Tidbits 5/23

The past 48 hours have been crazy around here, as you can imagine. This is the reason I love and hate May at the same time! LOL. So pardon us for the mess in this tidbits post. But don't skip it. There are TONS of fantastic mentions!

• In case any of you are wondering where J4Clay is... she is having surgery and will be back soon. Please leave a message for her by posting a comment. I'll make sure it gets to her.
  
• Minn. Star-Tribune mentions the fact Clay has been working with producer John Fields. We reported this last month.... "Clay Aiken (runner-up): Career-wise the real winner, he's working on an CD with former Twin Cities producer John Fields."
• Entrepreneur.com: The business of Idol. Mentions Clay being made a 'superstar'
• Juicee News Daily: some nice Clay mentions in this general overview of American Idol history.
• Cincinnati Post: Where are the idols now. 'Clay Aiken, who lost out to Studdard, has invited comparisons to Barry Manilow thanks to his theatrical style and loyal fans, known as Claymates. Aiken, 27, sold nearly 4 million copies, combined, of his records "Measure of a Man" and "Merry Christmas with Love."'
• Awesome, yet ironic comment from the Dallas Morning News. " [Katherine McPhee]'s hot, and there has never been a hot American Idol winner. (Clay Aiken maybe?) The producers must be as surprised as anyone."
• Grand Rapids Press: "Clay Aiken did really well for himself, and he didn't win," says Katherine McPhee.
• USA Today: Big difference between winning and coming 2nd "except for Clay Aiken, second to Ruben Studdard in 2003, winners' recordings handily outsell those of runners-up, though the franchise is robust across the board, with sales of solo and compilation albums exceeding 33 million copies globally."
• Sentinel & Enterprise: "Pop singer Clay Aiken, who finished second in the show's second season, has had a lucrative career without winning"
• ABC News questions whether this year's "No. 2 [will] go platinum like Clay Aiken or will he or she fall victim to the Justin Guarini curse?"
• Chicago Tribune... article about an Idolholic who 'voted to bring Clay back'
• Louisville Courier-Journal: Idol fan says McPhee reminds her of a "female Clay Aiken"
• Detriot Free Press: It's idol election night! "Idol has trumpeted close votes in the past. In 2003, it revealed that Ruben Studdard's margin of victory over Clay Aiken was roughly 134,000 votes out of 24 million cast."
• Here's another one similar to the Det. FP's from the Ohio.com.
  
• Cincinnati Enquirer: "Idol has made instant stars out of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia Barrino, Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken."
• Fort Wayne Journal Gazette columnist says he isn't a Clay fan.
• Arizona Republic: "Taylor is in such a different league than Katharine, in fact, I would be surprised if she gets offered a record deal from Clive Davis, a la runners-up Diana DeGarmo, Bo Bice and Clay Aiken."
• Seattle Post Intelligencer: "America gave Clay Aiken a career because he embodies the dark-horse surprise. (What tiny white guy doesn't want to lay claim to a mighty box of soul inside?)"
• Kansas City Star... this is EXCELLENT. They also have a GMA photo on their site:

  That's in contrast to seasons one through three, which presaged future greatness from Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken and others. No one who heard Clarkson's soulicious version of "Respect," or Aiken belting out the high note of "Bridge Over Troubled Water," or Fantasia Barrino's sultry "Summertime" could argue that they were watching remarkable voices in the making. Taylor Hicks and Katharine McPhee have shown promise all season long but have not approached the heights of past "Idol" greats.

• Philidelphia Inquirer: "you can never tell with Idol. Ruben Studdard trailed Clay Aiken right up until the final tally. In the end, we get the idol we deserve."
• Daytona Beach News Journal: "Ruben who? Clay Aiken might have come in second to Ruben Studdard, but he bested his "Idol" competitor in album sales. Aside from Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson, Aiken has had the most commercial success."
• Desert News: "Of the nonwinnerss, Clay Aiken was hot."
• NJ.com highlights the fact AI has so many southerners.
• St. Petersburg Times: "I often pictured a preshow rah-rah session for [Elliott] Yamin, summoning up the spirit of beloved second-placer Clay Aiken. Let's keep this guy! He's getting the Claymate vote!"
• MTV: Idol now has broad appeal. "Those 18 to 49 males that didn't have time for Clay [Aiken] or Diana [DeGarmo] may have gotten interested in Bo [Bice], and this year, there are several contestants like Taylor [Hicks] and Chris [Daughtry] who push the line even further into that territory."
• Slate: Idol is HUGE! Clay's 3 million CDs.
  

Technorati tags: Clay Aiken, American Idol, Invisible