Kelly Clarkson shocked The Kelly Clarkson Show fans when she announced she was ending her talk show after seven seasons.
Although viewers will no longer see her interviewing celebrities and covering hit songs on the “Kellyoke” segment, Clarkson assured everyone she was not quitting show business.
“I’m really busy. We were talking at dinner last night. I was like, ‘I know everybody thinks oh, she’s quit.’ I still have other jobs!” Clarkson said on the Today show. “So I’m still doing stuff. There’s just too much on the plate, so I was like, ‘You know what, it’s time to kind of pull back.’”
Clarkson is one of the judges on The Voice Season 29, and she has a successful residency in Las Vegas. She noted that it was “really hard” to leave her talk show, adding, “I work with a lot of people here, too — the crew’s been incredible. It wasn’t the show wasn’t doing [well], that’s what kind of sucked. It was like, everything was going well, that’s what was really hard. And it’s like people’s jobs. We are a family there as well, so that was a really hard thing for me, but an easy decision as a momma. But it’s a big deal for our team.”
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In a statement shared on social media, Clarkson said she was “stepping away from the daily schedule will allow me to prioritize my kids, which feels necessary and right for this next chapter of our lives.”
The singer made the decision after a difficult year, taking a leave of absence last spring to be with her children as their father was undergoing cancer treatment. He died last August.
Production on the current season will continue as planned, with Clarkson hosting. The American Idol alum will take some days off, and guest hosts will fill in. Season 7 episodes will air through Fall 2026.
Watch Kelly Clarkson’s interview on Today in the video below.