Kelly Clarkson Says She Didn't Know 'Idol' Was a TV Show Until Third Audition: 'We Were Literally Trying to Pay Our Bills'

Kelly Clarkson didn't know she would be on TV when she was on American Idol — at least initially.

During the Thursday, March 27, episode of Kylie Kelce's Not Gonna Lie podcast, the "Since U Been Gone" hitmaker, 42, opened up about her time on the show's inaugural season in 2002 where she also became the first-ever winner.

"For all of us in that first season, we literally didn't, I didn't even know it was a TV show until my third audition. Like, we were literally trying to pay our bills. We're like, 'Oh, this might work. I might meet someone or whatever.' Nobody knew it was gonna amount to anything," said Clarkson.

She added: "We were literally, like, kids, like, you know, 19 years old just, like, trying to pay my electric bill y'all. You know, and afford the deductible on my car that was bashed in that I couldn't afford. Like, so it was a different thing."

Related: Kelly Clarkson Says People Who Were 'Really Mean' About Her American Idol Win Ended Up Being Coaches on The Voice

Elsewhere in the interview, she spoke about the isolating experience of being on the first season of American Idol.

"I had no one. I was the first winner. It was hard. Not to sound like, whatever, it was really hard," Clarkson said.

The "Miss Independent" singer then spoke about how some of the coaches on The Voice, where she was a coach for nine seasons, were "really mean" amid her American Idol win.

"People were really mean," said Clarkson. "People that were really mean have been coaches. You know what I'm saying? Like, hated talent shows. And they ended up being on The Voice."

She continued: "It's like, okay. But people were really cruel at first. They didn't like it. It took the industry kind of by storm, the talent shows. It was a very unlikable thing in the industry concerning the populous."

Clarkson joked about how "hilarious" its is now, considering there are "so many" talent shows on TV now.

Clarkson also spoke with Kelce, 33, about her experience joining The Voice for its 14th season in 2018 and how she was able to related to the contestants because of her background on American Idol.

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Related: Kelly Clarkson Makes Rare Comments About Co-Parenting with Ex Brandon Blackstock as She Admits There's 'a Lot' She Keeps In

She even had the opportunity to coach alongside fellow Idol alum Jennifer Hudson during The Voice's 15th season.

"People like us who have been there in that audition process and just being so judged instantaneously, on maybe not your best performance but you know you can do better, it's a hard — it's a grueling thing and its unforgiving in a lot of ways," said Clarkson.

She added: "And a lot of pressure for these artists that I don't think a lot of artists that sell tons of records would be able to handle. It's a different thing."

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