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

Kelly sang “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)” while competing against the top seven on ’70s Night. We’ll stop talking about how she was safe after that performance because she always was. Kelly also started heading deeper into the 2000s trends that evening with a look that was gaining popularity at the time.

It seems that Clarkson is one of the few people who can pull off an asymmetrical top without looking like one of the straps is missing. For her performance of “Don’t Play That Song,” she wore a black one-sleeved tank that showed off just enough of her midriff. She paired that with ombre’ pants that sat very low on her hips. At the bottom, they flared out into a mini bell bottom, another trend that was huge in 2002.

Kelly’s hair was different here too. It seemed to be more blended and dark, where she normally showed of very chunky blonde highlights. She wore her hair down and although it was curled, this is one of the least voluminous hairstyles that the singer wore on American Idol. 

With a voice as big as Kelly’s often times her outfits were overshadowed by her huge songs. That seems to be what happened on this night when she sang the Aretha Franklin hit because this outfit is a classic ’00s look and even after watching every episode of the singing competition, it’s hard to recall what should have been a very memorable outfit.