Candid Interview From Pittsburgh Trib-Review

The Pittsburgh Trib-Review dared to ask some pretty hilarious questions to Clay, including one we're all dying to get answered - "Have you ever made a Claymate faint?"

Playing with Clay
By Josie Roberts
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, November 28, 2005

Clay Aiken, the unlikely heartthrob who snagged fame as an "American Idol" runner-up, brings his Holiday Tour to Heinz Hall tomorrow.

Seriously.

Although his most famous song was about being "Invisible," this is one reality star who just won't go away. So the Trib p.m. tracked down the southern-bred, spiky haired crooner to see what all the hype was about. And he's just as darned politically correct, overly polite and cliche eschewing as his public persona suggests.

Q:Let's get right to the point. I see that there are Clay Aiken thongs for sale on your Web site. Has anyone ever asked you to autograph one while wearing it?

A: When I started touring, people were constantly throwing thongs and underwear onto the stage. So it was kind of a joke when we decided to sell underwear, but then they sold way too well to stop selling them.

Q: Do you think that will happen at Heinz Hall? I'm guessing no. What do you know about the Steel City?

A: Pittsburgh's one of the few cities where we've had a day off each time I've toured there. I'm not a big sightseer, though, but I usually remember what the inside of the auditorium looks like.

Q: What song won't you be singing at your Christmas concert?

A: Well, we don't do "Frosty the Snowman" or "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" or anything like that. It's an orchestral-type show, and we try to make it a little more theatrical.

Q: You tend to attract teenage girls and middle-aged women as fans. Did you know they call themselves Claymates?

A:At first I did not love it that much, I thought it was kind of risque. But if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Now, we're accepting of the name. I'm just amazed they're supportive and still around. Everything that happens is always bigger and better than the last time and it's always surprised me.

Q: Have you ever made a Claymate faint?

A: I hope not!

Q: "American Idol" made you famous. What other reality show would you want to be on?

A: I think I'm reality-ed out. I don't know what reality is anymore.

Q: What the weirdest thing you've read about yourself?

A: Honestly, it's the stuff on the fan message boards, where they think they know what's going on and have all these theories about what I'm doing. They'll say, "He's not working on his new album yet because he's doing a country record in Mongolia."

Q: That might not be too far off the mark, though. I hear you do some work in third-world countries as the UNICEF ambassador for education. How'd you land that?

A: UNICEF does a lot of work with HIV/AIDS awareness and clean water campaigns. They didn't have anybody for education so they gave me a call and asked me to be their education ambassador because of my background as a teacher. It's probably been the biggest and best thing that's happened to me so far. I grew up in a small city in North Carolina and never really went anywhere my whole life. To see the way other people live on the West Coast was strange for me, so to see how people live in Uganda and how they're living in conditions far worse than anything we have here was eye opening.

Q:Do they wear Clay thongs over there? Kidding. So jumping from Uganda to Hollywood, who would you want to be seen with on the red carpet?

A: You know, I hate red carpets to be honest. I cannot stand people taking my pictures. To some extent, I understand celebrities who date other celebrities because they're on the same page. For me, I want to find someone from my hometown, someone down-to-earth and not jaded by the Hollywood scene. I plan on moving back to Raleigh as soon as I get a chance.

Pittsburgh Claymates can still get tickets to see him live in concert tomorrow. Tickets to "Clay Aiken: A Joyful Noise 2005 with the Pittsburgh Symphony" are $45.50 to $125.00. Purchase tickets at the Heinz Hall box office, call 412-392-4900 or visit www.pittsburghsymphony.com.

Josie Roberts can be reached at jroberts@tribweb.com or (412) 380-5609.