Bubel Aiken Foundation to Publish Book

According to The Morning Call, Clay's Bubel Aiken Foundation will be publishing a book about Mikayla Resh, a girl who has cerebal palsy.

Cerebal palsy is a condition resulting from brain damage prior to or just after birth. It impairs one's ability to control movements such as raising an arm or bending a finger. Over 500,000 children in the United States suffer from this debilitating condition.

According to McCall, the book, to be titled "Our Friend, Mikayla [will tell] the story of a girl with disabilities [illustrating how] she's just like you and me. The students wanted to show in words and in drawings of a girl in a wheelchair at the playground, licking lollipops and playing."

A group of authors worked closely with Mikayla's school. Infact, 10 year old Melissa Mastro was asked to create the book's cover. "I felt when someone could see it people could see that you could have friends like this," Mastro told McCall.

The project is being spearheaded by Resh's mother. After the BAF heard of the project in late 2005, a $12,500 grant was granted on the condition of secrecy. Resh's mother hopes to eventually have a copy of the book in every school in the country.

"Our Friend, Mikayla" will be available for purchase via the Bubel Aiken Foundation's website soon.

Tidbits 5/20

From the Charlotte Observer: "You don't have to win "American Idol" to be a success. Second season runner-up Clay Aiken, from Raleigh, took his positive exposure from the show and became a success -- not only as a singer, but as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador. He's show here talking with Indonesian children during his visit to areas struck by a tsunami."

• Blogcritics... mentions Clay and Kelly getting out of their 19E contract and compares Elliott Yamin to "Clay's heir."
• USA Today questions whether it matters if you're American Idol winner or runner-up... "Look at Clay Aiken. He's done really well for himself and he didn't win."
• The Charlotte Observer has a fantastic version of the recent AP article about post idol success. "On the it-doesn't-hurt-to-lose side of the 'AI' ledger, 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.'" They've also included the picture seen at the top of this post.
• Check out this cool Clay blog called "The Big Dawg blog"
• Tribute-Chronicle... fantastic compliment to Clay. "Watching 'Poseidon' this week got me to thinking about who has been the most successful person at parlaying reality television exposure into legitimate stardom.... Now I'm excluding 'American Idols' like Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken because the whole point of that series was to create pop stars."
• Florida Sun Sentinel: Katherine McPhee comments on the possiblity of being this year's runner-up - "Of course, you still want to win. I'll be ecstatic if I win. But look at Clay Aiken. He's done really well." The article goes on to say: "Aiken, the second-year runner-up, has far eclipsed Studdard in record sales and concert attendance. In fact, other than first-year Idol Kelly Clarkson, who has emerged as a genuine superstar, Aiken is arguably Idol 's biggest find."
• Paxetanimo has added even more 'old' clack that are new to the Clay nation.

Paula Abdul Comments on Gay Allegations

American Idol judge Paula Abdul defended Clay on last night's CNN Larry King Live. Here's what she had to say about the absurd gay allegations against Clay. Thanks to CNN for this transcript.

KING: How do you react to all the stories about Clay Aiken having homosexual liaisons?

ABDUL: I honestly don't read any of that stuff, and I encourage the contestants to not read the good press, not read the bad press.

KING: And, by the way, why would it matter?

ABDUL: Absolutely, I agree, why would it matter?

KING: How good a talent is he?

ABDUL: Clay is an excellent vocalist. The genre and style of his music is very specific to, I feel, more adult contemporary pop. Who cares about sexual preference?

Although we do recognize that many Clay websites will not be posting this information, we do feel that it is important to keep our avenue of information open.

More Info on Middlesex School Visit

The CH's julesrules posted a fantastic recap of Clay's recent visit to Middlesex Middle School in CT.

"I was out ..but he looks different per the kids..did not sing so take a deep breath...was very kind to the students ..had kind eyes???...but that is the report...the whole school was there...we won a cheque from Pand G, and he presented it.....was down to earth..the Rodney crew (custodial staff, very awesome group. so nice. kids love them so much and respect them a lot. classy group. i mean they keep the kids in line at lunch and around the school. no destruction, lots of respect)loved him too......shook some hands.... "

From a phone convo I had with someone else...I took notes (teehee)

