BY TER STAFF

Kelly Clarkson is in the middle of her first tour in three years, but if you were in attendance for her Green Bay performance on Friday night, you wouldn’t have guessed it. Although Clarkson has kept herself immensely busy with motherhood, writing music, NBC’s The Voice and her countless other endeavors, she somehow finds a way to stay polished as one of the best live performers in pop music today.

Clarkson’s Meaning Of Life Tour performance began on Friday as a video montage of her years of hits and music videos played for the sold-out crowd. And before you knew it, Clarkson emerged from a rising platform to the tip of her stage’s massive catwalk. The Texas native took us back to day one to kick off the set by performing an acapella version of her debut single from her American Idol day’s, “A Moment Like This”, the perfect start to what would be an especially memorable evening.

Early into her performance, Clarkson thanked the Green Bay crowd for making it out to the show, which may be her last tour for quite some time. “I don’t know when I’m going to be able to tour again,” Clarkson told the crowd, “…because I have a TV show coming out…”, the singer continued to the audience’s delight. Of course referring to her upcoming and anticipated daytime talk show, Clarkson won’t be walking away from music, as she’s set to make musical performances during the program.

While she’s amazing on the road, it’s only right that Kelly Clarkson takes her routine live performances back to network television. What stood out most on Friday night, wasn’t the 17 years of hit singles, rather it was Clarkson’s A+ stage presence. The singer was personable, hilarious and adorable. She made us laugh with her jokes, giving a seasoned stand up comic a run for their money. She made us smile, posing on stage for selfies with young fans, in the middle of her performances.  Overall, she was down to earth, charismatic and her interaction with the audience was second to none, so it’s no wonder why she landed a major daytime talk show spot.

Clarkson later practiced her interview skills as she took a break from the music to invite Milwaukee bus driver Natalie Barnes onto the stage. After gaining local attention for befriending a homeless man during one of the coldest days of the year, Clarkson honored Barnes while diving into her story, before giving her $1,000 as a thanks. The moment had nothing to do with music but was one of the night’s many highlights.

After a group picture with Barnes and the audience, Clarkson returned to her mic stand for a very special cover. After telling the crowd about her relationship with Lady Gaga during the early stages of her career, Clarkson performed a beautiful cover of Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s ‘Shallow’ from their critically acclaimed A Star Is Born.

With the crowd officially blown away, Clarkson kept the momentum going by ending the night with some of her biggest classics. Finishing her set with ‘Heartbeat Song’ and ‘Miss Independent’, where she was joined by her openers Kelsea Ballerini and The Voice’s Brynn Cartelli, Clarkson soon returned for an encore that included performances of ‘Stronger’ and ‘Since You’ve Been Gone’.

Over a decade of hits aside, Kelly Clarkson can sing a cook book and blow you away with her vocals. But even if she was a mediocre singer (and nothing about Kelly Clarkson is mediocre), Friday’s performance would have still been memorable from her stage presence alone. She didn’t need elaborate production or any over-the-top theatrics, all she needs is a stage, audience and a microphone.

The ‘Love So Soft’ singer delivered the best performance Green Bay has seen all year, and it’s not even close.

Get your tickets and more information for the remaining dates of Kelly Clarkson’s U.S. tour here!