There’s still plenty to idolize about Kelly Clarkson

Since winning "American Idol" nearly 15 years ago, Kelly Clarkson has proved to be the show's flagship act. She earned that distinction on the strength of her talent, by being the most consistently compelling singer the program has produced, rivaled only perhaps by Carrie Underwood, her equally enchanting successor a few seasons later.

Beyond Clarkson's voice, though, she's also shown that she has strength of character. "What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger," she sings. Although this is an empowering platitude, Clarkson doesn't merely sing these words; she truly embodies the sentiment. From standing up to Clive Davis when the revered record executive shaded her in his memoir, to brushing off the cretinous comments about her weight recently, she's proved to be firm in the face of contempt and conjecture. If she's at all disheartened by the detractors, you'd never know it.

"I've just never cared what people think," she declared definitively in an interview with Heat magazine this past spring. "It's more if I'm happy and I'm confident and feeling good. That's always been my thing. And more so now, since having a family — I don't seek out any other acceptance."

As evidenced by the reviews of her recent shows, Clarkson doesn't seem to be suffering from a lack of confidence. Although she's a compelling vocalist on record, on stage she's even more striking. Live is where she thrives. You can dial up any random live clip from the past few years on YouTube and see for yourself why she's outlasted all of the other Idols. On this tour, with a slew of hit singles at her disposal, Clarkson has been running through nearly two dozen songs in each set, offering up newer cuts such as "Invincible," from her latest album, "Piece by Piece," alongside bellwether benchmarks such as "Because of You" and "Behind These Hazel Eyes."

Although the expressiveness in her voice is obviously on full display on those tunes, Clarkson really shines and showcases her range when she interprets songs that are not her own. To that end, she's turned in a treasure trove of tunes by other artists. At the suggestion of Jason Halbert, her long-standing music director, who came up with the idea, Clarkson started taking requests from her fans on her "Stronger" tour a few years ago.

And it's a trend that continues on the current tour. By tweeting with the hashtag #kcfanrequests, fans can submit the songs they'd like to hear her do. A captivating collection of covers has resulted, with Clarkson taking on songs by a notably diverse array of artists. In the past, that's included tunes by Prince, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Radiohead, Coldplay, Pink, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears and Indie Arie, among others.

On this tour, she's done a pair of Taylor Swift songs, two Las Vegas appropriate tunes — "I Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis and "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons — alongside a parade of pop hits such as "Jealous" by Nick Jonas, "Habits (Stay High)" by Tove Lo, "Hold On, We're Going Home" by Drake, "Stay" by Rihanna and "Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus, and some wild cards such as "Rain" by Patty Griffin, "Colorblind" by Counting Crows and "Stuff Like That There" by Betty Hutton, among others.

It'll be interesting to see which tunes she picks when she visits Mandalay Bay Events Center on Saturday. From what we can tell, she's received a variety of requests from Vegas fans, none too crazy. There are some suggestions that are clearer choices, that would be an enticingly easy fit for Clarkson, such as "Wildest Dreams" by Taylor Swift, "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten, "Let It Rain" by Sara Bareilles or "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran.

There are others, meanwhile, that are a little more adventurous and might make things more interesting, seeing Clarkson do "Tell Me Something Good" by Rufus and Chaka Khan, "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves" by Cher, "A Case of You" by Joni Mitchell or "Home" from "The Wiz."

Whatever she sings, judging from the few songs she turned in poolside at Caesars Palace in May at iHeartRadio's Summer Pool Party, you can expect that Clarkson will be in top form and turn in a strong performance.

Read more from Dave Herrera at bestoflasvegas.com. Contact him at dherrera@reviewjournal.com.