In the appeal, the singer's team requested a judge to sign off on her divorce and to leave other arrangements like spousal and child support for a later date.
Amidst Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock's ongoing public divorce drama, the 38-year-old singer has requested a judge to declare her legally divorced from her former spouse. The former American Idol contestant's attorney filed documents regarding the matter in Los Angeles court on Thursday which was obtained by PEOPLE. In the appeal, the singer's team requested a judge to sign off on her divorce and to leave other arrangements like spousal and child support for a later date. Providing a reason for her request, Clarkson noted that both she and Blackstock "deserve the opportunity to build a new life."
After almost seven years of marriage, the Since U Been Gone singer filed for divorce from her husband in June 2020 citing irreconcilable differences. Initially, she sought joint legal and physical custody for her two children, River Rose, 6, and Remington Alexander, 4. But in November Clarkson was granted primary physical custody of her kids by an L.A. County judge soon after she accused Blackstock and his father Narvel Blackstock's management company of defrauding her out of millions of dollars. She filed a legal document with the California Labor Commission in October last year and claimed that Brandon and his Starstruck Management company had charged her outlandish fees while she was with the agency.
The Voice coach also said that the father-son duo was not licensed to be agents in the state of California. Thus, she wanted the money she paid to the company for 13 years to be reimbursed. This came shortly after the management company sued her for violating the California Labor Code saying she owed them $1.4 million in unpaid commissions. They also claimed that much of Clarkson's popularity was thanks to them. Navel was the one who introduced Blackstock to Clarkson and they tied the knot in 2013. But after self-isolating with her husband (and manager) in their Montana house during the pandemic, she realized that their marriage was not going to work.
A source of Entertainment Tonight revealed, "Kelly and Brandon had been having problems for several months and were making a conscious effort to work things out. They both hoped quarantining away from L.A. in Montana would help them work things out in their marriage, but instead, the change in environment was actually detrimental." During an interview with Glamour UK, the down-to-earth artist admitted feeling very overwhelmed with all that was happening with and around her. "Honestly, I have been on an emotional roller coaster. This has been really hard as a working parent because I'm still doing all the same jobs," she said.
"It's been exhausting honestly, cooking every meal, and cleaning nonstop after toddlers and teenagers! Everybody's learning from home now and the teaching! So, everything has been crazy," she added. But Clarkson makes it a point to give it her all when it comes to parenting. She loves her kids to bits and doesn't want them to feel abandoned just like she did due to an absent father. "There are so many hard parts. The hardest for me is the kids ... I think, as women especially, we're trained to take it all on and deal with it and you're fine. But it's your babies that you worry about," she said according to PEOPLE.
However, co-parenting turned out to be a huge challenge for Blackstock and Clarkson so the court awarded Clarkson primary custody of the kids. "The level of conflict between the parents has increased. The parties have a difficult time co-parenting due to issues of trust between them," revealed the court document. The distrust was further caused after Blackstock asked for an enormous amount for spousal and child support.
According to PEOPLE, he is asking for $436,000 every month. "[Blackstock has] been equally unreasonable in his requests for child and spousal support, as well as attorney fees. Kelly’s offered to pay for all the kids’ expenses, but Brandon seems to think he is entitled to and needs $301,000 in spousal support and $135,000 in child support per month," shared a source. They added that the 43-year-old was also asking for "$2 million for attorney fees when he's the one driving up the cost of the divorce with seven attorneys just representing him alone." He also wanted his kids to travel from L.A. or reside in Montana to see him, but after the court recognized that L.A. "undeniably been their home base," Blackstock was instructed to do the "back and forth" traveling.
As the divorce battle turns bitter, Clarkson's "primary focus is on doing the best she can to protect the kids." Thankfully, she has music to cope with all that is happening in her life right now. Back in February, she opened up about using this ability as a coping mechanism. "I have written like, 60 songs. It is an insane amount of getting it out," she told Entertainment Tonight. "I think that's a blessing in itself. Anytime you go through some life, it's such an awesome thing to have that outlet, regardless of whether people hear it or not," she added. "I don't know how anybody, I'll just be real with you, goes through grief like divorce, any kind of grief, any kind of loss, without having an outlet like this."
References:
https://people.com/music/kelly-clarkson-realized-brandon-blackstock-marriage-wasnt-happiness/
https://people.com/music/kelly-clarkson-divorce-brandon-blackstock-seeking-436k-support-month/
Cover image source: Getty | Photo by Rich Fury
