The American Idol season 23 producers chose Carrie Underwood to replace Katy Perry as a judge, and she's doing a great job so far, but I think that Kelly Clarkson would've been a better choice, and she could even replace her on the judging in the future, although it's unlikely to happen. Kelly won American Idol season 1 in 2002, and she's since become a three-time Grammy-winning global music superstar who's sold over 82 million records worldwide and the eight-time Daytime Emmy-winning host of her own talk show, The Kelly Clarkson Show.

When American Idol season 23 was looking for Katy's replacement, many fans speculated that Kelly might take her place, but she didn't want the job. She'd recently moved to New York City from Los Angeles with her two children, and she'd promised them that she'd be there as much as she could for them. Because American Idol films in Los Angeles, that wouldn't have been possible. Still, although I love Carrie, I think that Kelly would've been a better choice to be an American Idol judge.

Kelly Clarkson Has Experience As A Talk Show Host

Kelly Is The Emmy-Winning Host Of The Kelly Clarkson Show

Kelly has extensive TV experience because she's the host of her own talk show, The Kelly Clarkson Show. Her show features a mixture of celebrity guests and everyday people, and she does a fantastic job of interviewing all of them. I think that Kelly's incredible ability to make people feel seen, heard, safe, and comfortable would've translated well to the job of an American Idol judge.

After watching the first American Idol season 23 episode, I know that Carrie is very kind to the contestants, but Kelly would've brought years of experience with talking to people on-camera with her. In addition, Kelly is phenomenal at what she does on The Kelly Clarkson Show, considering that she's won a total of eight Daytime Emmy Awards for it, including Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host and Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment.

Kelly Isn't Controversial

Carrie Has Faced Fierce Backlash

Kelly has been famous for over twenty years, and she's never had a controversial moment. I believe that she's almost universally well-liked because there's nothing about her that rubs people the wrong way. However, the same can't be said for Carrie, who faced fierce backlash when she performed at President Donald Trump's inauguration ahead of the American Idol season 23 premiere. American Idol fans who oppose Trump saw this as a sign that Carrie fully s him and his policies, and they vowed to boycott the show until she's no longer a judge.

While Carrie's inauguration performance came months after she was hired as the new American Idol season 23 judge, so the producers had no way of knowing that it would happen, I think the show would've been better off starting this new era without any backlash. It's always challenging when a show experiences a major change after many years on the air, and Katy's departure really shook things up. I believe that Kelly would've been a better choice to take her place than Carrie because she's not a polarizing figure.

Kelly Has Extensive Music Knowledge Because Of Her Kelly-Oke Performances

Kelly Has Sung Over Five Hundred Songs On The Kelly Clarkson Show

Kelly begins each episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show with a Kelly-Oke performance of either a cover song or one of her own hits. As of this writing, Kelly has sung over five hundred songs throughout the six seasons of the show, which has given her extensive experience with performing all different genres of music. While I know that Carrie has already called herself, "Jukebox Carrie," on American Idol because she knows so many songs and that she sings many different cover songs during her live shows, Kelly has become an encyclopedia of music knowledge because of her Kelly-Oke performances.

I believe that Kelly's Kelly-Oke performances would've been a great asset to her as an American Idol judge. During the Judges' Song Contest, in which the judges choose the perfect songs for the contestants, not only would Kelly have had a broad base of knowledge about music, but also the experience of singing so many of the songs in front of a live audience. This would've helped her to guide the contestants in the right direction.

Kelly Was A Coach On The Voice

Kelly Knows How To Guide Contestants

Unlike Carrie, Kelly already has experience as a reality TV singing competition series judge and coach because she starred in The Voice in seasons 14-21 and 23. She also served as the key advisor during the Knockouts round in season 13. Four of Kelly's contestants won The Voice, including Brynn Cartelli (season 14), Chevel Shepherd (season 15), Jake Hoot (season 17), and Girl Named Tom (season 21). I believe that this would've benefited Kelly if she'd become the latest American Idol judge.

While Carrie has been learning on the job as she gets more comfortable with being an American Idol judge, Kelly has already been a coach on The Voice, and she did it so well, winning half of the seasons during which she coached. That's an impressive record. I think that Kelly would've been extraordinary at finding new and talented artists during the American Idol auditions, and then shaping them into superstars.

Kelly Was The Original American Idol Winner

Kelly Set The Standard For Excellence

I feel that the main reason that Kelly should've been the first American Idol alum to become a judge is because she's the original winner. She set the standard for excellence on the show, and defined what it would become. In season 1, the contestants sang to karaoke tracks and had no idea that the show would become the juggernaut that it has. I feel that Kelly has never really been sured by any other American Idol winner. She's a gifted singer with star quality. Plus, Kelly has the best personality.

Kelly's performances of songs such as "At Last" by Etta James during her audition, "Respect" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin, "You're All I Need to Get By" by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, "Stuff Like That There" by Betty Hutton, and "I Surrender" by Celine Dion are the stuff of legend. In addition, her two American Idol singles, "Before Your Love" and "A Moment Like This," are still among the most loved songs to ever come out of the show. It's amazing that Kelly made such an amazing impact on American Idol in only the first season.

Although I've always been a huge fan of Carrie, and I think that she's done a great job so far as an American Idol judge, I believe that Kelly would've been even better in the role. While it's unclear if Kelly will ever replace Carrie in the future, I don't think that she'll ever relocate back to Los Angeles, so, unless the show moves to New York City, it won't happen. However, I'll always dream about what American Idol would be like with its first-ever winner, Kelly, as a judge.

American Idol airs Sundays at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.

Sources: KellyClarksonFan13/YouTube, IdolFreakz4ever/YouTube