Kelly Clarkson Trouble: Singer Facing Enormous Debt With New Lawsuit
Kelly Clarkson is facing a lawsuit from her management. The singer host is accused of stiffing the company out of over $1 million in commissions.
Ironically, the said management company is being headed by her ex-father-in-law, Narvel Blackstock. It can be remembered that Kelly recently split from her husband Brandon, and now this.
Starstruck Management Group filed a lawsuit against the singer, 38. It was confirmed by Page Six from the Los Angeles County Superior Court records.
The company claims that Clarkson owes them a whopping $1.4 million in unpaid commissions, mainly through her stints with "The Voice" and then her own talk show, "The Kelly Clarkson Show."
The "Stronger" singer had been working with the company for the past 13 years. Yearly, she was paying them 15% of her gross earnings, as reported by Variety in the past. This 2020, she already paid them $1.9 million, but the company is alleging that she still owes them a huge amount.
By the end of the year, if the amount is not addressed, it will balloon up to at least $5.4 million.
Major Loophole
However, one loophole -- which the suit itself acknowledged -- is that the terms were only verbally negotiated by Clarkson's lawyer and business manager in 2007. As there is no written evidence of this agreement, the suit might face some challenges and complications.
When Clarkson filed for a divorce, and the said event made rounds in the media, it was not clear whether she would cut ties with the management company.
She filed for divorce from Blackstock in June, ending their marriage of seven years. The reason is not that clear, given that she only cited irreconcilable differences when filing for the divorce. Maybe the reason will pop up on her upcoming songs.
Kelly Clarkson's New Song
In her interview with Today Magazine earlier this September, she shared that her upcoming album will be covering many of the emotions she has been feeling and hiding up until her split with her husband.
"This next record will probably be the most personal one I've ever released," she said. "The whole record is basically every emotion that you experience from the beginning of a relationship to end of what it is now. It's been very therapeutic for me."
The reason is certainly not because she has been working too hard. Apart from maintaining her successful singing career, Clarkson has now dabbled into hosting.
However, when a fan tried to insinuate that she is the reason why the breakup happened as she is working too much, Kelly fired back. She said that the comment was tantamount to shaming a woman who happens to have a great work ethic, so much so that she can have a career and yet be a good mom and wife.
The hate comment was triggered with Clarkson's quip on "America's Got Talent." When Simon Cowell figured into an accident, and the show needed a temporary judge in his place, she took on the role. She joked that she has been waiting years for the opportunity, and that she can certainly "use another job."
