The singer, who joined the NBC singing competition series as a coach in 2018, claims that her former husband bluntly told her she was not sexy enough for the TV program.
- January 4, 2024
AceShowbiz - Kelly Clarkson has accused her ex-husband Brandon Blackstock of telling her she was not sexy enough for "The Voice". Kelly made the claims to a California labor commissioner last year, who eventually ruled that Brandon, 47, owed Kelly $2.6 million for unlawfully making deals that should have been handled by her talent agents.
And, in documents obtained by the New York Post's Page Six, Kelly, 41, claimed that even though she told Brandon about her wish to be a coach on "The Voice", he insisted that they were "looking for a more sex symbol type" such as Rihanna. When asked by her lawyer Ed McPherson how she was able to recall the specific conversation, Kelly said, "Well, a wife doesn't forget a time she gets told she's not a sex symbol, so that stays."
She also alleged that Brandon told her NBC "had to have someone that was Black. ... They had to have a diverse thing" and that she and Blake Shelton, who was already on the show, "were too similar." Despite Brandon's assertions, Kelly joined "The Voice" as a coach in 2018.
He testified in court that he was encouraged by two CAA music agents to tell NBC that Kelly was already in talks with ABC to become a judge on "American Idol", where she first found fame. He alleged that they encouraged him to meet with NBC Entertainment Chairman Paul Telegdy, claiming Telegdy did not like agents.
Brandon's lawyers Bryan Freedman and Jesse Kaplan said in a court document, "Critically and consistent with their negotiation strategy, Blackstock informed Telegdy that 'American Idol' would be submitting an offer to Clarkson. In response, Telegdy asked Blackstock, 'What would it take [to sign Kelly to 'The Voice']?' " Brandon, who also managed Blake Shelton, told Telegdy that it would be "somewhere around Blake's money."