The school was all a buzz with news they were having a suprise visitor. Some rumors were Clay Aiken and the kids were excited and some thought it was a football star. (my guess is they thought Troy Aikman but she couldn't remember). So Clay arrived, in a limo which was at the front of the school. He went into the principal's office (the one pictured with him) and they were having a pow-wow of sorts. They were planning the assembly and they were trying to come up with math problems to do with the kids at the assembly. They were having a difficult time so they called in a math teacher (brilliant). All the kids got called into the gym and they were going crazy. The word my friend used was "out of their minds". They were screaming and really excited. My friend said that the kids were commenting that he looked really different and not the same as he did on t.v. My friend didn't really know what he looked like. (I didn't ask her to comment on that.)Clay talked about UNICEF and then did some math problems. My friend said it was like "if 1 well costs $5 to build how many wells can you build with the money you raised". Then they got more difficult. The kids had calculators and Clay was running the show, calling the kids up to do the problems. (what i would have given to see this) It was really exciting and the kids were into it, at first. *g* After about 4 the kids were and I quote "bored out of their mind." They were having some trouble as the problems got more difficult. I asked why didn't he just stop. helllo??!?!?! She said it was because that is what they planned. A guy who works for Clay went up to the teacher who helped him think up the problems and she was so shy she didn't want to go up so she refused. (bwah) My friend said the teacher was so so shy. The assembly lasted for about an hour. She said it was really fun just sitting on the floor listening to him talk and everyone at the school was so happy and excited. She also said she tried to get to meet him but they didn't leave any opportunities for that. He gave a big big hug to the principal at the end. He didn't give anyone autographs and he was rushed out to his limo.

E! News: Claymates Rejoyce - Highly Anticipated Album Out Soon

Clay was shown on last night's E! Daily Ten. E! said that Clay was busy working on his "highly anticipated" sophomore album and that it would be out soon... "Season two's Clay Aiken says he's busy recording a highly anticipated third album... Claymates everywhere rejoice!"

E! also showed some footage from footage of Clay singing This Is The Night from 2003's American Idols Live tour.

CDD Video: Clay appears on E! Daily Ten 5/18

Tidbits 5/19

• MonstersAndCritics: 'The Wheelchair Project' applied for BAF grant to purchase new wheelchairs.
• Another fantastic Associated Press Idol article: "On the it-doesn't-hurt-to-lose side of the AI ledger, Clay Aiken, 27, who lost out to Studdard, sold nearly 4 million copies, combined, of his records Measure of a Man and Merry Christmas with Love."
• Baxter Bulletin... another AI article. Mentions Clay and Bo Bice's success even though they were runner-ups.
• Detroit News: Josh Gracin article... mentions him being from the Clay/Ruben season of Idol.
• 2 articles from the Boston Herald: this first one says next week's AI show down will be like "Clay Aiken vs. Kathy Griffin." And this second one asks whether anyone this season will be "the next Clay Aiken."
• Not news... but News 14 NC has a nice photo of Clay in this AP Idol article from yesterday.
• Richmond.com: Kimberley Locke will be known as the one who lost to "Clay/Ruben"
• Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Nick Lachey "came across like Clay Aiken with machismo."
• MediaFiends Idol article: My favourite in the top 2 never wins!
• MediaFiends: Nice little "where are they now article"... very complimentary to Clay: "The transformation from nerd to chic will go down as the ultimate American Idol makeover. That, in addition to his voice, continues to drive many a Claymate crazy even 3 years later."

Thank You

A special note of thanks to all our visitors who have recently left comments such as these:

Nice colors. Keep up the good work. thnx!
Hmm I love the idea behind this website, very unique.
Interesting website with a lot of resources and detailed explanations.
Interesting site. Useful information. Bookmarked.
I love your website. It has a lot of great pictures and is very informative.
What a great site, how do you build such a cool site, its excellent.
I say briefly: Best! Useful information. Good job guys.
Awesome content. thankyou.

Thanks a lot! We appreciate your support and feel encouraged by the fact so many of you depend on us for your dose of Clay.

~ clayisouridol (webmaster, graphic designer and managing editor)
~ J4Clay (assistant news poster)

Clay Mention on American Idol

Clay's CD sales and success were briefly mentioned by RCA Records head Clive Davis on American Idol last night. However, Mr. Davis did seem a bit baised due to the fact he left many with an impression that only the winners had accounted for the 33 million CD sales of the Idols. The above is a screencap of the plaque they showed last night on Idol.

Tidbits 5/18

• Check out this page which features celebrities promoting farm equipment company John Deere. (Clay's near the bottom... notice the thudly smile!)
• ...and is this a photo of Clay at Six Flags? The mystery continues.
  
