Kelly Clarkson Receives Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame 20 Years After 'American Idol' Win
We have some crucial Kelly Clarkson news to report: the singer has just received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame!
During the ceremony, Clarkson was surrounded by original American Idol judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson in celebration of her inaugural American Idol win 20 years ago. On September 4, 2002, Clarkson was crowned the first winner of Fox's singing competition show.
“This is where I won 20 years ago,” Clarkson said during her acceptance speech. “I feel very lucky and fortunate because I know a lot of talented people that love singing and are amazing at it and writing songs, and even talk show hosts — a lot of people could do that, and I just feel very fortunate that I get the chance. There are dreams you didn’t know you had and they end up happening and you feel super blessed.”
The infamously prickly Cowell gave a very heartfelt speech during the ceremony. He reminisced about the day Clarkson showed up to audition for American Idol, saying, “I actually thought I was being punked on the first day. Paula resigned. Every singer was out of tune and it got worse, progressively. I thought, ‘This is an absolute disaster, why did we come here?’ And thank God, I remember the day we met you and I remember not just your voice, but your personality."
“Thanks to you, I’m here today,” he emphasized to Clarkson. “You validated what we did. If we didn’t find a star, there’s no point in doing these shows.”
Clarkson's star makes the 2,733rd on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. During her speech, Clarkson also thanked her team and her kids for supporting. Other notable guest speakers included Jason Halbert, Clarkson's music director since 2003.
Earlier this month, Clarkson kicked off season 4 of her hit daytime talk show The Kelly Clarkson Show, which is currently filming in New York. She's also announced her own Kellyoke singing competition, and released a duet of "9 to 5" with Dolly Parton.
See photos of Clarkson posing with her star below.
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Article Image: Kelly Clarkson stands with the original judges of American Idol (Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul) during her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony. (Jean_Nelson via DepositPhotos.)