Kelly Clarkson just made major changes to this song about her ex-husband

It has a totally new meaning now

Kelly Clarkson
(Image credit: Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty)

Kelly Clarkson's song Piece by Piece, released in 2015, is a beautiful anthem about how her then-husband Brandon Blackstock restored her faith in a parent's love after Kelly herself grew up with a distant father.

But sadly, Kelly and Brandon officially divorced in 2021, and their proceedings didn't go very smoothly — including a difficult custody battle for their children River Rose and Remington Alexander.

So, when Kelly performed Piece by Piece at a recent show in Las Vegas for the first time since the divorce, it's perhaps unsurprising that she felt the need to modify the poignant lyrics. 

She changed the love song into more of a self-love song, and if there's one thing Miley Cyrus has taught us, it's that we all love a good healing song.

The original lyrics to the song's chorus go as follows:

"But piece by piece, he collected me / Up off the ground, where you abandoned things, yeah / Piece by piece, he filled the holes / That you burned in me at six years old / And you know / He never walks away, he never asks for money / He takes care of me, he loves me / Piece by piece, he restored my faith / That a man can be kind and a father could / Stay."

But on 5th August, Kelly changed the lyrics to the following:

"But piece by piece, I collected me / Off the ground where you abandoned things / Piece by piece, I filled the holes / That you burned in me at six years old / You know / I just walk away when they ask for money / I take care of me, 'cause I love me / Piece by piece, I restored my faith / That a heart can still beat even when it breaks."

Before singing it, she said: "This song, I initially wrote just super hopeful, right, and well, sometimes hopeful turns into hopeless, so here we go..."

Kelly is once again showing that she's found strength in a difficult situation.

Iris Goldsztajn
Freelance News Writer

Iris Goldsztajn is a freelance news writer for Marie Claire UK. She covers celebrity and royal news, and has previously written for titles including Marie Claire US, InStlyle, Women's Health, Bustle, Stylist and Red.

Aside from her quasi-personal investment in celebs' comings and goings, she is especially interested in debunking diet culture and de-stigmatising mental health struggles.