"The Measure of A Man"

The measure of a man -- charity, then music
MIAMI HERALD

There is life after American Idol. A new CD and tour are on the way, but first Clay Aiken appears at two events Saturday in Fort Lauderdale for his foundation's work with special needs children.

BY HOWARD COHEN

hcohen@herald.com


For Clay Aiken, the measure of a man is more than an album title. It's defined by the deeds one can do under the spotlight.

The most successful singer to emerge from American Idol -- and he didn't even win -- hosts Florida Voices for Change, a Saturday evening benefit dinner in Fort Lauderdale for his organization, The Bubel/Aiken Foundation. During the $200-a-ticket gala Aiken plans to sing Paul Simon's Bridge Over Troubled Water with students from Miami's Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School.

It won't be a full concert, Aiken says, but guests can expect a few songs. He will pay tribute to Miami-Dade Commissioner Sally Heyman and State Rep. Susan K. Goldstein for their work with Florida children with developmental disabilities. Earlier in the day he plans to speak at a conference sponsored by Today's Caregiver magazine.

''I think celebrities have an obligation to the public to not just sing or act,'' Aiken said in a phone conversation from his Los Angeles home. His real home, he points out happily. Not a hotel.

Crashing at home is a luxury the 26-year-old Aiken hasn't tasted much of ever since his run on Idol ended two years ago. He has just returned home from Indonesia and Malaysia where, in his new role as a UNICEF ambassador, he went on a field mission for tsunami relief and toured camps for displaced survivors.

''Not everybody gets a mike this big. I feel I should use it in as positive a way as I can,'' he says.

The Bubel/Aiken Foundation provides grants, services and programs for children with special needs. If you stripped away the platinum albums, the touring and the magazine covers, Aiken's role isn't far removed from his pre-Idol life as a special-education teacher in his Raleigh, N.C. hometown.

''I went to school for special education. I always assumed when I had the opportunity I would love to try and help kids with disabilities,'' Aiken says. ``There's a push in education programs to get kids involved but not too much of a push in the extracurricular world. I worked with the YMCA in Raleigh and watched kids get turned away from after-school programs because there wasn't enough funding or training with the staff to work with the kids. That's how this idea was born to include or fund programs at organizations like the YMCA.''

There will always be other stories circulating about Aiken, such as the infamous Claygate incident reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer in December and picked up by salivating tabloids. Seems a group of New Jersey high schoolers, invited to sing with Aiken, were bullied and berated and stiffed for their services. When a New Jersey Teacher of the Year spoke out, Aiken reportedly went all prima-donna on her.

It sounds hard to believe. Clay? The patron saint of Claymates sassing a teacher?

Aiken laughs. ``I will leave it at the discretion of the readers how much they want to believe the columnist in Philadelphia. There were two conflicting stories, very conflicting stories. I don't like to talk about it to give it credence . . .''

And then Aiken does precisely that. ''It was not true,'' he
continues.

``It disappointed me. I spent so much time working with kids. I have nothing but respect for students and the teachers who do amazing work. Certain people overreact to certain things, and there were a number of extreme embellishments.''

Aiken talks briskly, laughs a lot and bastes it all in that cordial Southern drawl. He'll gladly discuss his post-Idol life, especially the Bubel/Aiken Foundation he founded in 2003 with disability activist Diane Bubel. She convinced Aiken he must audition for American Idol when she heard him singing around her house as he cared for her autistic son Mike.

Don't expect lengthy dissertations on this season's American Idol, though. Tell him you think most of the contestants need a locksmith to help them find the right key, and he laughs heartily, telling you that you sound like acid-tongued judge Simon Cowell. ,

''He was right most of the time -- except when he criticized me,'' Aiken teases, chuckling, memories of performing Grease in a red jacket still blazing in his mind.

''I haven't had a chance to watch it [this season],'' Aiken says. ``I was in Indonesia for two weeks, then my brother went into the Marines, and we went to see him. I kind of want to go by and see a show live.''

Fans will have to wait awhile longer for the follow-up to Measure of a Man. Aiken will record it in the midst of a summer tour, which will be followed by a Christmas tour.

''It's coming along slowly. I mean slowly,'' he says. ``We'll start kicking into higher gear in the coming weeks. It's something we'd love to have out by the end of the year or at least the beginning of next year. We don't want to put this album out as quickly as the last one. I was happy with the last album, but I wanted it to be more me. The last time the songs were all chosen for me. This time I want to be involved."