• Lycos50's weekly report: Clay is the #5 music related search.
  
• Nice little article from the Darien Times about Clay's recent visit to a Middlesex, CT school. The article said that no one except the principal knew about Clay's visit. When Clay showed up, under a veil of secrecy, a student said "it sounded like a rock concert. There were hundreds of high pitched screams." The principal noted that "students who had guessed Aiken was a possibility had made signs. They had signs that said 'Aching for Aiken'."
• The official fanclub has posted some member exclusive photos from this school visit.
  
• ...another AP story: Runner-ups do well too... Clay outsold winners.
• Redding.com: another AI-runner-up/success article.
  
• Independent News: little article about an irish tenor. He compares himself to "Clay Aiken and Kelly Clarkson"
• Mobile Register: Idol article... mentions Ruben beating Clay.
• NC Star News Online: New Idol themed musical 'Footloose' has a character who could "pass as Clay Aiken's butch brother."
• Philly Blurbs: Idols are not 'long term artists'
• Canada's andPOP: Next week's Idol finale will be the closest "since season two when Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken went head to head."
• Palm Beach Post blog: Claymates and Taylor Hicks? "I do admire the Claymates' devotion."
• Ryan Welton blog: The problem with AI5 this season was a lack of a 'star' moment... "I wasn't the biggest fan of Clay Aiken; however, his rendition of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" in the 2003 finale was stellar. There is a reason that little son-of-a-gun sold more than 3 million records."
• Curlio.com AI recap: Ryan Seacrest asked AI viewers on last night's result show whether "Ruben/Clay finale" or a "Bo/Carrie" one.
• Entertainment Weekly: will Elliott Yamin (eliminated off Idol last night) be a Clay Aiken/Kimberley Locke or "fade into a less high-profile existence"?
  

Is this picture Clay?

Great Clay Mention in Associated Press Wire Story

The Associated Press' Idol article, titled "'Idol' veterans turn out to be winners" has a great Clay mention. They mention that you don't have to win Idol to find success in the music industry. They make their point by saying:

Exhibit A: second season runner-up-turned-unlikely heartthrob Clay Aiken. On the it-doesn't-hurt-to-lose side of the "AI" ledger, 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."

This story will start popping up virtually everywhere today and tomorrow.

New Carol Snow Book Features "Clay Obsessed Claymate"

Clay is mentioned in the new book, Been There, Done That by Carol Snow. Here is the description from the publisher:

A laugh-out-loud, warmhearted debut about a woman reliving her youth (and not just the good parts).

Plenty of thirtysomething women would be thrilled to look like a teenager. But journalist Kathy Hopkins wishes she could be taken a little more seriously-or, at the very least, order a glass of wine without producing ID. Now her youthful appearance is forcing her into an undercover assignment she could do without: posing as a freshman at a small liberal arts college where, rumor has it, a secret prostitution ring is flourishing.

It could mean a career-making expose. But right now, pretending to be eighteen means dealing with a Clay Aiken--obsessed roommate, late-night parties that test her aging body--and most embarrassing of all, a massive crush on a guy who's just turned legal. Suddenly, Kathy's got the chance to do it all over again, hopefully better this time. Fortunately she's a quick learner.

The book hits bookstores August 1. You can also pre-order via Amazon.

Clay Signed Cross Being Auctioned

Love without Boundaries is auctioning a Clay signed cross via eBay. A plaque on one side includes Psalm 66:1-2: "Praise. Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise" as well as Clay's autograph. All proceeds go to help fund surgeries for Chinese orphans.

eBay has verified and approved the organization and is therefore backed by eBay's Mission Fish feature.

Attention all Claynadians

The Claynadians are organizing a Cl-luncheon Saturday, June 3 at 2:00 PM. The event will be held at:

Fran's Restaurant
At the intersection of Yonge & College St.
Toronto, ON

The fee is $10.00 per person. If you are interested in attending, please contact Clayitagain.

