Kelly Clarkson is reflecting on two decades in the spotlight.
The music star and TV personality, 40, shared her gratitude to fans and reminisced on Instagram Sunday as she marked the 20th anniversary of her win on Season 1 of American Idol.
“20 years ago today I won American Idol and it forever changed the course of my life. That moment was the door that opened up so much access and opportunity, and creative partnerships that I will be grateful for all of my days,” Clarkson wrote in a lengthy post.
“The family and friendships I have created over these 20 years in music and tv are priceless to me,” she continued. “We only get so many trips around the sun and while I am proud and feel abundantly blessed of the successes and failures that I have learned from, I am most proud and grateful for those friends that have become family, and for their arms that have held me when I needed it and their hearts that listened to me when I felt lost. Without them I would not be where I am. I would probably not be here at all.”
Clarkson went on to thank “every single person” that voted for her on the show.
She concluded, “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I hope all of you have people in your lives that fill you with laughter, and hope and happiness, and if you don’t feel like you have that, then keep searching because I promise you they’re looking for you too.”
Since the “A Moment Like This” musician’s win over Justin Guarini in 2002, Clarkson has won three Grammy Awards. Her eponymous talk show has also netted five Daytime Emmys.
So it’s no surprise that the busy mom of two, who is also a children’s book author and longtime coach on The Voice, was ready for some downtime this past summer.
“I literally four-wheeled in the mountains,” she told TODAY show co-hosts Hoda Kotb and Carson Daly in August. “I have a lot of water on my property so my sister, my nephew and I, and a couple friends, just spent the whole summer in the mountains.”
When asked by Daly if her kids River Rose, 8, and Remington Alexander, 6, also took part in the fun, Clarkson said, “The kids were with me and with their dad.”
Clarkson shares her two kids with ex-husband Brandon Blackstock, 45, who she split with in June 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage. Their divorce was finalized in March.
“It was nice because they usually have to travel a lot because of our separation,” she added about the family trip to Montana. “I felt like the first time my kids felt a little more centered as well.”
“It’s obviously been a rough couple of years so it was really important to me to shut down for a minute,” the “Stronger” singer told TODAY.
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