Kelly Clarkson is so charming. Such a nice lady with such a sweet smile. And that voice! Sent from the heavens and delivered to us via the television phenomenon that was ‘American Idol’. For nearly two decades we have enjoyed her lovely covers and uneven discography. Mostly the covers. Because when Clarkson won American Idol, she became the world’s most famous karaoke singer. A title she holds to this day. That might seem like a harsh assessment, but you need to take a look at where her career is in 2024.
Much like how ‘Carpool Karaoke’ held a chokehold on virality for years pre-pandemic, the latest consistent trend is a Kelly Clarkson cover of a song, followed by posts congratulating her for doing it better. People throwing out regurgitated takes on x.com stating that “artists should be scared of her” due to the feedback. But are these covers better than the originals?
Well, that’s a matter of taste. But I’d say no.
Clarkson is a technically gifted singer. Not perfect, but consistently clean and easy to enjoy. The type of voice you can listen to in the car. Shopping for groceries. Before a movie as you’re slotting into your assigned seat. But she’s not a dominating personality. In many ways, Clarkson’s gift has been her ability to connect with anything and anybody. It’s what she has slotted so effortlessly into the talk-show format. But that easy charm has always masked a disconnect between her voice and the music.
Most singers modulate their performances based of the song, but Clarkson’s talent as a performer is very much reliant on staying within a very specific style of performance. That style being booming vocals and high emotionality that often feel dead-eyed. In the case of literal karaoke, it returns to the flatness of her introductory reality show crooning. Some singers bring a unique flair to their covers, attacking them as individual bodies of work. Clarkson tends to sing everything the same way. It’s like a neat party trick for her to belt out a pop tune. She doesn’t even break a sweat.
In many ways, these covers are the perfect way to explain why Clarkson never managed to tap into the same cultural vein that someone like Adele could. They’re both nice, white women with big voices. The people eat that up like catnip. But whereas Adele sounds personal and raw on her best material, her American counterpart does not.
It’s telling that her last real hit was one of the few breaks in this format. ‘Piece by Piece’, from the same-titled 2015 album, unexpectantly shot to the top ten after an emotional performance on ‘American Idol’. Her voice was shaky, but in a way that felt extremely human. Clarkson broke her standard character for a moment, and people responded extremely well. Something like that is what you’d expect to be repeated with the first album from her post-divorce. But instead…we’re back to karaoke. It even got a full album release!
My biggest question for those who’d reject this thesis is…why is she doing karaoke at all? If Clarkson’s covers are that great, then you should feel the same way about her original music. I assume you bought a digital and physical copy of ‘Chemistry’ (2023)?
No, you didn’t. I streamed it, but nothing really stood out to me. Because not only is Clarkson not an album’s artist, but she’s also not a particularly great single’s artist anymore. Her best work is tinged with bitterness and rage, but as an adult woman and mother, most of her output has been extremely bland. Kellyoke is a symptom of a larger issue for a performer that never managed overcome her own limitations. Talent is not genius, and you can’t belt your way out of mediocre music.
But no matter what…she will forever, always, and only be our American Idol.