Demi Lovato credits Kelly Clarkson for shaping her as a singer

Demi Lovato credited Kelly Clarkson for shaping her music career calling the American Idol winner her first "idol."

​The Camp Rock alum made a recent appearance on Street You Grew Up on with Kerry Washington and recalled how the Kelly Clarkson Show host was an inspiration for her when she was young.

Looking back at Kelly’s American Idol days, Demi said, “When Kelly Clarkson won American Idol and she sang ‘A Moment Like This,’ that was a game-changer for me."

​“That was the first time I really had an idol," she gushed.

​The Disney star shared her younger self used to watch the talent show with her family.

“I want to be her someday," Demi recalled.

​And when Demi met Kelly for the first time, it was a special moment for her.

​The songstress gushed, “When I met her for the first time I hugged her three times because I was just like, you don’t know what you mean to me and how you’ve shaped my career."

​"I am who I am as a singer because of you," Demi told Kelly at the time.

Demi also shared that she used to sing to practice higher notes by singing Kelly’s songSince U Been Gone.

​Demi recently wrapped her tour in May. Her latest studio album, It’s Not That Deep, was released back in October 2025.

​She recently reprised her Camp Rock character, Mitchie Torres, for the third installment of the Disney movie.