Pat Benatar and Kelly Clarkson delivered a stellar performance at the iHeartRadio Music Awards as a tribute to Icon Award winner P!nk.
The Never Gonna Not Dance Again star was recognised during the ceremony in Los Angeles on Monday for “her impact on pop culture, longevity and continued relevance as a touring and radio force with a loyal fan base worldwide.”
Before taking to the stage, P!nk was treated to a showstopping performance from the rock legend, who took on her classic hit Just Like a Pill, before Kelly performed her Nate Ruess collaboration Just Give Me a Reason, with the singer-songwriter joining her mid-way through.
Taking the reins to close the medley with her more recent single What About Us, P!nk went on to deliver a moving acceptance speech about embracing “vulnerability”.
“Thank you iHeart[Radio] for this moment. It has been said that miracles are often associated with icons,” she said, referencing the performance. “Kelly Clarkson singing with me, and Pat Benatar singing one of my songs, two of the greatest voices alive, being on stage, doing what I love with people that I love with all of my heart — and my babies in the audience — this feels like a Christmas miracle.
“I usually do try to joke or be self-deprecating in these moments, but I want to be a better friend to myself tonight, so I would like to try and say something honest. Every room I walk into, my heart walks in first. Every lyric that I write is my heart crying, raging, hoping, screaming, pleading,” she said. “
“You have watched me do this, sifting through life’s messiness for almost 25 years. Some of you find what I do annoying, and some of you find it brave, and I just find it necessary.”
Noting that people “are vulnerable from the time we’re born until the time we die, and many of us spend our entire lives running from that,” she continued: “Vulnerability means the ability to be wounded. I have decided to make vulnerability my life’s work, and for those of you that have joined me on this adventure, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
“I’m grateful to be alive. I’m grateful I get to do this with my one precious life. Most of all, Willow and Jameson, I’m grateful to be your mama.”
