Kelly Clarkson recently opened up about some really tough stuff from her marriage to her ex-husband and former manager, Brandon Blackstock. In court testimony, she shared how he basically tried to talk her out of joining “The Voice” as a coach, saying she just wasn’t “sexy” enough for the gig.
He apparently suggested the network was looking for more of a sex symbol vibe, like Rihanna. On top of that, he mentioned NBC wanted to boost diversity by bringing in “someone that was Black,” and that Kelly was way too similar to Blake Shelton, who was already a staple on the show.v
You know, she put it pretty bluntly in the hearing: “Well, a wife doesn’t forget a time she gets told she’s not a sex symbol, so that stays.” It’s the kind of comment that sticks with you, right? Especially coming from your own spouse.
All this came out during a messy legal fight after their 2020 divorce. Since Brandon was her manager too, things got complicated fast—they were hashing out whether he’d crossed lines under California’s rules for talent agents. Back in November 2023, a labor commissioner decided yeah, he had overstepped by negotiating deals like her “The Voice” contract, and hit him with an order to pay her back over $2.6 million in commissions. That broke down to about $1.98 million from “The Voice,” $450k from Wayfair, $208k from Norwegian Cruise Line, and even a tiny $93 from the Billboard Awards.
The commissioner wasn’t buying Brandon’s story either—his testimony kept shifting, and they flat-out called him “not a credible witness” on the big stuff. He appealed, but by May 2024, they settled it all privately.
Kelly also revealed she didn’t even know about the “The Voice” offer until after he’d already started wheeling and dealing with NBC. He used the buzz around a possible “American Idol” comeback to push for a fat paycheck, matching what Blake was getting. And get this—during the trial, she found out her agency, CAA, only got 5% on some deals instead of the usual 10%, with Brandon pocketing the rest, allegedly.
On the personal side, Kelly filed for divorce in June 2020 after almost seven years together. They have two kids—River Rose, who’s 11 now, and Remington Alexander, 9—and wrapped up the divorce in March 2022. The agreement had her paying him $1.3 million upfront, plus $45,601 a month in child support and $115k monthly for spousal until January 2024. She got primary custody and sorted out their Montana ranch in her favor too.
Once those spousal payments stopped in 2024, people close to her said she felt like a huge weight was lifted, ready to move on.
But here’s the inspiring part—despite all that negativity from Brandon, Kelly jumped into “The Voice” starting Season 14 in 2018, stuck around through Season 21 in 2021, and even came back for Season 23 in 2023. She killed it as a coach, winning four times and getting tons of love for her real talk and guidance.
Around the same time, she kicked off “The Kelly Clarkson Show” in 2019, which has snagged a bunch of Daytime Emmys and made her a TV staple. Through all the drama, she’s shown she’s all about her talent and grit, not fitting some shallow mold.
Honestly, her whole saga shines a light on how rough it can be for women in showbiz, where looks often trump skills. But Kelly’s flipped the script, becoming a real role model for pushing through and owning your worth.