What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)

"What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)", also known as "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)", is the second single from Kelly Clarkson's fifth studio album Stronger, and her seventh #1 hit on Jessica's Top 40.

Although I was not into many of the singles from Kelly Clarkson's fourth studio album All I Ever Wanted, I anticipated the follow-up Stronger because I really liked what I heard from demos that were leaked online over the summer of 2011. Even though I was let down by the lead single "Mr. Know It All", when I heard the album I thought it was her best yet. And the second single was one of the reasons why I thought so.

Kelly countered the leaks by releasing the official version of "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" ahead of the album's release, and it was widely rumored it would be the album's second single. Even though it was not officially released to radio until January 2012, it received significant advance promotion such as a flash mob-inspired music video and a commercial for the 2012 Toyota Camry featuring Kelly singing the song with sportscaster Chris Berman, James Lipton of "Inside The Actors Studio", and Andrew Zimmern of "Bizarre Foods".

Partly thanks to this advance publicity, "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" received significant attention on Jessica's Top 40 (and other personal charts) well ahead of its single release. The fan support translated to real world success, as "Stronger" topped Billboard's Hot 100 thanks to high download sales and later reached #1 on the pop and hot AC radio charts.

"Stronger" became Kelly Clarkson's seventh #1 single and first in nearly three years, tying "Breakaway" as her longest reigning #1 at four weeks. Thanks to its top 10 longevity - partly helped by me seeing her live during the Stronger Tour's stop in Jacksonville in early February 2012 - "Stronger" became Kelly's biggest hit on my chart and became the best performing song by an American Idol finalist, an honor held for years by Kimberley Locke's "8th World Wonder".