Kelly Clarkson has withdrawn from her scheduled appearance at the Band Together Texas benefit concert following the death of her ex-husband and former manager, Brandon Blackstock.
The event, set for Sunday, August 17 at the Moody Center in Austin, will still go on with a lineup that includes Miranda Lambert, Parker McCollum, Ryan Bingham, Wade Bowen, Ronnie Dunn, Dylan Gossett, Jack Ingram, Cody Johnson, Lyle Lovett, Lukas Nelson, Jon Randall and Randy Rogers Band.
The announcement was shared through the concert’s official Instagram Stories on Monday, August 11, stating, “Unfortunately, Kelly Clarkson will be unable to appear at Band Together Texas as planned, due to personal circumstances. We send our love to Kelly and her family.”
Band Together Texas is raising funds for the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country and the Central Texas Community Foundation in support of communities devastated by severe flooding in early July, which claimed the lives of 130 people in the Hill Country region.
According to the event’s website, the goal is to provide “critical support for flood-impacted communities and their ongoing needs as they recover and rebuild.”
Just days earlier, Clarkson had postponed the remainder of her August Las Vegas residency shows at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, explaining in an August 6 Instagram post that Blackstock was “ill.”
At the time, she wrote, “I am sincerely sorry to everyone who bought tickets to the shows and I so appreciate your grace, kindness and understanding.”
Blackstock passed away on August 7 at the age of 48 after a more than three-year battle with melanoma.
“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,” a family representative said in a statement to Us Weekly.
“We thank you for your thoughts and prayers and ask everyone to respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time.”
Clarkson and Blackstock married in 2013 and shared two children, River, born in 2014, and Remington, born in 2016. They separated in 2020 and finalized their divorce in 2022 after a lengthy legal dispute.
