It was all about Kelly Clarkson last night, April 1, on American Idol. All the contestants sang tunes from the singer's catalog, including hits like "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)," "Breakaway" and "Since U Been Gone." Clarkson also took the stage herself to perform "Heartbeat Song" from her new album Piece by Piece and the Etta James classic "At Last."
There were plenty of nostalgic moments throughout the broadcast coming in the form of footage from Clarkson's winning Idol run in 2002. After a short clip showing her first audition when she performed "At Last," the singer appeared live on the stage to take on the song. Check out her performances below.
Clarkson's Idol victory came after she outsang Justin Guarini in the final round. She released her debut album, Thankful, which contained hits like "Miss Independent" and "The Trouble With Love Is." She followed that up with Breakaway a year later, hitting the top of the charts with the title track "Since U Been Gone" and "Because of You." Clarkson went on to release five more albums.
The pop star is currently ranked No. 2 on the list of best-selling Idol alumni behind Carrie Underwood. Chris Daughtry, Clay Aiken and Fantasia Barrino round out the top five.
Piece by Piece, Clarkson's seventh album, dropped in February. It hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and received mixed reviews.
"And hey, ya gotta give it to her, she has some insane chops," Music Times wrote about the album. "But it does make the album feel very weighty. Each track is purposeful, with a very solid and positive message, but she blasts off over and over again. Despite changes in tempo, everything is just really intensive."
Readers: What did you think of the album? Comment below.
