By Jim Halterman

Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this. Kelly Clarkson, however, isn’t one of them. The three-time Grammy winner and inaugural champ of American Idol took some convincing in order to sign on to headline her own talk show. Less than two years ago, after she began as a coach on The Voice, producers saw the bubbly star was a natural on camera and approached her with the idea. “I was like, ‘No. What would I do with a talk show? Nobody’s going to watch that!'” she says. Credit her husband and manager, Brandon Blackstock, with changing her mind. Here Clarkson tells us more about the highly anticipated series, The Kelly Clarkson Show, which premieres on Sept. 9 on NBC and airs weekdays.

Is your set comfy couches or more of a desk with a few chairs?
Kelly Clarkson: It’s very much a musician’s home with my band. It’s a more chill and comfy and conversational set with a cool bar vibe. There’s no desk. I don’t think I’ll ever belong at a desk.

Who are your guests the first week? Who’s your dream guest?
I know the guests the first week but that’s a surprise. My ultimate dream guest is definitely Meryl Streep. But I don’t want it to happen because I’ll freak out. [Laughs] I’d probably freak out with a lot of [the guests], though. My life is very normal. I don’t go to parties because I have four kids. I’m probably going to freak out every day!

Please tell us you’ll be singing on the show!
Absolutely! We open every show the same as [we do] on tour — I cover a song of an artist that somebody in the audience picks. We also do a bunch of stuff that’s all about connecting people. The show is fun, it’s musical, it’s serious at times, it’s whatever the guest calls for.

How will the serious element come in?
The whole show will have this amazing arc of emotions, and that’s very much me. One of the produced segments we did was help at a birthday party for 200 homeless kids on Skid Row with Worthy of Love, a really cool organization with a mission to help lots of people.