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New music is on the way from Kelly Clarkson (finally!).

On 26 March, the singer-songwriter shared details of her forthcoming 10th studio album Chemistry, which will mark her first non-Christmas-related album since 2017’s acclaimed Meaning of Life.

In a video on Instagram, Clarkson revealed that she’s been working on a new body of work “for close to three years now”.

“I wasn’t sure I was going to release it, but I am. The album is called Chemistry. I was trying to find a word, it might be one of the songs on the album, but I was trying to find a word that really described the whole thing,” she said.

“I didn’t want everybody to think I was just coming out with some ‘I’m angry,’ ‘I’m sad’ — just one or two emotions. This album is definitely the arc of an entire relationship.

“That whole relationship shouldn’t be brought down to one thing. There’s the good, the bad and the ugly kind of thing going on. Chemistry can be a really amazing, sexy, cool, fun thing, but it can also be very bad for you.”

She added: “So that’s why I named it Chemistry, I thought it was the perfect title to describe the entire album.”

Clarkson didn’t specify a date for Chemistry. However, she did reveal that the album is “coming out soon” and that new music, presumably the lead single, is “coming out even sooner”.

The album will explore her separation and 2020 divorce from her ex-husband Brandon Blackstock. She has two kids with Blackstock: River Rose, 8, and Remy, 6.

In a 2022 interview with Variety, the Grammy winner said she didn’t intend to work “hardcore on an album” until it was necessary.

“But then the whole divorce thing happened, and I needed to write it. And then I didn’t know if I was going to release it, because you can be very angry in that state of mind,” she explained.

“So some of the songs, they definitely cover the gamut of emotions; there’s everything on the album. It’s almost like the arc of a relationship, because the beginning is so beautiful and so sweet, and then it evolves.

“And sometimes it doesn’t evolve how you want.”

In the six years since Meaning of Life, Clarkson has released her second Christmas album – 2021’s When Christmas Comes Around – and hosted her own daytime talk show, which is the recipient of 13 Daytime Emmy Awards including three consecutive wins for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host.

The Kelly Clarkson Show has received acclaim, particularly for the star’s ‘Kellyoke’ segment – which sees her perform renditions of songs from her favourite artists.

Last year she released her first covers EP, aptly titled Kellyoke, featuring covers of Roy Orbison’s Blue Bayou, The Weeknd’s Call Out My Name, Billie Eilish’s Happier Than Ever, Whitney Houston’s Queen of the Night, Shaed’s Trampoline and Radiohead’s Fake Plastic Trees.

Watch Kelly Clarkson announce new music below.

 

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