Kelly Clarkson has revealed that her Christmas hit “Underneath the Tree” was written in less than half an hour, and it all happened while she was waiting for sushi.
The pop superstar shared the story in a recent video for The Kelly Clarkson Show’s YouTube channel, where she was asked about the fastest song she’s ever written.
“A Christmas song. It was ‘Underneath the Tree’,” she said. “I was working with Greg Kurstin in the studio. I ordered sushi and when it arrived I had written it.”
The track became one of the standout songs from Clarkson’s 2013 holiday album Wrapped in Red, and remains a Christmas playlist favourite more than a decade later.
Clarkson says writing Christmas music comes easily to her, partly because it allows for a bit more fun and sentiment.
“I think because I really love Christmas I write them really quickly… because they feel good, because you can be a little cheesy, you know? You don’t have to worry about being cool, which honestly that’s not a concern generally ever because I’m not.”
Clarkson first shot to fame as the winner of the inaugural season of American Idol in 2002, but she admitted recently that she had no idea the show was even being televised at the time she auditioned.
“I didn’t even know it was a TV show until my third audition,” she said on the Not Gonna Lie podcast. “We were literally trying to pay our bills. I was 19 years old just trying to pay my electric bill… and afford the deductible on my car that was bashed in that I couldn’t afford.”
Despite winning the show and launching a hugely successful career, Clarkson said her rise to fame wasn’t all easy.
“I had no one. I was the first winner. It was hard… not to sound like, whatever, it was really hard.”
Since then, Clarkson has sold millions of records, hosted The Kelly Clarkson Show since 2019, and become a mainstay in both music and television.
