Maestra Alsop sat down with Kelly Clarkson on The Kelly Clarkson Show to speak about her journey as a conductor and her passion for creating more opportunities for women conductors through her Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship. She also surprised fan Kayla Selan, a conducting student at Cleveland State University, with an invitation to shadow her at Carnegie Hall. At the end of the segment, Marin gave both Kelly and Kayla their own Purple Batons. Click here to watch the full segment.

“There are groundbreakers, and then there is my next guest. She is the first woman to serve as music director of a major U.S. orchestra. She is also the first woman to head major orchestras in Austria, Great Britain, and South America. She’s one of the defining conductors of our time, with a discography of over 200 albums, and tomorrow you can see her live at Carnegie Hall as she leads the Philadelphia Orchestra. Then, later this summer, she’ll lead the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. It’s going to be magical. Please welcome Maestra Marin Alsop.” — Kelly Clarkson