Kelly Clarkson Says She Went to 'Marriage Counseling' Pre-Divorce and Knew It 'Wasn't Going to' Work (Exclusive)

"It's very helpful to have a trained professional that knows how to navigate you through rough seas," Clarkson told Apple Music

Intuition is powerful, and Kelly Clarkson's was strong as she realized her marriage to Brandon Blackstock was coming to an end.

The "Favorite Kind of High" singer-songwriter spoke to Apple Music's Zane Lowe for a new interview, in which she opens up about attending marriage counseling and knowing in her head that it wasn't going to help the situation.

In clips from the conversation premiering exclusively on PEOPLE, Clarkson says she doesn't "know that there's one moment" when she felt better following her divorce from Blackstock in 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage.

"It's gradual. And that's what people tell you, too," said the 41-year-old American Idol alum, nodding to a song on her new album Chemistry that touches on the topic. "I mean, it's interesting, because this album starts off with a song called 'Skip This Part.' And I literally say, 'Can I skip this part?'"

Related: Kelly Clarkson Says Therapy Has Been 'Helpful' After Her Divorce: 'They Give You So Many Tools'

Clarkson continued, "I literally said to my therapist, and it wasn't even, honestly, we weren't even divorced. We weren't separated then. It was like, when we first started talking, it was marriage counseling. It was trying to make it work. 'We're trying to figure it out. I desperately want to make this happen,' but I think I knew in my heart it just wasn't going to."

The "Miss Independent" musician recalled people telling her not to "worry" because "the end" of her hardship was around the corner. "And you're like, 'Shut up.' At the time, you're just like, 'I don't want to hear that. I don't want to hear the light at the end of the tunnel. I don't want to hear all the bumper stickers you're about to feed me.' It's just s---ty, and that's where I'm at, and I don't want to go through it."

A Texas native, Clarkson said "people don't generally go to therapy" where she's from, "but it's very helpful to have a trained professional that knows how to navigate you through rough seas, and it's a rollercoaster."

She added that the "up and down" process is reflected in Chemistry, which drops Friday. "It's like, 'I'm out,' and it's like, 'Wait, I'm in.' Because love makes you do really incredible things and incredibly stupid things," said the Grammy winner. "And so, I don't think there was a moment [where I knew I felt better.] It just gradually happened to where, one day — I think one thing that did help me is she was like, 'You don't have to attend every argument that you're invited to,' and that really stuck with me."

Related: Kelly Clarkson Recalls Feeling 'Limited' in Her Marriage But Staying Because of Her 'Ego'

In another clip from the interview, Clarkson spoke about the importance of music in her life, quipping that record labels are "not a fan of me, because I'm always never about the money."

"Because they're always like — they'll shove money at you to, 'Just record this.' I'm like, 'I don't want to record that. That's not me.' And there are compromises along the way, whatever," she said. "Music has always been a necessity for me. Even when I was a kid. Like I was saying, I had a hard time with confronting not only others, but even myself, if I'm being honest, with what I'm feeling and where I'm at, and it was very hard for me to describe or put into words, to have a conversation with someone."

Looking back on her childhood, Clarkson continued, "So, my mom shoved a journal in front of me and was like, 'If you're not going to talk to me or anybody else, write it down.' So, it started as poetry, and then it became lyrics. So, I think it's always been a necessity for me."

Clarkson's interview with Lowe airs in full Wednesday on Apple Music 1 at 1 p.m EST.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.