Kelly Clarkson got real about the loneliness that could accompany the holidays. The singer, 39, shared her thoughts about the “range of emotions” she experiences during Christmastime during her NBC holiday special Kelly Clarkson Presents: When Christmas Comes Around on Wednesday, Dec. 1, noting that it can be “tough” following her divorce from Brandon Blackstock.
“The holidays come with a whole range of emotions,” Kelly said before performing “Merry Christmas (To the One I Used to Know).” “I’m gonna be real with y’all — when I wrote this next song, I was crying my face off, which happens even at Christmastime, everyone. I had just put my kids to bed and I was just going through it, having a really hard time, and it’s been a really tough year for a lot of us.”
The singer said she “wrote this song for me,” but “also because there aren’t many holiday songs for people feeling alone or lost or just plain sad other than Dolly Parton’s classic ‘Hard Candy Christmas,’ which we all love.” She continued, “It’s about getting through a tough holiday. I absolutely love that song and it allowed me to write this.”
Kelly concluded the special — a holiday companion to her holiday album When Christmas Comes Around released in October — with a performance of “Christmas Isn’t Canceled (Just You).” She noted it was the first song she wrote for the album, alluding to her split. “I wrote it because a lot of things were taken from us over the last couple of years: people, relationships, jobs, etc,” she said.
“There were so many things taken, but instead of looking at everything that’s gone wrong, we should be looking at all the things that have gone right,” Kelly continued. “And that’s what my therapist tells me anyway so that’s who I’m singing to! But no matter what people try to take from you, nobody can cancel Christmas, y’all.”
Kelly filed for divorce from Brandon in June 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage, setting forth a messy divorce battle as they got their finances in order. They share children River Rose, 7, and Remington Alexander, 5, together. In September, Kelly was declared legally single; per court documents obtained by HollywoodLife, the divorce will be finalized in January 2022.