Kelly Clarkson Says She Was “Miserable” Staying Skinny After ‘Idol’ Win
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Kelly Clarkson is one of the most famous people to come out of American Idol. Being the first person ever to win the talent show, she felt immediate pressure to maintain her slim figure. The singer has been honest about battling weight issues. She also admits that her record label put too much body image expectations on her. The pressure to stay skinny was becoming so tough that she says it even made her suicidal.
Clarkson Gets Bullied By Record Label
Clarkson was signed after winning American Idol to RCA Records. She recalls the executives urging her to maintain a slim figure. She was also compared to pop singers such as Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
“I thought the only way out was quitting,” she said. “It was a very dark time I, like, wrecked my knees and my feet, because all I would do is put on headphones and run. I was at the gym all the time,” she told Attitude magazine.
Even though The Voice judge was losing weight and trying to look the way they wanted her to, she said it did not make her happy.
“When I was really skinny, I wanted to kill myself,” she said. “I was miserable, like inside and out, for four years of my life. But no one cared, because aesthetically you make sense.”
Not only did the record label bully her about her weight, she said they also did not agree on some of her music. Her famous song “Because of You” from her third studio album My December got a lot of heat from her boss, Clive Davis. She recalls him telling her the song was “shitty” and they didn’t want to feature it in the album. The song went on to be very famous and she got a couple of nominations for it as well.
Clarkson Finds Strength After Leaving RCA
Clarkson eventually left RCA and signed with Atlantic Records. After leaving the label, she was able to continue her music career without the pressures of the company. She’s gone on to release multiple albums and is currently hosting The Kelly Clarkson Show in addition to coaching on The Voice.
It appears as though her break with RCA finally gave Clarkson the strength and freedom needed to continue to excel in her career.
