Kelly Clarkson was catapulted into stardom when she was just 20 years old. The very first winner of American Idol, Kelly’s been vocal about how the singing competition show completely changed her life. Now, nearly 23 years later, she’s revealing that it also introduced her to some very demeaning energy.

“People were really cruel at first. They didn’t like it; it took the industry kind of by storm,” the 42-year-old singer and TV host revealed on an episode of Kylie Kelce’s Not Gonna Lie podcast, referencing American Idol as a whole. “It was a very unlikeable thing in the industry.”

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Here’s the kicker though: Some of her and American Idol’s top critics at the time supposedly went on to become involved in singing competitions of their own. “People that were really mean have been coaches. You know what I’m saying? Like, hated talent shows, and ended up being on The Voice.”

Because of her experience on American Idol—and winning it and facing the backlash from that—Kelly views the singing talent show in a different light. “For me, it’s different,” she told Kylie. “For all of us in that first season, we literally didn’t—I didn’t even know it was a TV show until my third audition…We were literally trying to pay our bills, y’all.”

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In the end, it all worked out, though. Kelly was a coach on The Voice for nine seasons before parting ways and focusing more of her attention on her self-titled talk show, The Kelly Clarkson Show. Of course, you can still catch her belting on stage, too. Her Studio Sessions Las Vegas Residency has tickets on sale for July 4 to August 16, and November 7 to 15.

Kelly Clarkson Was Left Visibly Emotional After Sterling K. Brown Told Her The Real Reason He Stopped Going By His Middle Name

We all know that there are tons of celebrities who choose to go by their middle names — and for a long time, Sterling K. Brown was one of them.

We all know that there are tons of celebrities who choose to go by their middle names — and for a long time, Sterling K. Brown was one of them.

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Sitting down on The Kelly Clarkson Show this week, the 49-year-old actor — who is currently starring in the Hulu series Paradise — revealed that he went by his middle name until he was 16.

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The subject came up after Kelly shared that her 8-year-old son, Remington (aka Remy) Alexander Blackstock, randomly introduced himself using his middle name at the 2025 Grammy Awards. “My son did this at a red carpet… All of a sudden, the lady said, ‘What’s your name?’ … He said, ‘Alexander.’ I said, ‘No, what?’” Kelly recalled before adding: “No, I’m sorry, he said, ‘Remington Alexander.’ He just chose his middle name as his last — he just changed his name right there in front of me!”

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

“I was like, ‘Is this your stage name? What is happening!’” Kelly laughed, before then asking Sterling what made him change the name he goes by.

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

Sterling shared, “I went by my middle name. I went by Kelby until I was 16 years old. My dad’s name is Sterling Brown Jr., my grandfather Sterling Brown Sr., I’m Sterling Kelby Brown.”

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

Kelly then jumped in and said, “You wanted identity.” Sterling agreed, replying, “I wanted my own name, and it felt like Sterling was an old man’s name.”

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

However, Sterling continued, “Because he passed away when I was 10, by the time I turned 16 and I hadn’t heard his name for five, five and a half years, I was like, ‘I kind of just wanna hear that name again.’ So, I asked people to call me Sterling.”

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

As the audience let out a touched sigh, Kelly immediately teared up. “OK, OK. That was so sweet and beautiful,” she said while Sterling comforted her: “It’s all good.”

The Kelly Clarkson Show / Via youtube.com

Reacting to the moving clip, one internet user wrote, “That took an extremely emotional turn.” Someone else said, “Aw damn I didn’t expect his answer. That’s so sweet.”

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“Kelly is such a sweet person??? The way she immediately teared up,” one viewer wrote. “Aww the way they both felt emotion in that moment. So sweet,” said another.

“It made my eyes well up immediately. It was just such a sweet, intimate thing to share,” someone said, while one more person added: “I literally shed a tear so unexpectedly.”

Very touching, indeed. You can find the full clip of Sterling on The Kelly Clarkson Show here.