About Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson [b. 1982] achieved American pop music fame by winning the very first American Idol contest in 2002. She grew up outside Fort Worth, Texas, and studied classical voice during high school while appearing in a number of musicals. Clarkson also showed an early talent for songwriting and moved to Los Angeles in lieu of attending college so as to study the craft with Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Gerry Goffin. However, after failing to score a record deal despite cutting five demo tracks, she returned home to Texas and subsequently auditioned for American Idol: The Search for a Superstar (the show’s original title).
Her success as the show’s first winner quickly led Clarkson to her much-desired recording contract. She signed with RCA Records, which released her debut single, “A Moment Like This,” followed a few months later by a full-length album, Thankful [2003]. This effort debuted at the top spot of the U.S. Billboard 200, also enjoying success thanks to contributions by Christina Aguilera and Babyface. Two other tracks from Thankful received attention as singles releases, including “The Trouble With Love Is,” which was featured in the movie, Love Actually.
In addition to five studio albums—Clarkson’s most recent is Stronger, released in October 2011 [RCA Records]—she has toured extensively as far back as her immediate post-American Idol days. In 2003 she embarked on a Midwestern U.S. tour to promote her debut album, including several appearances at state fairs that summer. She performed in 32 separate U.S. venues in spring 2004, plus 77 venues in the U.S. and Canada in spring/summer 2005. Clarkson’s first overseas tour took her to Australasia in November of that year, and she hit Europe the following February and March, primarily performing in the U.K. and Ireland.
Clarkson boasts a number of acting credits, primarily in circumstances where she either played herself or a fictionalized pop singer with Kelly Clarkson-like attributes. She has performed twice so far on Saturday Night Live and is reportedly slated to do so again in early 2012.
