Blackstock died in August following a private battle with cancer at the age of 48. He shared two children with Clarkson at the time of his death, as well as two older children from a previous marriage.

While the singer wore black during her seventh season premiere, she did not address her ex’s death at all in the episode … though the hour wasn’t without its emotional and powerful moments.

Alongside an interview with Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell — which you can watch below — Clarkson brought back her famous Kellyoke, performing Blinding Lights by The Weeknd.

The Texas native also found a way to honor some local Texas heroes, bringing out a dozen school bus drivers who rescued more than 900 kids from deadly floodwaters back in July. The drivers, as well as Kerrville ISD superintendent Dr. Brent Ringo, were presented with a $100,000 donation to support the school system and recovery efforts, after the group opened up about how they’ve banded together following the tragedy.

“I don’t know how (Clarkson) compartmentalizes watching that segment, super emotional, and then jumping into, like, making crafts with kids, and then jumping into emoting a song,” music director Jason Halbert told USA TODAY at the taping for the episode, which he said was “emotional for all of us.”

“A lot happened for us all in the last year, on personal and career levels,” he added. “You’re going to see some songs reflect things that maybe she wouldn’t talk about verbally in a sitting on the couch interview.”

Showrunner Alex Duda also said the Texas flood segment was hoping to highlight how “communities can come together and try to rebuild.”

“That’s what we’ve done since the beginning. When the world is dark or heavy, look for the light,” she said, adding that they “wanted to reaffirm that in our premiere this year.”

Another sweet moment in the hour showed Clarkson speak with a college freshman whose mother created a Toy Story-inspired goodbye for him before he went off to school, as she surprised him with a message from his mama during the chat.

The Kelly Clarkson Show airs daily, Monday through Friday, on NBC.