Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is a Grammy-winning American singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Clarkson recorded her debut album with RCA Records after she won the highly-publicized first season of the television series American Idol in 2002. Clarkson was originally marketed as a pop musician before transitioning onto a more rock approach. Her debut album, Thankful, was released in 2003 and debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 selling almost 300,000 copies, selling 1 million copies in the first 6 weeks, and 2.