Tidbits 5/17

• Clay served up another blog today on the OFC. He talked about Mexican food and his role in UNICEF. Nothing really exciting and new.
• Redding.com: Even runner-ups' "dreams come true".
• Chicago Tribune article has a great Clay mention in an article about the new White House Press Secretary Tony Snow. "Like Bill Rancic and Clay Aiken before him, Tony Snow shines brightest with the cameras on."
• Miami Herald: Simon Cowell predict's Elliott Yamin's downfall... says his "white-bread Clay Aiken vibe, will ensure his dismissal."
• Fayetteville, NC Kiwanis Talent Show got a boost when Clay and Idol came around. According to NC's Up & Coming Magazine, this year's edition will be held this week.
• Foxes On Idol: Clive did a not-so-good job picking Open Arms, "a song everyone associates with Clay Aiken," for Elliott Yamin.
• Another press release about Clive Davis working with the AI5 contestants... small Clay mention.
• Blogcritics: Clive Davis given new lease on life by idols like Clay who collectively have sold over 30 million records.
• BeaversOnIdol: Although Elliott Yamin is good, he's did not have a "Clay Aiken phenomenon" because of several awkward moments this season.

Happy Clay Day!

Three years ago today, Raleigh's mayor declared May 16th as "Clay Aiken day".

So in keeping with tradition, we wish everyone a...

HAPPY CLAY DAY!

Yahoo Music: Who's your favourite Idol?

Yahoo Music has an idol related poll this week. They want to know "Which Idol is your favorite?" Your choices are Bo, Kelly, Carrie, Fantasia and Clay.

You know the drill... get to it! Clay is trailing Kelly by 9% right now!

New Young-Clay Video Surfaces

"Fate is a funny thing," Clay once said. Well, this is certainly true in this video we are about to show you. In this undated video, a young Clay plays the apple seller in his Raleigh school's musical of Annie. Beside him was Clay's classmate, Joanna, now a major recording artist with Universal Music's Geffen Records.

CDD Video: Clay and Joanna - Annie musical

The Top 3 - AI2: A Walk Down Clay Memory Lane

Final 3!! Just the sound of those two words brings excitement into the hearts of many a dedicated American Idol fan. This year...Taylor, Elliott, and Katharine. We may not all be able to agree on who we want to win this year or even who we think will be in the final. But there is one thing about the "Final 3" that we fans agree on.

May 13, 2003....The "Final 3"...Clay, Ruben, and Kimberly. Every last one of us agreed on who should be in the final. Every last one of us agreed on who should win! I don't know about the rest of you, but I can remember being literally sick at my stomach during the results show on May 14. I knew that, in my opinion, Clay was absolutely the best and deserved to win. But I also knew that Ruben and Kim were very good as well. And what I didn't know was that there was this huge Clay fan base out there voting and voting week after week. I had not connected with the "Clay Online" fans yet, so this was a scary night for me.

I remember when "Vincent" was drawn from the hat for Clay to sing, I sunk into my chair. "Oh no, not Vincent!" Not my favorite song and not an easy one to sing. I also remember hearing Clay stop singing for a moment and I gasped. But then I thought, "Well, that's just a spot in the song where its only instrumental." And since he picked right back up, that assured me that this was how the song should go. When the judges made sure that we knew Clay had forgotten some words, it scared me. Yet, he did such a bang up job of picking right back up, just like a pro, I thought.

When "Mack the Knife" was announced, I was thrilled! This was the song that the judges had chosen for him to sing. What a perfect song for Clay to showcase that glorious voice of his! And Clay didn't disappoint! I still get chills when I listen to it. He showed the judges and America just what he was made of. He belted out that song like it was written just for him! Even Simon had to say that it was "brilliant". And it was!

The last song, "Unchained Melody" was Clay's own choice to sing. And why he decided to sing it just really touched my heart. This was his mom's favorite song for Clay to sing, a song that she loved to hear him sing. "My mom is the strongest person I know". Clay had said that early on when asked who his idol was. I loved that he was close to his mom. And she must have been so proud of him that night when he sang it so beautifully. Though Randy said it was not a great arrangement of it, he told Clay that it just proved how great a singer he was and that he made the song work. Paula thought it was the best song of the competition, and Simon said "well done". To me, it has become a Clay Aiken song that will never be sung with the same heartfelt emotion and purity as he sang it.

Ahhh, this is the stuff that sweet memories are made of. Is it any wonder that we can all agree wholeheartedly on our love for this sweetheart of a man who sung his way into our hearts that year and has remained there ever since?

If you want to download these performances by Clay, go to All Things Clay Aiken. But do it before May 31, when they will close.

Tidbits 5/16

• South Florida Sun Sentinel - "As Chris loses out, American Idol wins with unpredictability" by Tom Jicha talks about the predictability of the winners on American Idol and says, "The only question as the second season wore on was whether Clay Aiken's insanely loyal fans would get through on the phones often enough to get him past Ruben Studdard."
  
