Kelly Clarkson has been a major fan of Mat and Savanna Shaw from the start.
When the pop star first invited the Shaws, a father-daughter singing duo from Kaysville, Utah, on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” in spring 2020, they were still trying to wrap their minds around the fact that they had gone viral.
It had only been a month or two since their version of “The Prayer,” sung from their kitchen table, began racking up millions of views. They started recording more duets in their closet-turned studio, using pajama pants to prop up a little microphone.
“We plug into the iPad and we just make do with what we’ve got in our closet,” Mat Shaw told Clarkson at the time.
On Thursday, the Shaws returned to “The Kelly Clarkson Show” — about a year after their initial appearance.
A lot has changed since then: They have entered an actual recording studio, released their third album in less than a year and are performing their first headlining concert for a live audience on Friday at the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City.
“For us, our music was born in the pandemic, so we haven’t been able to do a lot of live singing,” Mat Shaw told Clarkson. “We’re just excited for the emotion and the power and the energy of this return to live music for us. We think it’ll be really special.”
“Everyone needs that feeling,” Clarkson responded. “Yes, you can listen to a record and it’s great ... but actually feeling the music and everyone around you singing and dancing with you, there’s nothing like it.”
Clarkson, who has been vocal about her father’s absence in her own life, praised the Shaws for their strong father-daughter connection.
“It’s so beautiful how ya’ll sing together,” she said. “It’s so perfect. It’s just such a beautiful thing.”
The inaugural “American Idol” winner then closed out the segment by surprising the Shaws, who have done benefit concerts and raised money in their community, with $1,000.
The Shaws’ debut performance at the Eccles Theater — which is also being livestreamed — is May 21.
“I’m a huge Broadway fan, and when Broadway comes to Utah, they perform at the Eccles Theater, so I feel like it’s going to be very surreal for me to be standing on that stage singing because I’ve always admired that theater and all of the performers that go there,” 16-year-old Savanna Shaw said in a recent announcement to fans. “This is a total dream come true for me.”