In the music industry, it is common knowledge that most talent show winners don’t go on to translate their victory into tangible career success. There are however exceptions to every rule and two of the foremost amongst them are country music stars Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.
Both winners of the popular singing competition American Idols, Clarkson and Underwood have gone to become some of the biggest names in the music world today. They have both dropped bestselling albums and won several awards. They have also broken several records and are now global superstars. Beyond music, the duo have diversified into other areas of interest such as writing books and starring in movies and TV shows. As a result, both musicians now have multi-million dollar fortunes and have been hailed as some of the greatest singers and vocalists of their generation.
Who Is Richer Between Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood?
With a net worth estimated at $200 million, Carrie Underwood is about three times richer than Kelly Clarkson whose net worth is estimated at $45 million. Both ladies built up their fortunes from album sales and earnings from their tours. They have also made out time to branch out to other creative pursuits. For instance, Clarkson joined the singing completion show, The Voice, as a coach in 2018. She has been there since then and reportedly receives about $560,000 per episode. This works out to about $14 million each year.
Another money-spinner for the crooner is her eponymous talk show which debuted on NBC in September 2019. The show has been a big hit from day one and averages about two million viewers per episode. It is now the most-watched talk show in recent memory and as can be expected, advertisers and sponsors keep on flocking to the show. Additionally, Clarkson has also earned good bucks from minor roles in movies such as Trolls and Uglydolls. She is also an author and has released some children’s books under her deal with HarperCollins.
Carrie Underwood, on her own path, has released a bestselling health and wellness book titled Find Your Path. She also has a fitness app called Fit52 and a clothing line named CALIA (which features active and casual wear) to her name. Another means through which the singer generates income is acting. She has featured in several movies and TV shows, including Soul Surfer and How I Met Your Mother. She and her husband also debuted their own reality TV series, Mike and Carrie: God and Country, in 2020. Sponsorship deals are also a lucrative source of income for Underwood. She has thus far represented brands such as Skechers, Target, Nintendo, Olay, Hershey’s, Almay, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Kelly Clarkson is A Year Older Than Carrie Underwood
Prior to becoming the global superstar that she is today, Kelly Clarkson was just a little girl who was born on the 24th of April 1982 in the Texan town of Fort Worth. She spent her formative years there and sang for her own pleasure as a child. She then took her talents seriously after one of her teachers told her that her voice was good enough for the school choir. From singing in the school choir, Clarkson went on to feature in several high school musicals as well as talent shows. All these enabled her to get some music scholarships to college but she later turned them down in favor of an active career.
Carrie Underwood, on the other hand, only pursued music after ensuring that her college degree was in the bag. The Oklahoma native was born on the 10th of March 1983 and grew up singing in her local Baptist church. She also sang all throughout high school and built up a reputation in her local community. Despite this growing reputation, Underwood chose not to pursue music after high school. She rather proceeded to Northwestern University where she completed her college degree in mass communication and journalism. It was only after doing this that she set her sights on music once more.
Clarkson was the Inaugural Winner of American Idol While Underwood Won the 4th Season of the Show
Having decided to forgo college in favor of music, Kelly Clarkson got to work on her demo and did several odd jobs to finance it. All these efforts however seemed to be in vain as record label after record label turned her down. Undeterred, the young girl moved out to Los Angeles in order to seek more opportunities but this also proved futile. She, therefore, contented herself with doing another variety of odd jobs before moving back to her hometown. This was in the year 2002 and Kelly’s friends encouraged her to try out for the newly launched American Idols. She did so and beat out about 10,000 hopefuls to clinch the big prize. Her compensation included a $1 million recording contract with RCA Records.
While Kelly Clarkson was busy winning the inaugural edition of American Idols, Carrie Underwood was still busy juggling college and her part-time music gigs. She subsequently decided to try out for the fourth season of the show in 2005 and it was a perfect decision. The Oklahoma native enjoyed a blistering run as she blew away the judges with her powerful vocals. She also amassed a dedicated fan base and emerged winner on a weekly basis. This made many judges predict that she would emerge overall winner of the show and she went on to do exactly just that. Her prizes included a $1 million recording contract and a ford mustang convertible.
Both Ladies Have Multiple Chart Topping Albums and Sold Tens of Millions of Records
Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have both done quite well in the music industry. On Clarkson’s Path, she released her debut single, “A Moment Like This”, in September 2002. The song debuted at no. 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 and eventually climbed up to the no.1 spot. It broke a 38-year record set by The Beatles for the biggest leap to no. 1 and also became the bestselling single in the U.S. for the year. Clarkson followed up that monster debut with the hit album Thankful which debuted atop the Billboard Top 200 and went on to sell 4.5 million copies globally. Since then, she has dropped about seven other albums and has sold 25 million records worldwide. She has also headlined numerous lucrative tours.
Carrie Underwood also dropped her debut single, “Inside Your Heaven”, shortly after her American Idols victory. This was in June 2005 and the song debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100. It, therefore, saw Carrie make history as just the third artist to debut in No. 1 since 1998 as well as the first country music artist ever to debut at No. 1. The singer has since gone to drop not less than seven bestselling albums. She also has a host of hit singles to her name and has sold over 65 million records worldwide.
Quick Comparison of the Two Music Stars
| Kelly Clarkson | Carrie Underwood | |
| Age | 41 | 41 |
| Height | 5 feet 3 ½ inches (1.61m) | 5 feet 3 inches (1.60m) |
| Net Worth | $45 million | $200 million |
| Albums | 8 | 8 |
| Headlining Tours | 8 | 6 |
| Grammy Awards | 3 | 7 |
| Relationship Status | Divorced (Brandon Blackstock) | Married (Mike Fisher) |
| No. of Children | Two | Two |
