Kelly Clarkson sang a beautiful and emotional version of “Piece by Piece” on American Idol, and it really hit judge Keith Urban in the chest. As Clarkson sang the song about her absent father, she choked up in the final section. This clearly made an impact on Urban as tears were seen streaming down his cheeks as she sang.
Clarkson gave a remarkable and moving performance, and the crowd were 100% behind her despite the fact she missed a few of the lines. She also shed a few tears after singing the song, and it was plain to see the impact her performance had on everyone in the room. You can watch the performance below.
With lines like “I will never leave her like you left me and she will never have to wonder her worth”, it’s not surprising that Clarkson had trouble getting through the song. After the performance host Ryan Seacrest told her “the emotion that you exude, always, but especially in that important song, it’s just incredible.”
Clarkson, who had quite a baby bump at the show, responded with “I’m pregnant and it’s nostalgic. And I can’t believe it’s the last season. I’m really sorry – I’m actually quite proud that I made it that far.” The audience cheered her on, clearly feeling that the apology wasn’t necessary. Check out Clarkson’s music video for the song, which features the original dance pop arrangement for the song, which is quite different from the stark piano ballad version that she performed on American Idol.
Fans had plenty of positive things to say about Clarkson’s performance under the video, such as “I was at this performance and there was not a dry eye in the building. This performance had every one of us crying and even all these years later, it still brings tears to my eyes,” and “This is a tremendous performance; a real gem. Thanks to Kelly Clarkson for giving it all she had and not holding back.”
Numerous fans also gave props to the pianist accompanying Clarkson for keeping the song together, in time and on the right chord while giving time for the singer to collect herself. It very easily could have turned into a trainwreck if the pianist hadn’t handled it right. Clarkson wrote “Piece by Piece” with producer Greg Kurstin and the song was featured on her seventh studio album of the same name. The singer described the song as a sequel to her biggest hit, “Because of You”, but with a “happy ending”.
Following a talk with her sister about their family, Clarkson wrote the lyrics in a first person style to her neglectful father. She juxtaposes his behaviour with that of her husband at the time Brandon Blackstock, and the latter’s love and support for their daughter.
In an interview with The Huffington Post soon, Clarkson reflected on the origin of the song, saying “A lot of the reasons why I wrote “Piece by Piece” was I guess I didn’t realise the gravity of the situation until I had a child of my own, and until I experienced love like I do with Brandon on the daily basis. I guess you don’t realise something is missing until you feel it.”