Kelly Clarkson Says She Pushed Back Show Time to Split School Pick-Ups with Nanny: 'I Made That Call'

Kelly Clarkson shares kids River Rose, 8, and Remington Alexander, 6, with ex-husband Brandon Blackstock

Kelly Clarkson. Photo: Brian Bowen Smith for Variety

Kelly Clarkson makes sure she's always putting her family first.

In a new cover story interview with Variety published Wednesday, the musician and talk show host, 40, shared how being a parent to her two young kids changes her approach to her busy work days.

Clarkson, who shares kids River Rose, 8, and Remington Alexander, 6, with ex-husband Brandon Blackstock, told the outlet that she made the decision to push back the time of her eponymous NBC talk show so that she could drop her kids off at school.

"This season, we pushed everything back 30 minutes. I made that call so that I can take my kids to school," she said. "And then my nanny picks them up. At least I have the mornings with them, and then I have nights with them."

The "Stronger" singer split from Blackstock, 45, in June 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage. Their divorce was finalized in March.

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Kelly Clarkson. Brian Bowen Smith for Variety

Speaking of her experience with "mom guilt," Clarkson said she feels "very fortunate" that she has the "means" to see her kids as often as she does.

"My mom, I did call her once — this was years ago — and I was like, 'Do I see my kids enough?' And she was like, 'Oh, my God, Kelly, you see your kids way more than I saw you!' A lot of people don't have the means, so I'm very fortunate," she shared.

"The scheduling can get tricky, but I have such a great team: Everyone at NBC is amazing, and everybody wants everyone to be successful. It's really helpful to have that type of unity in your environment at work," Clarkson continued. "There are a lot of parents at the talk show and at The Voice and at my label. And there are a lot of women."

Courtesy Legoland New York

The singer recently appeared on an episode of Today where she chatted with co-hosts Hoda Kotb and Carson Daly about how she spent her first summer off in over 20 years, sharing that she was in the Montana mountains with her two kids.

"It's obviously been a rough couple of years so it was really important to me to shut down for a minute," said Clarkson.

"I literally four-wheeled in the mountains," she said of her summer plans. "I have a lot of water on my property so my sister, my nephew and I and a couple friends just spent the whole summer in the mountains."

Asked by Daly if her kids River and Remington were there, Clarkson said, "The kids were with me and with their dad."

"It was nice because they usually have to travel a lot because of our separation so we were both in Montana," she added. "I felt like the first time my kids felt a little more centered as well."