Kelly Clarkson Got Many Warnings About Brandon Blackstock. Here's Why

After nearly seven years of marriage, Kelly Clarkson filed for divorce from husband Brandon Blackstock on June 4, 2020. The singer, who shares two young children with Blackstock, cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for their split, according to documents obtained by The Blast. Neither Clarkson nor Blackstock has yet to publicly address the breakup, but sources told E! News that the longtime couple's inner circle was "shocked" by the news. One insider said, "It came out of nowhere. It's all so sad for the kids. They were always such a loving family. It never seemed like they had any issues."

The pair tied the knot in October 2013, a year after they began dating and seven years after they first crossed paths at a rehearsal for the County Music Awards, People reported. At the time, Blackstock was still with his ex-wife, Melissa Ashworth. However, when he and Clarkson met again at the Super Bowl in February 2012, it was basically love at first (or second) sight and the pair jumped into a whirlwind romance that led to marriage and children, per Daily Mail.

So what went wrong? While the news surprised fans, some insiders say the split was "a while coming."

Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock welcomed a daughter named River Rose in 2014 and a son named Remington Alexander in 2016, per Us Weekly. Following her pregnancies, the singer declared "I'm so glad I never have to be pregnant again" during the Elvis Duran Show in 2017. It seemed the couple's family was complete — Blackstock, a music manager, also has two children from a previous marriage, daughter Savannah and son Seth. However, Clarkson later revealed she'd had a change of heart and that having more children was back on the table again... at least for her.

In a May 27, 2020 episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show, the Grammy winner told celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey that her husband did not want any more children. "I so want another child and my husband is like, 'No! We have four!'" she said at the time as Ramsey held his 1-year-old son, Oscar. "I have baby fever! You get baby fever when you see them and you're like, 'Oh, I miss the chubby little legs and the little face.'"

Entertainment Tonight noted that this difference in opinion may have played a role in their divorce with one source saying, "Kelly has always brought up wanting more children, which Brandon doesn't." It turns out having more children wasn't the only thing that set the couple apart. 

According to an Us Weekly source, Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock weren't a picture-perfect couple nor a match made in heaven, as fans and friends perceived them to be. In fact, they had a lot of differences — both in personality and lifestyles. "Everyone thought Kelly and Brandon had the perfect marriage, but they definitely didn't. Brandon's very laid-back, whereas Kelly's pretty high-strung," the insider explained.

Apparently, the singer's decision to start The Kelly Clarkson Show, which filmed in Los Angeles, on top of being a coach on The Voice was also a problem for her husband, as he preferred their quiet life in Nashville. "When she went to Hollywood, it changed things," the source said.

In August 2019, Clarkson opened up about her and Blackstock's differences during an interview with Entertainment Tonight. "We have very similar goals in life, as far as personally what we want to accomplish. I mean, we're different, we work on that because we're two different worlds coming together, but it's working," she said. "The best advice to give people is you've really got to — and this is going to sound really weird — but it's an intimacy vibe. Like, you've got to be intimate with each other regularly. You've got to make time for date nights, you've got to have that intimacy, that one-on-one [time] often."

Unfortunately, spending a lot of time together while quarantining in Montana may have made things worse.

After news of Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock's divorce broke, sources told Entertainment Tonight that quarantining in their Montana cabin amid the global pandemic made the couple realize that their "relationship hadn't been working for a while." An insider close to the singer also told Us Weekly, "They clashed on so many levels, and being in quarantine together heightened their problems to the point of no return. So she filed for divorce." 

Another source told People, "'Things had changed in their marriage and the split was a while coming. They both work so hard. It's nearly impossible to enjoy each other, especially with the children needing constant attention." 

Clarkson herself opened up about how hard it was to quarantine with her husband and kids. "Honestly, I have been on an emotional roller coaster. This has been really hard as a working parent, because I'm still doing all the same jobs," she told Glamour UK. "It's been exhausting honestly, cooking every meal and cleaning nonstop after toddlers and teenagers! Everybody's learning from home now and the teaching! So, everything has been crazy."

The bright side is that the pair seem to be on good terms since the singer did thank her estranged husband for "believing" in her and "convincing" her to do The Kelly Clarkson Show after winning a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host last month.

It seems as if juggling television projects while making their big move and raising a family was all too much for Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock. Clarkson even had moments where she was "crying, as she revealed to People in August 2019. "Some days, I totally hide in a bathroom and I'm crying, going, 'Oh my God, this is a lot,'" she admitted to the outlet. "Everybody does. Every parent does, especially when you're like, 'Am I screwing up my children? Or nailing it? I have no idea. I'm sure a little of both.'"

Clarkson also discussed their "really busy" schedule since moving to Los Angeles from Nashville. "Even the show here, he has his own office," the singer shared. "I have my own office. And he's always on the phone... he's always working."

It appears the star has since adjusted to her lifestyle in Los Angeles, as on June 13, 2020, according to People, she was spotted out for the first time since the news of the divorce filing was made public. Clarkson got photographed while walking her dog around her neighborhood, rocking a pair of sunglasses, and not wearing her wedding ring. "Kelly is spending time in L.A. with her kids," a source told the outlet. "She has been low-key and mostly stayed at home. She seems to be doing okay." But is all as well as it seems? 

Kelly Clarkson may be struggling amidst her divorce and having some regrets, according to a June 2020 report from Life & Style. "The smallest thing sets her off and some nights she'll cry herself to sleep," a source alleged. "She feels like she's lost everything."

The source added, "She's finding her divorce more difficult to deal with than she anticipated. Kelly thought that moving forward with the divorce the right thing to do at the time, but now that Brandon has filed documents responding to her petition, she's having some regrets."

Wow. It sounds like Clarkson is having a tough time, especially since this all went down during the coronavirus pandemic. "[Kelly is] trying to keep herself busy with work and writing music," claimed the insider. "But it isn't enough to take her mind off things. It doesn't help that the divorce is happening during a pandemic — it's preventing her from seeing her friends in person and going out. She feels so alone and relies on social media comments from fans to cheer her up." 

Although it seems like married life with Blackstock was not going well, being alone during a divorce isn't easy either. We're pulling for you, Kelly.