Kelly Clarkson celebrates the 4th of July by grabbing lunch at Toast Bakery Cafe with two of her close girlfriends on Friday.

The 26-year-old original American Idol is currently recording her fourth studio album with many collaborators including Sam Watters, Louis Biancaniello and Ryan Tedder from OneRepublic (”Apologize”, “Stop and Stare”). Sam and Louis also wrote and produced the song “Anytime”, which appeared on Kelly’s debut album Thankful in 2003.

Singer Kelly Clarkson leaves Koi resturant with a huge smile on her face in Los Angeles on Thursday.

After dinner, Kelly’s friends didn’t like all the attention and tried to block shots from photographers, all while getting a good laugh.

Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson’s “2 Worlds 2 Voices” tour kicks off Sept. 25 and runs through late November.

Their unique tour features the two artists on the same stage with the same band and performing each other’s songs.

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Kelly Clarkson, the first season’s winner of American Idol, sings a rousing rendition of the hymn “Ave Maria” for Pope Benedict XVI at Saint Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, New York on Saturday.

About 25,000 young worshippers rallied for the Popemobile (and Kelly).

“I was so excited to be asked to sing for the Pope,” Kelly. “I grew up singing church music, and it’s always been a dream of mine to perform ‘Ave Maria.’ To have that dream come true on such a special occasion is truly a blessing.”

Watch the video below of Kelly belting out “Ave Maria”!

Kelly Clarkson performs in concert at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam, Holland on Sunday.

The American Idol alum recently said that it “sucks” that four unfinished songs have leaked onto the Internet.

The four songs — “Close Your Eyes,” “Ready,” “One Day,” and “With a Little Bit of Luck” — all have varying sound quality, indicating that the tracks are unfinished and at different parts of the recording process.

“I write all the time - lots of stuff not meant to ever be released, just working on ideas,” said Kelly. “The fact that people have heard music that’s not ready yet sucks, but I hope they like it!”

10+ pictures of Kelly Clarkson going Dutch… More Here! »

Kelly Clarkson performs live at Palladium in Cologne, Germany on Thursday.

Four possible tracks from an album Kelly is currently working on were posted and shared on Internet forums and sites this week. Kelly will be releasing a pop album for release later this year with songs selected by Clive Davis and his team.

Kelly Clarkson will be among the singers slated to perform for Pope Benedict when he visits New York in April. The former American Idol winner will perform at the Papal Youth Rally at St. Joseph’s Seminary Chapel on April 19.

10+ pics inside of Kelly belting some tunes…

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Kelly Clarkson rocks out the Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia on Thursday night.

To see a clip of Kelly performing “Sober”, click here. And for a “Boy” clip, click here.

Over the weekend, the 25-year-old American Idol champ will be performing at two more locations in Australia — the Newcastle Entertainment Centre in Broadmeadow, NSW and the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Boondall, QLD. Then she’s off to perform in England!

Opening the show for Kelly was Mandy Moore (pictured below), who blogged about wanting to perform here.

20+ pictures inside of Kelly Clarkson rocking out Sydney… More Here! »

Kelly Clarkson performs on a Belgium TV show and a fan rushes the stage and plants a wet kiss on her!

Kelly, 25, takes it in stride and just continues singing as security escorts the fan off the stage. What a Kool Kelly!

K kicks off her 2 Worlds 2 Voices tour on Jan. 17, teaming with country singer Reba McEntire.

Kelly Clarkson (in Juicy Couture) arrives at the Motorola 9th annual anniversary party in Los Angeles on Thursday.

The American Idol alum performed a 12-song set including “Breakaway” and “Since U Been Gone.” Watch “Breakaway” below and check out SUBG here.

And look out for Kelly Monday night when she performs at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle!

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