by It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly 20 years since Kelly Clarkson burst onto the scene as the inaugural winner of American Idol. In the two decades since, she’s cemented her status as the most successful Idol winner, selling over 25 million albums worldwide and scoring dozens of hit singles. However, as Clarkson has matured as an artist and gained more life experience, she’s opened up about aspects of her early career that she might have handled differently with the benefit of hindsight. While she’s proud of her commercial success in those formative years, some of the industry pressures she faced and decisions made on her behalf don’t fully align with where she’s at creatively now. If given the chance to go back, here are some of the things Kelly Clarkson might have done differently early on.
Feeling Pressure to Conform
One of the biggest challenges Clarkson faced emerging from American Idol was the expectation to conform to a very specific commercial pop mold. The show was known for crafting polished, radio-friendly stars, and Kelly was no exception in those early years. However, in interviews over the past decade, she’s spoken candidly about feeling constrained by the image American Idol and her label pushed her to portray. She felt pressured to dress and act a certain way, and her music tended towards fairly straightforward pop songs.
Looking back with the freedom and success she’s achieved today, Clarkson has said she wished she’d asserted her artistic vision more from the get-go. “I think I would have been braver with my choices creatively,” she reflected in a 2020 interview. “I was so young and didn’t really understand the business side yet. I just wanted to make music and connect with fans.” It’s clear Clarkson has grown much more confident in following her instincts rather than industry expectations. On her recent albums like Meaning of Life, she’s explored a variety of genres and collaborated with diverse artists without concern for chart potential. Had she been able to embrace this approach earlier, her catalog might look quite different.
Prioritizing Pop Success Over Artistry
That pressure to conform led Clarkson to prioritize commercial success over artistic growth in those initial post-Idol years. Her first few albums delivered a string of inescapable pop hits like “Miss Independent,” “Because of You,” and “Breakaway.” While Clarkson poured her heart into those songs, in hindsight she’s said she sometimes felt restricted. “I was putting out these big pop songs but I also loved blues, soul, R&B – I had so many other influences I wanted to explore,” she reflected. “I didn’t really get the chance to fully flex my artistic muscles until later.”
It’s clear from her recent work that Clarkson has a passion for many genres beyond top 40 pop. She’s covered artists like Roberta Flack, released a soulful Christmas album, and even dabbled in country on projects like her duet “I Don’t Think About You” with Keith Urban. If given a second chance, Clarkson has said she likely would have found more creative fulfillment early on by diversifying her sound, even at the expense of some commercial success. “I know pop was the priority then but I probably would have fought harder for more variety, just to stay true to myself,” she acknowledged. Her willingness to take more artistic risks now has been richly rewarded by fans.
Overexposure and Overscheduling
Another challenge that came with the American Idol platform was the whirlwind of promotion, touring, and appearances expected of her. In the years immediately after her 2002 win, Clarkson was constantly in the public eye, doing countless interviews, live performances, and more. The grueling schedule took its toll. “I was so burned out, I didn’t know which way was up,” she said. “I lost myself for a while.” Looking back with more life experience, Clarkson realizes she may have pushed herself too hard, too fast.
“As an artist, you need time to recharge creatively and just live your life,” she reflected. “I didn’t really have that. I went straight from the show into album cycle, tour, repeat. It was non-stop.” Clarkson believes taking occasional breaks, especially early on, could have served her better both personally and professionally. It would have allowed more opportunity for personal and artistic growth between projects. She also may have avoided moments of sheer exhaustion. While she’ll always work hard, Clarkson has found a healthier balance now of mixing work with downtime – a lesson she wishes she’d learned sooner.
Not Having a Strong Support System
One final thing Clarkson has said she would have benefited from early in her career is a stronger support system to guide her through the industry complexities. Being so young and inexperienced, she was thrust into a high-pressure situation without fully understanding the business side. “I signed a lot of paperwork I didn’t totally grasp. I didn’t have anyone truly representing just me,” she reflected. While grateful for all she’s achieved, Clarkson believes having a more experienced team of advisors, managers, and lawyers looking out for her best interests could have helped her avoid some pitfalls.
As just one example, she has expressed regret over not maintaining full control and ownership of her master recordings from those initial albums. With more knowledgeable guidance, she may have negotiated better terms. Beyond the financial aspects, Clarkson also thinks having a support group she fully trusted could have helped her navigate industry politics and maintain more control over her image and direction. She likely wouldn’t have felt such pressure to conform early on. Now with two decades in the business, Clarkson has assembled a tight-knit team she leans on. But she wishes she’d had that level of experience in her corner from the very beginning.
Overall Reflection
When reflecting on those formative early years, Kelly Clarkson doesn’t express outright regret for the path her career took. The commercial success and fan connections she achieved then set her up tremendously well for the long run. However, it’s clear that with the confidence, knowledge, and freedom she’s gained over the past 20 years, there are aspects she would now handle differently. Clarkson believes if given a second chance, she would have asserted more creative control from the start, pursued a wider range of artistic expression, paced herself professionally, and surrounded herself with a strong support system for guidance.
While she’ll always be proud of her American Idol roots, Clarkson has grown far beyond the confines of what that platform represented. She’s proven herself a remarkably versatile, talented artist who continues to redefine her own rules with each new project. By looking back with wisdom and acknowledging lessons learned, Clarkson seems at peace with her career journey. And fans can look forward to seeing even bolder creativity and evolution from her in the years to come.
