15 of Kelly Clarkson’s American Idol looks, ranked by ’00s-ness

When Kelly Clarkson hit the top three on the first season of American Idol, the judges chose a song for her to sing. Proving that the judges know exactly what they are doing, this Badfinger song turned out to be one of the best that Kelly offered during the competition.

Even though Clarkson sang two songs during her time competing with the top three, this is the one she sang during the results show. The song, which was ultimately made famous by Mariah Carey even though she sang the cover, was inspired when Kelly took her turn. It’s no surprise that she received a standing ovation from the live crowd.

When it comes to Kelly’s outfit while taking the stage, well, we’re getting closer to the most ’00s outfit so it should be no surprise here. Kelly stayed on the red side of the spectrum again but managed to change it up with a tomato colored one-sleeved dress.

Kelly paired the full-length dress with sleek hair, showing off her perfectly blonde-streaked dark brown hair. Clarkson’s hair during this performance shows off everything we’ve been talking about when it comes to those big chunky highlights that were all the rage at the time. I had them, did you?

It was during this week on American Idol that Nikki McKibbin went home, leaving Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini to battle it out as the final two. On the night where they performed two songs, Nikki belted out a very memorable “Edge of Seventeen” as well as a perfect version of “Black Velvet.” Her elimination at this point just proved how talented both Kelly and Justin are.