Kelly Clarkson’s marriage to Brandon Blackstock was tragically flawed in many ways, but it gave the OG “American Idol” her two children. During their long divorce between 2020 and 2022, she tried to remain strong for River and Remy by making sure her feelings for Blackstock did not hurt their relationship with their father. Despite her efforts, Clarkson knows the messy divorce impacted her kids. It was the beginning of a sequence of tragic years for River and Remy, born in June 2014 and April 2016, respectively.

In August 2025, at just 11 and 9 years old, River and Remy experienced the death of a parent. Blackstock died at age 48 from melanoma, an aggressive type of skin cancer. To cope with their father’s untimely death, River and Remy are leaning on their adult half-siblings, Savannah and Seth, whom Blackstock shared with ex-wife Melissa Ashworth. “The kids are doing well, they’re all bonding together and hanging out with each other, and taking it one day at a time,” Blackstock’s former stepmother, Reba McEntire, told Entertainment Tonight in September 2025.

But it hasn’t been easy. “We miss him. We miss him every minute,” she said, adding that their faith has helped guide them. “We know God’s got this.” Clarkson had previously put career commitments aside to ensure her kids could be with their dad while he underwent treatment. “This past year, my children’s father has been ill and at this moment, I need to be fully present for them,” she shared in an August 2025 Instagram post. Their father’s death comes after turbulent years for the kids.

Kelly Clarkson’s messy divorce from Brandon Blackstock wasn’t easy on the kids. Just 6 and 4 when Clarkson filed for divorce in June 2020, River and Remy couldn’t grasp the complexities of their parents’ relationship. They wanted their family to be as it was and would tell their mother as such during their bedtime ritual. Every night, Clarkson asks them if they’re happy, and, if not, what would change that. “A lot of times it would be like, ‘I’m just really sad. I wish Mommy and Daddy were in the same house,'” she revealed on the “Angie Martinez IRL” podcast in 2023.

As much as it pains her, she honors her children’s feelings. “It kills me, [but] I want them to be honest so I don’t ever say, ‘Oh God, don’t tell me that,'” she explained. To her, honesty is more important than hurt feelings. She wants her daughter and son to know they can always turn to her with the truth. “I’m like, ‘I get it. I’m from a divorced family, as well. I get it. That sucks. But we’re going to work it out,'” she said.

Clarkson focused on ensuring River and Remy knew how much they were loved by both of them. And she also made it a priority that her kids had a positive relationship with Blackstock because she never had one with her father. “She always wanted to spare them that. She’s devastated for them,” a source told Page Six.