Kelly Clarkson is always showing love to younger artists. With over 20 years in the game, Clarkson has become an icon in her own right, but still has admiration for future generations of singers and songwriters. Today (October 31), in a special Halloween episode of her daytime talk show The Kelly Clarkson Show, Clarkson performed a haunting cover of Olivia Rodrigo’s hit single, “Vampire” during the episode’s “Kellyoke” segment.
The stage was lit up in ominous red lights, with wilting tree branches, fog, and smoke throughout. At the piano was a man, donning an all-black outfit, and wearing white makeup. Clarkson appeared on stage, also wearing all black with pale white makeup and painted teardrops under her eyes.
Musically, Clarkson delivered a stripped-down rendition of Rodrigo’s No. 1 hit, diving deep into her vocal range and reaching high notes, highlighting the pure emotion Rodrigo embeds into her lyrics.
This isn’t the first time Clarkson has covered a Rodrigo song. Back in 2021, Clarkson performed Rodrigo’s breakthrough single “Drivers License,” and then a year later, performed the Sour fan-favorite cut, “Traitor.”
You can see the performance of “Vampire” above.
Kelly Clarkson is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group