Kelly Clarkson and Talk Show Staff Celebrate 22 Years Since Her ‘American Idol’ Win

The musician was part of the reality competition’s debut season in 2002.

Kelly Clarkson / Weiss Eubanks/Getty Images

While Kelly Clarkson doesn’t wake up every Sept. 4 and remember what a special day it is, tons of people, who have long been glued to their screens to tune into American Idol for the past 22 years, sure do. The musician, who won the very first season of the reality singing competition series in 2002, was reminded by Andrew Shaw, digital director and producer of The Kelly Clarkson Show, what a special occasion yesterday was.

“I didn’t even [realize] when you said that date, I got a nervous, like did I miss an anniversary. Is it 22 years? Twenty two years since winning American Idol, you know what, and I’m back on TV... who would have thought,” Clarkson said with a laugh as Shaw filmed her reaction to the news. “That’s so exciting, Andy, I forgot. I didn’t even realize what day it was. I’m worried about my kids’ first day of school which is tomorrow. ”

“You’re the best. Congrats,” Shaw responded.

Clarkson is a mom to two kids, 8-year-old Remington Alexander and 10-year-old River Rose.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Kelly Clarkson Show (@kellyclarksonshow)

“On September 4th, he asked me what day it was 😉 Cheers to 22 years!” the 42-year-old singer and the talk show captioned a joint post on Instagram, clearly in reference to the iconic Mean Girls scene and quote by Lindsay Lohan.

“22 years of greatness !!!!” content creator and comedian Claudia Oshry exclaimed.

“Today is a national holiday 🇺🇸,” the official Wayfair account declared.

“22 years Since U Been Crowned 👑🎤 We love you, @kellyclarkson!!!” the official American Idol account chimed.

“Wow! 22 years. I remember voting for you that night. You were and still are AMAZING,” one fan recalled.