Kelly Clarkson's rock-heavy 2007 record, My December — which Clarkson insisted on writing mostly by herself — bummed out fans and critics, barely going platinum. But the moment her addictive new single, "My Life Would Suck Without You," blasts into the first of many anthemic choruses, you can tell Kelly Clarkson has returned from the dark side.

Her forthcoming disc, All I Ever Wanted — produced and written with an all-star team, including the pop hitmakers behind her 2004 smash "Since U Been Gone" — shimmers with massive synth samples, R&B rhythms and lung-busting ballads. "When My December came out and everyone said, 'She went rock,' I thought, 'Oh, my God, Metallica is somewhere shooting themselves,'" she says with a gravelly giggle. "The biggest misconception about the past year is that I'm trying to run from something, whether it's Idol or pop music. My whole thing is variety, and as long as the song has a bit of soul to it, I'm down for anything."

Sources at her label, RCA, say they anticipate the album has five potential radio hits — enough to push the disc into the territory Clarkson staked out with 2004's Breakaway, which sold more than 6 million copies. "As soon as we released 'My Life Would Suck Without You' to radio, 130 stations added it," says RCA's vice president of Top 40 promotions, Peter Gray. "The music just spoke for itself. Everyone knew it was a smash."

The next likely tune to go to radio will be "I Do Not Hook Up," co-written by Katy Perry and new American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi. "The general message is that I'd rather have quality than quantity," says Clarkson, who met Perry a few years ago and asked the then-struggling singer-songwriter to send over some tunes. "It's a tough-chick song that says, 'I'm going to hold out for something good rather than just waste myself on people.'"

Tracks were recorded last year near Clarkson's Texas ranch and in Los Angeles — and often came together in bits and pieces as parts were e-mailed back and forth. All come courtesy of a superstar team of songwriters and producers including Perry, "Since U Been Gone" architects Dr. Luke and Max Martin, OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder, and Howard Benson, best known for his work with Daughtry and My Chemical Romance.

Tedder came up with the vocal melody for "If I Can't Have You" — which Clarkson describes as "Killers meets Eurythmics" — in the Hong Kong airport during OneRepublic's Asian tour last year. "I went to a quiet corner, sang the idea into my laptop and e-mailed it to her," Tedder says. Back in the States, Tedder and Clarkson finished the song together in real time over an Internet connection between Clarkson's Nashville vocal booth and Tedder's L.A. studio. Later, Tedder sent the tune to Alain Johannes from Queens of the Stone Age, who added guitar parts. "Lots of people are trying to write the next 'Since U Been Gone,'" says Tedder. "But that's been done. I thought, 'This is the evolution of Kelly Clarkson.' She has soul, and doing straight-up rock doesn't entirely make sense. I thought, 'What have I not heard from her that I think she can kill?'"

Of the 14 tracks on All I Ever Wanted, Clarkson says "Ready" best sums up her current frame of mind. "It's a singer-songwriter kind of song," she explains. "It's sad but inspirational and happy at the same time." Adds Benson, the tune's producer, "Even if she's having a bad day, within 10 minutes she could power through it. She delivers the passion when she's in the studio."

[From Issue 1074 — March 19, 2009]