Why Did Kelly Clarkson Leave ‘The Voice’?
Kelly Clarkson performs on NBC's "Today" at Rockefeller Plaza on September 22, 2023 in New York City.
Kelly Clarkson served as a coach on NBC’s The Voice from season 14 through season 21 before taking a brief break and returning for Season 23. More recently, she left the singing competition show for good. She told USA Today that the reason why she left is because she doesn’t want to “fake it.” The 41-year-old singer and talk show host has since relocated her family and The Kelly Clarkson Show to New York.
She admits to the publication this week of her decision to move, “I’ll be real honest: I thought I was making a horrible decision. I knew I needed a fresh start and couldn’t be in LA. I really wanted to be in Montana, but you can’t really do a show from there quite yet. So I was like, ‘The only other option would probably be New York.'” Luckily for her, she and her kids, River Rose and Remington “Remy” Alexander “genuinely love” living in the Big Apple.
Elsewhere in the interview, Clarkson opened up about her decision to step away from her coaching role on The Voice. “Full disclosure, I put on a smile a lot of those times because I was struggling a lot in my personal life,” Clarkson said of the past four years. “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.” Clarkson worked alongside fellow coaches Blake Shelton, John Legend, Nick Jonas, Gwen Stefani, and Ariana Grande. Though she loved “that family,” she couldn’t ignore the fact that she was struggling. At the time, the “Stronger” singer said, “I can’t smile anymore. I don’t feel like smiling.”
She’s now focusing on season five of her talk show, which is being filmed in New York. Now, Clarkson finds herself “in such a great place, not only with my kids but with me personally and with the show. I feel like a weight has lifted. That move was very needed. I think the thing I’m most excited about with season 5, on a selfish level, is just showing up to work smiling and actually meaning it. That’s a beautiful gift that you don’t realize until you’re out of it.”
Kelly Clarkson's Best 'Kellyoke' Performances of 2023 (So Far)
Kelly Clarkson keeps cranking out amazing covers in her Kellyoke series. The singer and talk show host never fails to entertain with her genre-spanning covers. From Destiny’s Child to Lenny Kravitz to Chris Stapleton, you don’t know what song she will put her own spin on next.
Clarkson previously released an album of six of her covers from 2022 after “singing over 500” on The Kelly Clarkson Show, which she said was “near-impossible” to choose. The Kellyoke album was released in June of 2022 and features the following songs:
- “Blue Bayou” by Linda Ronstadt
- “Call Out My Name” by The Weeknd
- “Happier Than Ever” by Billie Eilish
- “Queen Of The Night” by Whitney Houston
- “Trampoline” by SHAED and Zayn
- “Fake Plastic Trees” by Radiohead
Announcing her upcoming 10th studio album, Chemistry, the singer said she didn’t want “everybody” to think that her emotions could just be simplified as angry or sad. She explained in a New music soon 🍷💔☀️ pic.twitter.com/c9mPNchiE2
— Kelly Clarkson 🍷💔☀️ (@kellyclarkson) March 26, 2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">video, “This album is definitely the arc of an entire relationship, and a whole relationship shouldn’t be just brought down to one thing. So there’s the good, the bad, the ugly thing kinda going on in it.”
In addition to new music, Clarkson will also be heading to Las Vegas, singing fan favorites and new songs, for a It's happening, y'all! 🎶 I'm so excited to announce that I'm finally heading to Las Vegas for 10 shows this summer! I'll be singing all of your favorites... and yes, I'll be singing some new ones, too! 😉 pic.twitter.com/xYQWqgfeq5
— Kelly Clarkson 🍷💔☀️ (@kellyclarkson) March 27, 2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">10-show residency starting July 28.
See our favorite Kellyoke performances of 2023 so far below:
Laila Abuelhawa is the Top 40 and Hip-Hop pop culture writer for Beasley Media Group. Being with the company for over three years, Laila's fierce and fabulous red-carpet rankings have earned her a feature on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert!' Her favorite stories are those surrounding the latest in celebrity fashion, television and film rankings, and how the world reacts to major celebrity news. With a background in journalism, Laila's stories ensure accuracy and offer background information on stars that you wouldn't have otherwise known. She prides herself in covering stories that inform the public about what is currently happening and what is to come in the ever-changing, ever-evolving media landscape.
