Watch: When Reba McEntire Taught Kelly Clarkson to Fight Abuse in “Because of You” Duet

Welcome again to Duet Wednesdays, Country Folks! It’s that time of the day when we will feature some honest to goodness duets from your favorite country artists. This time, we take the spotlight to magnify Reba McEntire and her duet with the first American Idol grand winner, Kelly Clarkson to remaster the latter’s widely acclaimed song, ‘Because of You.’

Watch the video below and tell us your assessment:

“Because of You” Lyrics

I will not make the same mistakes that you did, I will not let myself
Cause my heart so much misery, I will not break the way you did,
You fell so hard, I’ve learned the hard way
To never let it get that far

Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

I lose my way, And it’s not too long before you point it out
I cannot cry, Because I know that’s weakness in your eyes
I’m forced to fake, A smile, a laugh everyday of my life
My heart can’t possibly break, When it wasn’t even whole to start with

Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

I watched you die, I heard you cry every night in your sleep
I was so young, You should have known better than to lean on me
You never thought of anyone else, You just saw your pain
And now I cry in the middle of the night, For the same damn thing

Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I try my hardest just to forget everything
Because of you
I don’t know how to let anyone else in
Because of you
I’m ashamed of my life because it’s empty
Because of you
I am afraid

Because of You, Reba McEntire ft. Kelly Clarkson

Considered as one of Kelly Clarkson’s signature song, ‘Because of You’ was released as McEntire’s single after Clarkson re-recorded the said song for McEntire’s 2007 album- Reba: Duets.

Apart from the song being given its appropriate McEntire flavor, they also starred in the music video together as Hollywood lounge retro singers. While it was adorable to see the two on a supposedly different era, the music video tells a sad story of domestic abuse suffered by Clarkson as narrated by the song’s lyrics and presumably witnessed by McEntire. Throughout the video, we see McEntire’s gestures telling Clarkson to grow some claws and fight back.

This version earned a loud Grammy nod for Best Vocal Country Collaboration although some critics thought that McEntire did not really change anything when it comes to the song’s technical aspects and vocal performance.   Others would argue that this is one of the rare moments when a legend collaborates with a now respected artist.

So what do you think of this version? Share your thoughts on the comments below.