As the latest guest on Kylie Kelce’s “Not Gonna Lie” podcast, Kelly Clarkson didn’t hold back when discussing the difficulties of being a working mom.
In a show teaser shared via Instagram on Wednesday, March 26, Clarkson, 42, took over the “Not Gonna Lie” segment and questioned why schools schedule student performances during the middle of the workday.
“I’m not gonna lie. I don’t know when the school systems thought it would be a good plan for families and their emotional stability to start having performances at 10 a.m. during the week,” Clarkson began. “This just in: a lot of us work. And surprising you with it, like, not giving you an advance where you can at least tell your work, ‘Hey, I’m gonna need this morning off, like, to come in.’”
Clarkson went on to note that many employers still wouldn’t grant the time-off request, adding that kids get confused about why their parents can’t attend events. “A lot of jobs wouldn’t let you do that anyway,” she said. “But even if you’re, like, the boss and you would have that control, our kids don’t understand. And we just look like f—ing tools when we’re not there.”
As for the teachers who question why some parents can make it while others can’t, Clarkson admitted it’s at that moment that she just throws her hands up in the air and gets honest about her parenting.
“Then they go, ‘Why was this mom there?’ And then you have to say, ‘Because that kid’s got a better mom.’ I don’t know,” Clarkson said candidly as Kelce, 33, broke out in laughter.
Fans in the comments section applauded both Clarkson for her honesty and Kelce, who is due to give birth to her fourth daughter, for the string of guests she’s had on her podcast since its debut in December 2024.
“Ngl kylie gets some of the best guests on her podcast!!!” one fan wrote.
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“Agreed Kelly! Parents need notice to rearrange schedules. Let’s help parents support their kids,” another noted.
Even more parents shared additional requests for their respective school districts as well.
“Also. Can we not have a field trip that we pay for and then book fair the next week 😂, it should be illegal,” one mom added.
“Also for the love of all that is holy, please stop having spirit weeks twice a month requiring fully customized daily outfits,” another noted. “Us working moms are holding on by a thread.”
Clarkson, who hosts her own eponymous daytime talk show, is a single mom to her two kids, 10-year-old River Rose and 8-year-old Remington Alexander, whom she shares with ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock.
