Teddi Mellencamp has opened up about the impact of the death of Kelly Clarkson’s ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock.
Last week, Blackstock — who shared two children with Clarkson — died at the age of 48, three years after he was diagnosed with cancer. His cause of death was later confirmed to People on Monday by Silver Bow County Coroner Dan Hollis to be melanoma.
Speaking on her Two T’s in a Pod podcast on Wednesday, the former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills explained how Blackstock’s death affected her as someone who was diagnosed with melanoma in 2022.
“The Brandon Blackstock story really hit me hard this week,” she said. “I wish I had missed that little detail on the World Wide Web, because then I started doing research. They were so quiet about what [happened], I mean, we know he passed from melanoma.”
“I was wondering when did it metastasize? Like, is this just where my head goes from being in the [same] situation,” Mellencamp, whose condition advanced to stage four in February this year and metastasized to her lungs and brain, continued. “Did he decline treatment? There’s so many different ways this could have happened, and I one million [percent] respect their choice of keeping it private.”
Despite the former reality television star not knowing what Blackstock’s treatment regimen looked like, she still explained how difficult it was to read about his death in the media.
“Those kind of stories hit you hard when it directly sounds similar to something you’re going through,” she said. “Kelly made it clear when she rescheduled the end of her tour in [Las] Vegas because she needs to be there for her kids.”
Blackstock was a talent manager and a former stepson of country star Reba McEntire. He and Clarkson were married from 2013 to 2022 and have two children together, River, 11, and Remington, nine.
Clarkson has not publicly spoken out about her ex-husband’s death.
News of Blackstock’s death also came hours after Clarkson postponed the remainder of her Las Vegas residency dates for August.
“Unfortunately, I need to postpone the remainder of the August Studio Session dates in Las Vegas,” the singer wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “While I normally keep my personal life private, this past year, my children’s father has been ill and at this moment, I need to be fully present for them.”
“I am sincerely sorry to everyone who bought tickets to the shows and I so appreciate your grace, kindness and understanding.”
“You want to support your children, and that’s what I think we do when it comes to illness,” Mellencamp — who shares three children with her estranged husband, Edwin Arroyave, Slate, 12; Cruz, 10; and Dove, five — said.
“No matter what kind, mental or physical. We have to be so careful because you just don’t know the person [and if they] could take something the wrong way.”
