Clay in Uganda

He gave the following interview from Uganda:

American Artiste With a Heart for the Vulnerable
New Vision (Kampala)
June 2, 2005
Posted to the web June 2, 2005

Isaac Kalembe
Kampala

CLAD in a stripped sweater, jeans and brown sandals, Clay Aiken could pass for an ordinary American.

When I met him at the UNICEF office in Kampala recently, 25-year-old Clay spoke casually, hiding the fact that he is an international celebrity.

Aiken is also the US Fund for UNICEF National Ambassador for Education and he was on a week-long visit in the country. He said he was saddened by the tragic and dire situation in northern Uganda and promised to raise international awareness about the plight of the internally displaced peoples through music.

"I'm thinking of composing a song about their plight. We should think of the most creative ways of sensitising the international community about the crisis," Aiken said.

He said it was unfortunate that much of the international community was uninformed about the crisis.

Aiken has appeared on many television shows including the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with David Lettermam.

He toured with the American Idols Alive in the summer of 2003 and began his co-headlining arena tour with Kelly Clarkson in February 2004.

Born on November 30, 1978 in Raleigh, North Carolina, Aiken has taken an amazing journey. He has not only enjoyed incredible success in the music industry, but he has also excelled on a personal level. He graduated in December 2003 from the University of North Carolina (UNC) Charlotte with a degree in special education.

"I spent two years teaching children and two more visiting children in their homes," he said.

Aiken has also devoted time to the Bubel/Aiken Foundation, which he created in July 2003 to look after children with special needs. The Foundation carries the name Bubel in honour of Mike Bubel, a young man with autism (a communication disorder common in children) with whom Aiken worked while attending UNC.

Aiken was also named by People Magazine as one of the sexiest men alive. Asked about how he felt about the description, the bespectacled artiste said: "Oh, it is strange! Any way, it is an honour. Perhaps we need to redefine sex."

Aiken, who was appointed UNICEF Ambassador in November 2004, visited the tsunami affected areas in Banda Aceh, Indonesia in March 2005 and now has graced Uganda on his maiden visit to Africa.

On his role as UNICEF ambassador, Aiken says, "Everyone deserves the best start in life, which is what UNICEF is working to provide the world's most vulnerable children with. Education is essential to a child's development. I hope that as an ambassador, I can encourage people to join UNICEF's mission to make education a reality for children throughout the world."


Aiken attributes all his success to God and luck saying, "It takes luck, help from God and being in the right place at the right time."

He adds, "My faith my belief. God places a person to do things in a certain way. Each person has certain responsibilities, which they can fulfil in a way they choose