Almost two weeks ago on August 14th I attended Kelly Clarkson's co-headlining 2012 Summer Tour with The Fray and opening act Carolina Liar. I was lucky enough to score free tickets to the concert so it was an opportunity that I just could not pass up. I had never seen Kelly live before so I was beyond excited. And plus, since it is a co-headlining tour it was like getting two concerts for the price of one. And since it was free it was even better! Kelly is one of those artists who is humble and just a normal human being, but at the same time is incredibly talented and exudes artistry with everything she does. Kelly put on an amazing show, even though it was a rough night for her.

This is more or less where we sat

Since we got free tickets we were stuck on the lawn so we didn't have the greatest of views of the stage. We were a ways back, but honestly it wasn't that bad. Most of the time I focused on the screens, but the angle we were at made it easy to see an unobstructed view of Kelly most of the time. The Riverbend Music Center actually had free folding chairs that you could borrow so that worked out nicely. As the opening act, Carolina Liar first took the stage. To be honest, they were just okay. Too many people hadn't shown up yet so they were only playing to about half of the crowd, and they just really couldn't keep anyone's attention. Most people were just chatting to each other and not paying attention. After they finished the short set, the stage was readied for The Fray. Shortly, they came out and began to perform. By this time the crowd was at least two-thirds full. The sun was beginning to set and the show was getting started. I was actually a little disappointed by The Fray. I've only ever heard their singles on the radio (never listened to one of their albums), but even with the good songs the concert fell flat. I think what the problem was was that it was too heavy and somber. The Fray aren't known for having upbeat happy songs, but then they also threw in a tribute to the victims of the Colorado massacre. This lowered the mood even more and just made it depressing. During most of their set people weren't paying too much attention. There was a lot of chit-chatting going on around us. Despite having some good music they failed to keep the audience's attention. About halfway through their set I realized that most people were there just to see Kelly. They finished their fourteen songs, got a lukewarm reaction for the audience, and then the stage began getting set up for the original American Idol winner.
It was quite a long wait before Kelly came on, but that only amped up the crowd. By this time the Riverbend Music Center was packed with fans, and everyone was on their feet. During The Fray's set most people were sitting down so this was defintiely a change of pace. Kelly's entrance was highly anticipated by this time. Like any great pop star, the screens turned on and played a montage of Kelly videos. The crowd went wild as they knew the show was finally beginning. Finally, and to a huge welcome by the crowd, Kelly stepped on stage and began performing 'My Life Would Suck Without You'. The song got the audience jumping up and down, and they were singing every word. She then performed 'Behind These Hazel Eyes' and then 'I Forgive You' off the Stronger album. It was after 'I Forgive You' that Kelly finally took time and addressed the audience for the first time that night. She was highly impressed with the crowd because they knew every word of the song despite it simply being an album track and not a single. This is something that she reittereated throughout the night. She even said “That makes me feel good, y’all.” The Cincinnati crowd wowed her repeatedly. And then came Kelly's big confession.
Kelly told the crowd, after fighting back tears, that the day had been the worst day of her life. She gave no reason as to why, but it was later revealed by Kelly herself on Facebook that her dog had been seriously ill and had been taken to the hospital. She seemed distraught by all this, and it really showed. It was obvious when she first came out that something was wrong because she was wearing a simple black dress and had very little to no make-up on. Maybe it was because Kelly showed her vulnerable side in telling us how bad her day had been or simply because it was a great crowd, but Kelly quickly told us that we were the loudest and best crowd she had ever performed for. It was obvious that she was sincere because throughout the night she was clearly taken aback and amazed by our enthusiasm. It was really something cool to experience because it felt like we were helping Kelly through this rough time and maybe even making her feel better. At the end of the night she told us “Seriously, I had the worst day ever. Thanks for being the best audience ever.”
The rest of the night was just a boatload of fun. Despite having a terrible day, she put on an amazing show for her fans that never lacked energy or enthusiasm for a second. The crowd were on their feet the entire set, and it was clear they were having fun. As I've featured on here in the past, Kelly always does a fan request during her set, and on this particular night she decided to do 'Stay' by Lisa Loeb. She told us truthfully that she picked this song because she had done it on tour in the past and because she was preoccupied earlier in the day she hadn't had time to rehearse with her band. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful song. As a special surprise, Jordan Meredith (Kelly's contestant on Duets) made an appearance and sang Miranda Lambert's 'Mama's Broken Heart'. It was a huge surprise, and she was my favorite contestant on the show so I was over the moon with glee. My favorite part of the night had to be the encore. After a quick step off the stage, Kelly came back roaring with her smash hit 'Because of You', then she went into 'Mr. Know It All', brought it back to the early days with a fiery hot and angst-y rendition of 'Miss Independent', and then she finished with the anthemic 'Stronger'. Those last four songs got the crowd going ecstatic, and it was the perfect way to end a great night. Kelly's vocals were on par, and she sounded better than she usually does live. It was a magical night, despite the slightly depressed and emotional Kelly. She proved that night how incredible of an artist she is, and I hope to see her perform live again in the future.