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Kelly Clarkson put a new spin on her powerful 2015 ballad during her Las Vegas residency over the weekend, making notable lyric changes following her divorce from Brandon Blackstock. Clarkson’s “Piece By Piece,” which initially expressed hope that Blackstock would be a better husband and father in her life after experiencing heartbreak with her own father growing up.
Clarkson and Blackstock tied the knot in 2013 and finalized their divorce in 2022. During her live performance in Las Vegas, the chemistry powerhouse told the crowd that she’d initially written “Piece By Piece” as a “super hopeful” song, but now says that “sometimes hopeful turns into hopeless, so here we go.”
Many of the original “he” lyrics were swapped for “I” statements, including changing the original “He never walks away / He never asks for money / He takes care of me / He loves me,” to “I just walk away / when they ask for money / I take care of me / ’cause I love me,” videos shared on social media platforms show. Clarkson also sang, referencing her two young children she shares with Blackstock: “I will never leave them like you left me / They never have to wonder their worth because unlike you, I'm gonna put them first / I never walk away. I never break their hearts / I take care of things when you leave scars / Piece by pieces I restored my faith that a heart can still beat even when it breaks.”