Clay's fair without fear

Clay's fair without fear
By MATT EHLERS, Staff Writer
Raleigh News Oct, 15, 2004

Quote:It wasn't so long ago that the State Fair was a scary place for Clay Aiken.
First there were the rides, so terrifying that for years he couldn't muster the courage to hop aboard. "I was a very nervous child," he said, laughing.

But the little roller coasters were just the beginning. For an aspiring singer, the fairgrounds held an even more frightening fair attraction, one that he never managed to conquer.

The karaoke booth.

Every year, Clay's friends would drag him over there, and every year he promised to sing. As he watched wannabe popsters butcher the hits of the day, Clay knew he could do a better job.

He never did.

"I was always so nervous. I didn't want to sing," he said. "I was always worried that someone was going to boo me."