'You suck!' Kelly Clarkson reacts to Billy Porter's gospel cover of 'Stronger,' invites him to duet
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Trae Patton/NBC (2) Billy Porter and Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson is feeling stronger and standing a little taller after hearing Billy Porter cover one of her biggest hits.
Now, as any singer worth their salt knows, there are certain people you just don't give a mic to… because they will run away with it.
One of those people is Clarkson, who regularly delights her audience and the internet at large with her Kellyoke song covers on her eponymous daytime show talk show — often improving on them because she's Kelly F---ng Clarkson, the real and true American Idol.
Another one of those people is Emmy, Tony, and Grammy winner Billy Porter. On a recent episode of the NBC game show That's My Jam, based on the musical bit from The Tonight Show, Porter covered Clarkson's eternal bop "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" and, well, he killed it.
The way That's My Jam works is, you take a couple celebs, some with musical talent, others not so much, and give them a song to sing in a specific genre. So when Porter got Clarkson's "Stronger" paired with gospel, everyone in the audience magically sprouted their best Sunday hats because they knew Porter was about to take them to church.
Porter was competing against Sarah Hyland and Darren Criss, which already seems unfair, until you realize that Porter's partner was none other than the Creole Lady Marmalade herself, Dame Patti LaBelle. Now if there's anyone you never give a mic to, it's Patti "Watch Out for That Flying Louboutin" LaBelle — just ask Diana Ross.
Before Porter even started, Criss and Hyland protested, "That's not fair." Criss joked, "I'm just gonna leave," and Hyland pulled up a chair with a matter-of-fact "I'mma sit."
Hyland wasn't sitting for long, though. Porter tackled "Stronger" like someone who's a scene-stealing turn away from an EGOT, and he was doing incredible on his own when Ms. LaBelle started providing "backup vocals."
Mind you, Patti was not holding a mic when the performance started. But being Patti LaBelle, angels either manifested out of thin air and gently clasped her hand around one or she just brought out the spare mic she carries in her purse for any and all occasions. Seems like whether you give her a mic or not, Patti's runnin'.
While the audience — as well as Criss, Hyland, and host Jimmy Fallon — was blown away by Porter's performance, no one was more impressed than Clarkson herself.
"That is the greatest cover that I have ever heard of any song I've ever performed," Clarkson gushed on The Kelly Clarkson Show. "First of all you suck, Billy Porter. Because now I never want to sing it like I sing it again. I want to do the church version!"
Clarkson then asked Porter to duet with her on "Stronger," extending "a personal invite" for "any time you want to sing that song like that with me." She added, "Or I'll just stand on the side of the stage and let you have it."
Is it too early to ask for a Kelly Clarkson-Billy Porter "Stronger" duet for Christmas? But like, within the week? Because daytime TV hasn't had two powerhouse vocalists belting at each other since Jennifer Hudson and Amber Riley told you they weren't going. And now they're gone.
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