It’s been nearly 22 years since Kelly Clarkson dropped “Since U Been Gone”. The Kelly Clarkson Show is now done and dusted, sadly, but you know she had to break out her iconic hit one last time for the show’s August finale. More than two decades after the single’s release, Kelly not only belted those high notes in the original key like a boss, but also brought an effervescent energy to the viral performance. This gave it the unmistakable energy of a victory lap.
Seeing the sparkle in Kelly’s eyes as the crowd sang along made it such a feel-good moment. It’s a massive song vocally, but Kelly effortlessly sailed through the husky low-register vocals in the verse along with the high-range belting in the second half. Don’t miss Kelly rising to the top of her range in a dramatic run in the bridge at 4:30 that had her guitarist’s jaw hitting the floor. The Music Man has to say that Kelly always hits the bullseye with her live vocals!
The Kelly Clarkson Show uploaded her finale performance of “Since U Been Gone” on August 31, 2026. Fans found a lot to love and added comments such as “Kelly’s voice gets fuller as she gets older. Amazing!” and “I listened to this so much 22 years ago! Her voice has really matured into such a strong and powerful instrument.”
Kelly delivered a number of viral cuts from her finale show. The most viral moment from the finale came when she sang the KPop Demon Hunters hit “Golden”, which has drawn more than 5.6 million YouTube views. The show’s team noted in the description that this was the most-requested cover song from fans in the history of the show. It’s easy to understand why, as hearing Kelly nail those sky-high hooks in the chorus was super satisfying. It’s such a huge song vocally and Kelly was just all over it.
Kelly Clarkson released “Since U Been Gone” on November 16, 2004. The tune was the lead single from her second studio album Breakaway.
The Music Man readers might be interested to hear that the songwriters, Max Martin and Dr. Luke, originally had Pink in mind for “Since U Been Gone”. Pink passed on the song, and Hilary Duff’s team also considered it before deciding it was not a fit for her vocal range.
It’s pretty wild to think that “Since U Been Gone” could have been one of Pink’s hits instead of Kelly’s. The single was a major success for Kelly, going platinum in the US and triple platinum in the UK.