Kelly Clarkson was introduced to the world in 2002 as the inaugural winner of American Idol. The Texas-born-and-raised singer hasn’t looked back since. She’s built an illustrious career for more than 20 years with hits like “Breakaway,” “Miss Independent,” “Since U Been Gone” and several others that have defined pop music in the 2000s. Clarkson has built an interesting life for herself in and outside of music. Check out five facts you may not have known about the beloved superstar.
Videos by American Songwriter
1. She declined a scholarship to Berklee College of Music
Clarkson’s natural musical ability proved to be so great that she was offered a full-ride scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music. She also was accepted into the University of Texas at Austin (Janis Joplin is an alumnus) and the University of North Texas which also has an internationally renowned music program. But Clarkson turned them all down to pursue her own path.
“When it came time to graduate, I’d already written so much music and wanted to try on my own. And I figured you’re never too old to go to college,” she told Reader’s Digest in 2007. She also recalled the profound reaction one man had to a performance she did in high school that solidified her dreams to pursue music.
“I was 13. At one of our high school shows, I sang Mariah Carey’s ‘Vision of Love.’ When I finished, this old man…came up to me and said, ‘God has given you this gift. You’ve got to sing. You’re destined to sing,'” she continued. “Nobody had ever said anything like that. That just rocked my world. I kept singing.”
2. She worked as an extra before making it big
Clarkson moved to Los Angeles after graduating high school to get a jump start on her musical ambitions. Before she shot to fame on American Idol, Clarkson paid the bills by working as an extra on shows including Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Dharma & Greg. In fact, Henry Winkler directed an episode of Sabrina that Clarkson appeared in.
“I never ever wanted to be an actress!” she professed to Seventeen. “Public speaking and acting make me want to vomit. But I have never been nervous singing. When it comes to public speaking, I stumble on my words, sweat, and pull at my clothes. And even though I hate acting, I love doing videos for my songs.”
3. She broke a record set by the Beatles
Clarkson not only made history as the first winner of American Idol, but her coronation song “A Moment Like This” and double A-side single, “Before Your Love,” also made history on the charts. Prior to the release of “A Moment Like This” in 2002, the Beatles held the record for the longest jump to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Can’t Buy Me Love” when it leaped from No. 27 to No. 1 in 1964.
Clarkson blew past that record nearly 40 years later when “Moment” jumped from No. 52 to No. 1 in October 2002. She broke the record again in 2009 when her other hit, “My Life Would Suck Without You,” made the long pilgrimage from No. 97 to No. 1 on the Hot 100 in its second week, marking the furthest jump in the chart’s 51-year history at the time.
4. She’s related to a Civil War veteran
During a 2013 episode of the genealogy series, Who Do You Think You Are? Clarkson discovered that one of her ancestors is Civil War veteran Isaiah R. Rose. Born in 1843 in Ohio, Rose is Clarkson’s great-great-great grandfather on her mother’s side. He fought in the Union Army and was captured as a prisoner. He was shot in the leg by a Confederate soldier which left him permanently disabled. He later climbed the political ladder and became a Republican state senator in Ohio in 1905.
“You have had a well-lived life,” the singer said while visiting his gravesite on Who Do You Think You Are? “Thank you so much for being such a hero.”
5. She legally changed her name
Though she was born Kelly Brianne Clarkson, the superstar made a significant name change after her divorce from ex-husband Brandon Blackstock was finalized in 2022. At first, she asked the courts to legally change her name back to her birth name instead of Kelly Blackstock. But then she made another amendment by asking the court to make her legal name Kelly Brianne.
“I just got divorced, so I had to drop my married last name,” Clarkson explained to People in 2022. “I just kept my middle name for my personal life. I’m still Kelly Clarkson. I don’t think I can change Clarkson at this point. I’m 20 years in.”
While she’ll always be known to the public as Kelly Clarkson, her new legal name is Kelly Brianne, asserting in the court documents that “my new name more fully reflects who I am.”
Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images
