Look, it's Kelly Clarkson trying to go country with country star Vince Gill. She has had a couple of successful songs in that genre from the remakes of her hit songs Because of You with Reba McIntire and the country version of Mr. Know It All. But her duet with Jason Aldean, Don't You Wanna Stay, had the biggest splash, I think.
Don't Rush is a complete departure from Kelly Clarkson's anthemic sound from her previous album and even her latest single from her Greatest Hits compilation, Catch My Breath. Not sure if this is country exactly, but I love that it has an old school vibe to it. It's definitely a little throwback, but it's soulful, bluesy and I like the more mellow style of it than some of the things we've heard from her recently. Plus, it's refreshing to hear such a laid back vocal from the original American Idol. This makes me happy.
Check out Kelly Clarkson's new single, Catch My Breath, which is her official lead single off her very first hits compilation, Greatest Hits - Chapter 1, due out November 16, 2012.
Hmm. The opening verse is great, it's strong lyrically and she sounds stellar as usual, but I somehow find the chorus a bit underwhelming. It lacks that catchy hook, which most of her singles have. Still, it's pretty much the typical Kelly Clarkson song. To be honest, I actually don't understand why they cut short the Stronger era when the album seriously has some STRONG tracks in there and release a Greatest Hits record. Enjoy!
It's finally out! Kelly Clarkson just debuted her third single, Dark Side, new music video off her latest album, Stronger. I must say, I really LOVE this new Kelly Clarkson era!
This is possibly one of my favorite tracks in her album and yes, I kind of enjoy this music video. It's pretty straightforward with a nice uplifting theme. And is it just me or she's looking extremely gorgeous and fresh in her past three music videos. I never got into the whole Kelly Clarkson bandwagon until My December, and I regret it now. She's fantabulous and now easily one of my favorite American Idols EVER! Enjoy!
Yes, the American Idol trifecta represented the show very well last night at the Billboard Music Awards. If anybody wants an argument for American Idol, whether it's about the contribution of reality singing shows to the music industry or about American Idol against other reality singing shows, I feel like we could just show them last night's broadcast with three of the winners pulling off the best performances of the night.
First up, it's Kelly Clarkson debuting her newest single, Dark Side, off her album, Stronger. I must say, she looked stunning. I liked that her performance was understated, heartfelt, and lovely. There's a sense of vulnerability in her delivery and that tone was just gorgeous. Enjoy!
Here's Kelly Clarkson's new music video for her single, What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger), off her latest album, Stronger.
The concept is kind of common, but it's goofy in a good way. I like that she's actually channeling her pop star qualities and is dancing! Haha. The song has an incredibly catchy hook and she looks ridiculously gorgeous in this music video. This song should be a big hit for Kelly.
ETA: DAM NATION's album review of Stronger will be posted next week. I know, it's late, but whatever.
Here is Kelly Clarkson's new music video for her debut single, Mr. Know It All, off her next album, Stronger.
Love the song! I admit, the music video isn't the best, but it serves the song well. I actually like the color mixed into it. Oh, and I think this is the best I've seen of her - she looks gorgeous!!
Here's Kelly Clarkson's new single, Mr. Know It All, off her long-awaited new album entitled Stronger, which will be out on October 25, 2011.
I admit, the song is a little lightweight compared to her previous songs, but the simplicity of Mr. Know It All is kind of refreshing for Kelly Clarkson. I love the richness of her voice and it's not as over processed as her vocals in My Life Would Suck Without You. I also didn't expect the interesting contrast between the staccato verses and the melodic chorus. Plus, the structure actually reminds me of Bruno Mars' Just The Way You Are.
A few weeks ago, I posted two promos for American Idol Season 10. Now, here's the new teaser or promo for American Idol Season 10 featuring, yes, ALL the winners! They all share their individual stories and how the show helped them become who they are now.
Crap! Can I seriously die now? Haha. Of course I'm kidding, but this promo just brought out the inner fanboy in me. Really. I was seriously not excited with the new season AT ALL, but this slew of promos with the winners makes me all giddy and stupid. Haha. Enjoy!
Just like Carrie Underwood at #11, I expect to receive a couple of criticism soon for putting the original American Idol at just #8. Again, let me explain..
Kelly Clarkson is possibly among the Top 5 most popular contestants to ever come out of Idol - even after 9 years - and is often called the best contestant EVER. Well, I would say she's had an amazing post-Idol career - possibly one of my favorite post-Idol contestants. But somehow, that doesn't play into my favorites. Yes, it can affect a little - case in point, Brooke White - but it can just do so much.
Kelly was an absolute stand out on Season 1, even from her very first live performance. She was definitely my favorite of the night, and I was so glad she moved on. Really. Imagine what the competition would have been like without her! Travesty. Haha. Well, it's kind of hard for me to really analyze the progression of Season 1, since I knew all of the results before even watching, but from what I understand it took a while for Kelly to become a frontrunner. Somehow, it seemed that even after a few weeks into the Finals, Tamyra Gray and Justin Guarini were still the ones who were expected to do better than any other contestants. I even read somewhere that Tamyra lead the betting odds, followed by Justin, then Kelly.
I guess the main thing that disappointed me about Season 1 was - well, the main thing was really the lack of great talent in the Top 10 - but the other worst thing about that season was how karaoke Idol was. Haha. I mean, when did Kelly or any of the other contestants, for that matter, really show any musical relevance? Probably never! At least, not that I can think of. Quite frankly, Kelly would've killed it in a more recent season, I think. I would've loved to hear the types of performances she would do and I wonder if she would've gone the pop-rock route on the show. Anyway, my point is that watching Season 1 back, all I got from Kelly Clarkson was an outstanding karaoke version of the songs and not much more. It was a bit disappointing although it's not her fault.
Now, was Kelly the rightful winner? Honestly, a part of me would've liked Tamyra Gray to win Season 1 - or at least make the final two - but I don't think she could've had nearly the success Kelly did. So, yes, Kelly was the right winner. But if I'm being honest, when the name Kelly Clarkson comes to mind, I instantly think of everything she has done post-Idol and that's not to say she wasn't great on the show because I thought she had an amazing voice. However, the first season, as I've said, was definitely more karaoke compared to the seasons after that and the song choices were much more limited since the show was still in its incipient stages and hadn't yet earned its credibility. Therefore, Kelly just got to live up to her true potential after the show.
That's why I cannot rank her any higher than this if I'm being completely real. When I first set up my rankings a few months ago, Kelly was about a couple of spots higher than this - just like Carrie Underwood. But a big part of that was because I almost felt obligated to have her that high. But alas, I am keeping my list 100% real! So, deal with it. Haha.
Now, as I've said, I didn't watch Season 1 but I definitely liked what I already knew about Kelly, and it just got better with her debut album, Thankful. Yes, I wasn't entirely a Kelly Clarkson fan convert after that - even though I really enjoyed her single, Miss Independent - but it was her second album, Breakaway, that got me into the whole Clarkson bandwagon. Then, she released My December, and I thought I got to appreciate her as an artist even more. Truth be told, her progression as an artist really made me admire her more than anything else - aside from her amazing voice, of course.
Favorite performance(s): Kelly absolutely gave a ton of showstoppers in the first season. My favorite, however, was her sassy take on Stuff Like That There. Of course, Natural Woman was a classic Kelly performance and so was her coronation song, A Moment Like This.
