Kelly Clarkson, 41, breaks her silence about The Voice return after her tumultuous divorce from ex-husband Brandon Blackstock

Kelly Clarkson has shed light on her decision to leave The Voice after nine seasons as one of the four celebrity coaches on the singing competition show.

The pop star, 41, spoke to USA Today in the wake of her personal and professional upheaval.

The Since U Been Gone songstress finalized her divorce from producer and executive Brandon Blackstock in March 2022 – and also just moved her eponymous talk show from LA to New York City for its fifth season, which premiered this week.

Kelly and Brandon, 46, who met in 2006, were married for nearly seven years before the singer filed for divorce in June 2020.

Kelly Clarkson, 41, has shed light on her decision to leave The Voice in an interview with USA Today

Kelly and her now-ex-husband Brandon Blackstock, 46, had been married for nearly seven years before the singer filed for divorce in 2022

They share two children: River Rose, nine, and Remington Alexander, seven.

In the meantime, balancing duties for The Kelly Clarkson Show along with her commitment to The Voice over the past several years began to feel unmanageable, she told USA Today.

‘Full disclosure, I put on a smile a lot of those times because I was struggling a lot in my personal life,’ Kelly said of her performance during the first four seasons of her talk show.

‘I’ve learned a lot about what I’m capable of handling, and also what you should not handle. That was me saying “bye” to The Voice and having this big move. I love that family, but I was like, “I’m struggling. I can’t smile anymore. I don’t feel like smiling.”‘

Kelly appeared as one of four coaches on The Voice for the first time in 2018, making her debut on Season 14.

She stayed on through until Season 21, skipping Season 22 before officially ending her time on the reality series with its 23rd season, which concluded in May this year.

Speaking about her fresh start – both in the aftermath of her divorce and in relaunching The Kelly Clarkson Show out of New York City for its fifth season – Kelly gushed that the current moment in her career had felt like a ‘beautiful gift.’

‘What’s cool for me with Season Five [of The Kelly Clarkson Show] is I am in such a great place, not only with my kids, but with me personally and with the show,’ she told USA Today.

The Since U Been Gone songstress appeared on nine seasons of the singing-competition show, with her first being Season 14 in 2018

Kelly debuted her eponymous talk show in 2019. The first four seasons were filmed out of a studio in Los Angeles – while its fifth season will be shot and produced out of NYC

‘I feel like a weight has lifted. That move was very needed. I think the thing I’m most excited about with Season Five on a selfish level, is just showing up to work smiling and actually meaning it. That’s a beautiful gift that you don’t realize until you’re out of it.’

She further admitted that she’d initially thought that moving to NYC would be a ‘horrible decision.’

‘I’ll be real honest: I thought I was making a horrible decision,’ she said.

‘I knew I needed a fresh start and couldn’t be in LA. I really wanted to be in Montana, but you can’t really do a show from there quite yet. So I was like, “The only other option would probably be New York.”‘

But only a few weeks in, her initial apprehension already felt like a distant memory.

‘I genuinely love it, and I love that my kids love it,’ she said.