Kelly Clarkson stands and delivers

Kelly Clarkson would stand out in any era, given her powerful voice. But at last month's Z100 Jingle Ball, she was in a class all by herself. She didn't have any gimmicks, no vocal "enhancements" to deliver songs from her underappreciated album "Stronger" (RCA) -- just a great band and a potent delivery. But that's not the only way the original "American Idol" stands away from the pack.

Here's a look:

She speaks her mind. Only a handful of pop artists wade into political discussions these days, and then many of them get scared off by the resulting firestorm. Not Clarkson. Her support of Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul last month kicked up controversy based on some of Paul's comments, but Clarkson held her own. She refuted some criticism, tweeting, "I do not support racism. I support gay rights, straight rights, women's rights, men's rights, white / black / purple / orange rights." She also explained her Paul support, tweeting, "I like Ron Paul because he believes in less government and letting the people (all of us) make the decisions and mold our country."

She holds her own. Clarkson took on her record company and its leader, the legendary Clive Davis, to get her rock album "My December" released in 2007. The execs didn't think it was commercial enough, but Clarkson stuck with her vision for it. The 29-year-old is self-reliant in her private life as well, recently telling NPR that she owns nine guns and sleeps with a Colt .45. "I live alone, so I'm not going out like that," she said. "I got no chance if some man breaks in my house, so I have a gun."

She's OK with being different. Musically, Clarkson is daring about switching up her songs -- even turning "Mr. Know It All" into a ragtime number at the American Music Awards. She also is outspoken about how she has dealt with an eating disorder in high school and still faces questions about her appearance every day. "People have their set idea of what a pop star should be," she told NPR. "My whole point is that if I'm the pop star, then it should be what-ever I am. There's room for Katy Perrys, Adeles and Rihannas and Lady Gagas and Ke$has and me and Pink. What's great about all of us is that we represent something different."