- Kelly Clarkson has often been open about her relationship with her estranged dad, who left her when she was six years old.
- She recently told Forbes that he "passed away months ago" while discussing the emotional song inspired by him, "Piece by Piece."
Kelly Clarkson is going through a tough time.
The Grammy-winning singer and everyone’s favorite Voice coach recently revealed that she’s coping with the loss of her estranged father. Kelly opened up about her struggle to Forbes, while responding to a question about recently getting choked up during a performance of “Piece by Piece.” The emotional lyrics are famously written about her rocky relationship with her dad.
"That song for me, personally, behind the scenes, it’s evolved mostly for me. So like from the moment I wrote it, just being pregnant with my little girl and then you know all the moments that I really did try and make it work with my father and life and just get completely let down to where…," she said. "You know he passed away months ago. So that’s why."
She continued, "It’s kind of that I think you know I don’t tell everyone that but, that’s why everybody thinks I’m just a nutcase, but it’s just, it’s evolved."
"Piece by Piece" contrasts her father with her husband, Brandon Blackstock, with whom she shares daughter River Rose and son Remy, and stepchildren Savannah and Seth. She recently explained that becoming a mom has only made the song more difficult for her to share.
“Once you have kids, it’s one of those things,” she told the crowd at her “Meaning of Life” tour. “I can’t even fathom about not sticking around and caring. I just can’t even fathom.”
Kelly continued to tell Forbes that it, "sucks to sing," but that she hopes it will eventually be "fine." Still, she’ll continually grapple with the heartbreaking experience that inspired the song.
"It’s just that sense of loss that I just don’t know if I’ll ever not feel just because I’m a mom, I’m a mom of two kids that aren’t even from my womb that I still couldn’t imagine treating the way that I was," she said. "I think that was just a really hard one for me still. But I have to sing it and I get it."
Megan Stein is the executive editor for The Pioneer Woman, and oversees entertainment, features, and news for the website. Whether it's catching up on the latest true crime podcast, or re-watching the best '80s movies for the zillionth time, she's always here to talk about anything and everything relating to pop culture.
