private battle with melanoma. Kelly had previously stepped away from performances in order to be there for their children while he was ill.

There is added poignancy to Kelly’s farewell because it was Brandon who originally encouraged her to consider becoming a daytime host.

Recalling how the idea first came about, Kelly said her then-husband told her NBC was interested in discussing a possible talk show.

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Her initial response? She thought it was “the worst idea ever” because, as she joked, she “never shut[s] up”.

Seven years later, the gamble has paid off, with the show becoming a major daytime success and giving Kelly the opportunity to interview – and frequently sing alongside – stars she had admired for years, including Julie Andrews, Pink and Alanis Morissette.

But in February, Kelly announced that she had made the “difficult decision” to bring the daily show to an end, explaining that she wanted to devote more time to River and Remington.

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That decision appears especially poignant as she looks back at just how young her children were when the show began.

“My kids have grown up on this show, too,” she said while being presented with a yearbook filled with memories from its seven seasons.

The children recently made a rare public appearance at the final night of their mom’s Las Vegas residency, joining her at Caesars Palace on August 15.