The Kelly Clarkson singer and TV presenter thanked his “friend-turned-family” in his Instagram post, writing, “I wouldn’t be where I am without him. I probably wouldn’t even be here.
Kelly Clarkson looks back on two decades in the spotlight.
The 40-year-old music star and TV personality thanked fans and marked the 20th anniversary of her victory in Season 1 of American Idol on Instagram on Sunday.
“20 years ago today, I won American Idol, and it changed my life forever. That moment was a door that opened so many access and opportunities and creative partnerships that I will be grateful for throughout my days,” Clarkson wrote in his lengthy post.
“The family and friendships I have forged over 20 years in music and television are invaluable to me,” he continued. “We’ve only gotten so many trips around the sun, and while I’m proud and feel incredibly blessed with the successes and failures I’ve learned, what I’m most proud and grateful for are the friends who had become family and their hands that held me when I needed them most. And the hearts of those who listen to me when I feel lost. Without him, I would not be where I am now. I probably wouldn’t be here at all.
” Clarkson thanked “everyone” who voted for him on the show.
He finished: “Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you so much! I hope you all have people in your life who fill you with laughter, hope, and happiness and if you don’t have them, then keep looking because I promise they do too. “
After the musician beat Justin Guarini with “A Moment Like This” in 2002, Clarkson won three Grammy Awards. His talk show of the same name has also won five Daytime Emmys.
So it’s no wonder the busy mother-of-two, a children’s author and longtime coach at The Voice, was ready to take a break last summer.
“I’m a four-wheeler in the mountains,” he told TODAY hosts Hoda Kotb and Carson Daly in August. “I have much water on my property that my sister and niece and I and some friends spend the whole summer in the mountains.”