Kelly Clarkson is currently performing on her Las Vegas residency, Chemistry... an intimate with Kelly Clarkson, which is her first run of shows since her contentious divorce from ex-husband Brandon Blackstock. While Clarkson isn't one to share the intimate details of her split, she comments on the relationship throughout her new album, Chemistry. She has also shared her feelings through song during her residency.
Clarkson made headlines last week when she performed a cover of pop song "abcdefu" by Gayle, changing a few of the lyrics seemingly to not-so-subtly call out her ex-husband. The moment was fiery and humorous, as Clarkson appeared to share her strong opinion about her ex and his father, Narvel Blackstock (Reba McEntire's ex-husband).
Fans captured similar highlight during Clarkson's residency this past weekend, but it was undoubtedly more emotional. During a performance of her 2015 song, "Piece by Piece," the singer was forced to change the lyrics in light of her divorce.
The song is about her father, who left her family when she was young. In the original version of the tune, she praises then-husband Blackstock for giving her and their children the comfort and protection her dad never did. Now that the singer has split from Blackstock, she's relying on herself, and the new lyrics she debuted during Saturday night's show (Aug. 5) reflect this.
"This song I initially wrote just super hopeful, right? And well, sometimes hopeful turns into hopeless, so here we go, 'Piece by Piece,'" she said before debuting the new version.
In the original version of the song, Clarkson sings, "Piece by piece, he collected me up / Off the ground, where you abandoned things, yeah / Piece by piece, he filled the holes that you burned in me / At 6 years old and you know." She changed the "he" to "I" in the new version.
Then, later in the chorus, Clarkson changed lyrics that originally praised Blackstock for never asking for money. This lyric change is especially poignant in light of their divorce, as Clarkson reportedly had to pay large sums of spousal support and child support.
"I just walk away / when they ask for money / I take care of me / 'cause I love me," she sings.
She then closed out the chorus with a strong line that speaks to her perseverance.
"Piece by piece / I restored my faith / That a heart can still beat even when it breaks," she sings.
Clarkson was clearly filled with emotion especially as she neared the end of the song, but the crowd made sure to show their love with their enthusiasm.
Watch here:
