Brandon Blackstock: 5 Things To Know About Kelly Clarkson’s Ex Amid Their Divorce & Custody Battle

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After Kelly Clarkson, 38, was awarded primary custody of her and Brandon Blackstock’s two children – daughter River, 6, and son Remy, 4 — on Nov. 20, she went on to accuse her 43-year-old ex of defrauding her of millions. The original American Idol winner recently filed legal docs with the California Labor Commission, claiming Brandon, who also served as her personal manager, defrauded her by charging exorbitant fees, and now, she wants all of the money back.

These shocking developments come months after Kelly and Brandon officially called it quits after almost seven years of marriage. The couple has a long history together outside of their romance, and the two have actually been working together for years, with Brandon acting as Kelly’s talent manager.

Want to know more? Here are five things you need to know about Brandon Blackstock.

1) Brandon wasn’t Kelly’s first talent manager. It might seem obvious, but despite working together for almost a decade, Brandon was not Kelly’s first talent manager. In fact, Brandon’s own father, Narvel Blackstock, managed Kelly before Brandon took over! Narvel also has deep ties in the world of country music and has been a TV producer for a few country music specials in the past!

2) Brandon is the former stepson of Reba McEntire. When we said that Brandon’s father had ties to the country music community, we really meant it! Narvel was married to Reba from 1989-2015, and Reba took on the role of grandmother to Brandon and Kelly’s kiddos. Before marrying Reba, Narvel was married to Brandon’s mother, Elisa Gayle Ritter, from 1973-1988.

3) He was previously married. Prior to his 2013 nuptials to Kelly, Brandon was married to Melissa Ashworth, divorcing her in 2012 — the same year that Kelly and Brandon started dating. Brandon shares two children with Melissa; they have a son Seth, 13, and a daughter named Savannah, 18. Kelly had taken on the role of step-mom to Brandon’s youngsters, taking them in as her own.

4) Brandon has two children with Kelly. Following their October 2013 wedding, Kelly gave birth to the couple’s two children. In 2014, they welcomed their first child, a daughter named River Rose, 5, and in April 2016, the family welcomed Kelly and Brandon’s son, four-year-old son Remington Alexander.

5) Kelly gushed about her relationship with Brandon back in 2013. During an interview with Cosmopolitan, the “Miss Independent” songstress had nothing but love for Brandon. “Brandon’s totally the one. I’ve never been so happy,” she told the outlet. “We’ve known each other for years, but we didn’t start talking until the Super Bowl last February. And this is the funniest/worst thing ever: One of my superhero idols is Whitney Houston, and the day she died was our first date. I was like ‘This is a bad omen.’” Although the omen did lurk at the back of Kelly’s mind, things turned out great for the time. “Six years, I was single before this. I’ve never been truly loved like I am right now.”