Kelly Clarkson Says She ‘Never Wanted to Get Married’

A year-and-a-half after her divorce from Brandon Blackstock was finalized, Kelly Clarkson says she’s in no rush to get married again — she may never do it at all.

In fact, she’s never really been a person who wanted marriage in the first place.

In a new cover story interview with People, Clarkson explains that she agreed to tie the knot in the first place only because it was important to her then-partner. “I never wanted to get married the first time,” the singer admits.

“[Brandon] had children, a religious background, and it was important, I think, for him,” she continues. “But I’ve never been that person.”

By the time of her own wedding, Clarkson had already seen how painful the fallout of divorce could be — her own parents divorced when she was six years old, for example.

“Because I’ve been through a couple divorces in my family, I just don’t like to put any weight on [marriage],” she explains. “It can happen; it doesn’t have to happen.”

But for Clarkson, there will be no future wedding bells for quite a while — at least, not until her children, 9-year-old River Rose and 7-year-old Remington Alexander, are grown.

“For my kids, I definitely would never even think about it until they’re out of my house,” the singer states.

For the time being, the superstar isn’t particularly interested in forging new romantic relationships, either. “Dating sucks. It’s so awkward,” she says plainly.

“I was single until I was, like, 30, and I forgot how really good at that I am. I told a friend that [a potential partner] would have to be an individual that brings their own life to the table without needing anything from me,” Clarkson goes on to say. “It’s far more romantic to say, ‘I want you, but I don’t need anything.’ I’m really good right now, I’m having a good time.”

Clarkson used songwriting as a form of therapy to process her divorce; the result is her most recent album, Chemistry, which also lends its name to a limited engagement run the singer has been performing in Las Vegas.