Kelly Clarkson Makes Rare Comments About Co-Parenting with Ex Brandon Blackstock

In a rare moment, Kelly Clarkson is discussing her experience with co-parenting.

Clarkson, 42 years old, has two children with her ex-husband Brandon Blackstock.

On the latest episode of Kylie Kelce’s podcast Not Gonna Lie, Clarkson discussed the guilt she feels when leaving her kids alone for work or when her kids have shows in the middle of her work shift. She also mentioned how it wouldn’t be the same if a dad treated their kids in the same fashion.

“It’s funny though how different it is because even from a young age, like we didn’t teach them [that],” she told Kelce. “Just innately, you’re like, ‘He’s allowed to be somewhere, but you’re not.’ Like, that is real interesting…There’s a lot that I keep in because… co-parenting is fun. It’s like, ‘Oh, he couldn’t come because this,’ and I’m like, ‘Okay, cool.’ Do you think I just leave and just sit in the park all day?”

The former champion of American Idol had her first child, daughter River Rose, in June 2014. Her second child, son Remington “Remy” Alexander, was born in April 2016.

In a September 2022 Variety article, she talked about how vulnerable she is with her kids, in an effort to teach them how to process emotions.

“I think the most important thing I’ve learned in therapy, especially through this divorce, is ‘Don’t hide everything from your kids.’ Obviously, don’t talk about stuff that you shouldn’t talk about, but it’s okay if they see you cry, or it’s okay if they see you’ve had a bad day,” she told Variety. “You start to feel that kind of shame, like, ‘I’ve got to put my best foot forward as a mom because I don’t want them to be affected,’ ” she continued. “But then you allow your kids to express empathy, and they learn how to say, ‘Oh, man, I’m sorry you had a hard day.’”

The Kelly Clarkson Show has earned 22 Daytime Emmy Awards, and currently airs on NBC.