Kelly Clarkson's heartbreaking comments on ex Brandon Blackstock reemerge following his death

Kelly Clarkson made heartbreaking comments when talking about Brandon Blackstock before his death.

It was announced yesterday (7 August) that the singer’s ex-husband had died at the age of 48. Blackstock had battled with cancer for over three years and ‘passed away peacefully’.

‘Surrounded by family’ at the time of his death, Clarkson had confirmed a day earlier that she was cancelling her tour due to the talent manager’s health.

"While I normally keep my personal life private, this past year, my children's father has been ill and at this moment, I need to be fully present for them,” she wrote in a statement on Instagram.

The couple were married for nine years before a two-year-long difficult divorce was finalised in 2022, with Clarkson declared legally single in August 2021.

They share two children (Rob Latour/Variety/Penske Media via Getty Images)

She was given primary physical custody of their kids, River Rose, 11, and Remy Alexander, nine, with Blackstock ordered to pay monthly spousal support.

But despite the messiness surrounding the end of their relationship, Clarkson has praised her ex-husband as well as the unconditional love he had for his kids.

In a previous interview with PEOPLE, following their divorce, Clarkson made the heartbreaking comments: “I've always known that love is hard. For me, love has always come with this elephant in the room of sadness. I've known love is not forever. I don't mean that to sound depressing, but I think we put a lot of pressure on that word.

"Sometimes love is looking at someone and going, 'This is not good for you. This is not good for me.' That's a hard thing to face. But when you do, I think you grow."

And in a 2023 episode of Angie Martinez’s IRL podcast, she looked back on the difficult decision to end her marriage.

Blackstock and Clarkson married in 2013 (Kevin Winter/ACMA2013/Getty Images for ACM)

“I think the thing about divorce — especially having it publicized, and people thinking they know the whole thing — the hardest part of that is, like, it wasn't an overnight decision,” the ‘Stronger’ singer said.

“I wanted to make it beautiful. I wanted to make it awesome. I wanted to make it everything it possibly could be, and sometimes that just doesn't happen.”

While the divorce was difficult for Clarkson, a source previously said: “But she always wanted her kids to have the best relationship possible with their dad. She never spoke poorly about Brandon to the kids.”

Confirming his death yesterday, a rep for the family said in a statement: “It is with great sadness that we share the news that Brandon Blackstock has passed away.

“Brandon bravely battled cancer for more than three years. He passed away peacefully and was surrounded by family. We thank you for your thoughts and prayers and ask everyone to respect the family's privacy during this very difficult time."