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“The Voice” coach Kelly Clarkson is preparing for the release of her 10th studio album, “Chemistry”, on June 23, and the talk show host revealed which comedy legend she has joining her on the record, and how their unexpected collaboration came to be.
The “Chemistry” track listing was revealed in April 2023 by Entertainment Weekly, which showed that comedian and musician Steve Martin would be joining her on the penultimate track, “I Hate Love.”
“I still can’t believe it happened!” Clarkson said of Martin’s feature on her album in a May 2023 interview with ET Canada, “I reference him in a song and this movie he’s in and he’s such an incredible banjo player and musician.”
Kelly Clarkson Talks Working With Steve Martin
Clarkson may still be in shock that her collaboration with Steve Martin came to be, however she was able to reflect on how his feature happened in the first place and what it was like working with him on her new album.
“I was like ‘I wonder if he would play on it’ because its like a pop punk song, ‘I wonder if he’d do it’ and he said yes! And I’m such a fan of his,” Clarkson went on, “Movies can be really ingrained in like a part of our lives and [they’re] so nostalgic, just like music. And so, you know, to be able to work with someone that’s just been in my life, like visually, since I was a little girl is incredible.”
The full lyrics to Clarkson’s song referencing Martin are not yet released, however the writing credits have been shared, and Clarkson’s fellow “The Voice” coach Nick Jonas is credited as a co-writer on the Clarkson/Martin track.
Aside from his current role in the popular television comedy “Only Murders in the Building” and his storied film and TV career, Martin is also an acclaimed musician, having six number 1 albums on the Billboard Bluegrass charts, including multiple collaborations with musician Edie Brickell (who is married to Paul Simon of Simon and Garfunkel fame). He has also taken his talents to Broadway, penning the book for the musical “Bright Star” (and co-writing the music with Brickell), which premiered in New York in 2016 after years of development. “Bright Star” earned Martin a Drama Desk Award and multiple Tony nominations. Martin also wrote the 2016 play “Meteor Shower”, which earned Amy Schumer a Tony nomination.
Kelly Clarkson & Steve Martin Both Appeared at the 2021 Kennedy Center Honors
Clarkson and Martin have crossed paths in the past, as both stars made appearances at the 2021 Kennedy Center Honors ceremony, which paid tribute to the lives and works of Debbie Allen, Joan Baez, Garth Brooks, Midori, and Dick Van Dyke.
Clarkson performed Brooks’ song “The Dance” as a part of his tribute, with fellow singers James Taylor, Gladys Knight, and Jimmie Allen also performing for the country icon at the socially distanced outdoor ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Martin didn’t perform at the 2021 ceremony, but was rather a presenter for then-95-year-old Dick Van Dyke, welcoming performers including dancer and TV personality Derek Hough, Broadway stars Laura Osnes and Aaron Tveit, and a capella group Pentatonix, who performed songs made famous by Van Dyke throughout his career, including “Step in Time” from “Mary Poppins” and “Put On a Happy Face” from “Bye Bye Birdie”.
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