"[6] During this period, Clarkson wrote songs that would eventually become part of her album, My December, calling it "free therapy".

"[10] American Idol judge Simon Cowell commented on the situation in an issue of Entertainment Weekly, saying Clarkson was strong-willed and reluctant to repeat herself creatively: "She made it absolutely clear that she wanted to steer the musical direction on this record.

"[11] The controversy fell quiet for a brief stint, but resumed when Clarkson cancelled her tour for My December and fired her manager, Jeff Kwatinetz.

[12] Kwatinetz, also the album's executive producer, had defended My December to Clarkson's label, saying the singer was "burdened with these expectations" to stay with her established musical formula but also insisting "she's pushed herself, she's evolved and she's grown.

[15] Following the dismissal of her manager and cancelling her tour, Clarkson appeared in an issue of Elle, where it was revealed that Davis offered Clarkson $10 million to remove five songs from the album in favor of five more radio-friendly songs of Davis' choosing — including "Black Hole", which appeared on Lindsay Lohan's album, A Little More Personal (Raw).

Reba McEntire responded to the situation in the same magazine issue, praising Clarkson's tenacity and comparing her to singer Dolly Parton who also took charge of her career.

And despite the rumors, he is nowhere near a father figure.Although American Idol judge Simon Cowell, who had sided with Clarkson earlier, seem to grow weary of the controversy, as he was quoted saying: Kiss and make up, decide what's best, get on with it!

"[19]A few weeks after the release of My December, Clarkson publicly stated that all of the controversies regarding her "feud" with her label have been "blown way out of proportion".

In a statement on her website, Clarkson stated:[20][21] There has been quite a bit of controversy surrounding the release of My December, much of which has focused on a supposed feud with my record label, in particular, Clive Davis.

felt that Clarkson was shunned by Davis during his appearance on the finale show of American Idol season 6, when he proceeded to promote other Idol contestants' current singles or albums, but failed to mention Clarkson's upcoming My December album, or its first single "Never Again", and furthermore went out of his way to praise professional songwriters such as those who had written "Breakaway" and "Since U Been Gone".

[22] He did, however, briefly mention that Clarkson had sold over 15 million albums worldwide to date, when discussing the current state of Idol sales.

[23]Instead, Clarkson sang Patty Griffin's "Up to the Mountain" at the Idol Gives Back special, getting a standing ovation, and saved "Never Again" for her appearance on the season finale show.

that the release date for My December had been pushed up, in an effort to allow fans to become familiar with the album before its upcoming promotional tour.

[citation needed] The tour was then cancelled on June 14, 2007, with low ticket sales being acknowledged and Clarkson noting that it was "too much too soon".

[29] The album had been put up for pre-order on iTunes on June 12, including an offer from Ticketmaster for preferred seating to the upcoming tour.

Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino released a statement:[34] "Ticket sales have not been what we anticipated and we came to the realization that we had bit off more than we could chew.

In the end, we are in the Kelly Clarkson business and for that reason we believe that this decision will only benefit her and her fans in the long run.

When the second incarnation of the tour appeared on Ticketmaster, Jon McLaughlin was confirmed to be opening for Clarkson for the majority, if not all of her North America dates.

Despite its poor radio airplay, the song logged an impressive number of over 100,000 paid digital downloads in its first week on the charts.

However, in an interview with Nashville radio station 107.5 The River, Clarkson said that she released "Sober" so early because she wanted to show the diversity of music in My December.

In July 2007, "Sober" was a highlight of Clarkson's five-song set at Live Earth at Giants Stadium, with the audience audibly applauding her vocal line during the song's climax near the end.

"Sober" did have a featured spot in Clarkson's My December Tour, being played at the start of the encores and receiving a strong audience response.

The first single, "Never Again", was released on April 13, 2007 in the US, debuting in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 thanks to strong digital sales.

M. Tye Corner of AOL Music had opined early on that the controversy could "affect sales a bit in the first few weeks and when the record c[ame] out.

"[50] In spite of the controversy surrounding My December, the album garnered fairly positive reviews from music professionals and critics.

Her gift is finding the source of vitality in absolute mainstream, people-pleasing pop, which by its nature breaks stylistic rules in favor of magpie mash-ups, bold appropriations and happy accidents.

"[52] AllMusic, however, gave a more lukewarm review, giving it 3/5 stars, saying: "It's what Kelly wanted to do, so on that level it's a success, and one that listeners who share her viewpoint (and quite likely her age) will respond to but for everybody else, My December is a disappointment."

"[1] Rolling Stone, giving a similar lukewarm review, wrote: "Clarkson clobbers you over the head with her emotions and arena-ready choruses.

"[46] A 2016 article from Sputnikmusic described My December as "the most logical progression for Kelly's career"; noting the album's genre-hopping between pop, pop punk, alternative rock, hard rock, soul, R&B, and folk without one genre sounding out of place, and further noting that "it would be really interesting to see if she ever makes an album like My December again".