Kelly's Amazing Journey

How Small-Town Girl Kelly Clarkson Beat The Odds And Conquered Hollywood.

It was a moment fans will never forget. On Sept. 4, 2002, Kelly Clarkson — then a 20-year-old cocktail waitress from Fort Worth, Texas — was crowned the very first winner of American Idol. “Kelly was in total shock,” says a source, recalling that the powerhouse vocalist was so emotional she could barely get through her performance of “A Moment Like This” without crying. “Kelly couldn’t stop smiling when she came off stage. She told everyone that nothing could ever top this.”

Until now. With a career that’s hotter than ever — and the family she’s always dreamed of — the 37-year-old superstar is telling friends that this is the best year of her life. “Kelly feels like she finally has it all,” the source tells OK!, adding that her coaching gig on NBC’s The Voice and her brand-new, wildly popular daytime talk show, The Kelly Clarkson Show, are the icing on the cake. “I never thought I’d be this happy,” admitted Kelly. “My life’s been such a roller coaster. It’s nice when you’re on the high.”

HAUNTED BY HEARTBREAK

Kelly’s life hasn’t been perfect. “I was really shy when I was little. We moved around a lot, and there was divorce,” she once said, referring to the breakup of her parents, Jeanne Taylor and Stephen Clarkson, in the late ’80s. In the years that followed, Kelly’s dad cut ties with the family, leaving her mom to live paycheck to paycheck. “Kelly tried to reach out to her father, but was repeatedly turned away,” says the source, adding that it left a lasting scar on the singer, who’s admitted to having “total abandonment issues.” (She touched on the pain in her hit 2015song “Piece by Piece.”)