• Foxes on Idol - In case you missed the "American Idol: The Top 50 Performances" By Sting 7 her it is again! Clay got 4 songs on this one: Solitaire (#3), Build Me Up Buttercup (#16), Unchained Melody (#32), and Open Arms (#42), and Sting7 says some great things about him.
• Here's another FOI article... AI5's top 3 may be better than AI2's.
  
• Press Release from Idol about Clive Davis appearing on Idol tonight. Mentions Clive working with Clay.
• LA Daily News highlights the need for AI fans to vote saying "Three years ago, only 134,400 votes out of 24 million separated runner-up Clay Aiken and winner Ruben Studdard."
• Press Release from Medialink says last July's Amazon.com "special deliveries", which Clay participated in and which Medialink ran, has won an industry award from SABRE.
• Herald Dispatch: columnist admits he's hooked on Idol, even though he "managed to avoid the first two seasons, although I do know who Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken are."
• Taking a Moment blog: The day of a Claymate (Hilarious, yet so true for many of us!)
• Press Release from the fans of Elliott Yamin... mentions AI2's voting problems. (this really isn't new... the Yamin fans issued this last month too)
• BeaversOnIdol: Elliott Yamin's "Clay Aiken transformation 'isn't just cosmetic'"
• Clay has won the Media Fiends "best American Idols contest". Several days ago, the site asked readers to send in their Idol top 12. Today, the results were announced and Clay came out on top beating, well, everyone!
• Hi Ninja blog: small Clay mention... cute! "Waking up dreaming Clay Aiken." YUP... even non-Claymates do it. LOL!
  
• Clay drops 6 spots to #39 on the Lycos50. This is Clay's 151st week on the chart.

Foxes on Idol Article Includes Great Clay Mentions

In my opinion, Donna Reynolds writes great articles for Idols on Fox. Her article, "Idol Thoughts, May 16: Why Taylor Must Win!" is no exception. Though this article is about Taylor Hicks from AI5 and why she thinks he must win, Donna has great things to say about Clay twice!

In talking about the excitement Taylor has generated this year, she mentions how "Clay pulled people in with his emotion, vulnerability, and crystal clean vocals" on AI2.

And her second mention is even better! Donna talks about how so much of today's pop music lacks the excitement and "feeling of exhileration" that music had in past decades. She feels American Idol has changed that and brought more excitement to the fans. And she uses Clay and his fans as examples by saying:

If you doubt that, consider the whole Clay Aiken phenomena. Need I say more? The noise for Clay started early in the season, and by the time the finale came around, it was positively deafening. It continued through the Idol tour, the release of his CDs, and his numerous sold-out tours and shows. They screamed, they fainted, and they swooned. It was remarkable. Clay Aiken became the star of season 2 and he didn't even win. Looking back, it is still astonishing. For whatever reason, Simon didn't see or didn't want to see what was so potently obvious even then. Despite the fact that he didn't fit into a neat little box, Clay had something special that drew people to him and his music. I don't think Simon's ever forgiven him!

Now that's something that I can definitely agree with!

If you'd like to read the whole article and get her perspective in full, click here on Foxes on Idol.

Happy Birthday to CDD's Clayscience21

J4Clay and I would like to extend Clayscience21, CDD's founder, a

Cl-HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

United Way Thanks TWWMAD

The United Way thanked Clay Aiken concert ticket donating project, "The Way We Make A Difference" for its efforts to help the less fortunate.

In an issue of their report (PDF format) dated winter 2005, the organization says:

Aikenized.com: Your New Clack Resource

The clack landscape is changing! Thanks to the CB's ClaysGurl5230 for informing us about the expansion of Aikenized.com into the Clay nation's newest clack website. This is a work in progress, so not all the clack that will be up are up yet.This comes on the heels of AllThingsClayAiken.com's closing and ClayAikenMediaWorld.com's opening.

This new site is owned by claybuttercup99 and will be hosting videos, MP3s and much, much more! Check it out today!

Tidbits 5/15

Lots of good stuff today!

• As Jan posted earlier today, the Philippines News has great Clay mentions in an Idol related article. However, this article seems to be dated. It refers to last year's JBT as 'right now'.

  Take Clay Aiken, for instance. Aiken, who placed second behind Ruben Studdard in season 2 of Idol, has far surpassed Studdard in album sales and fan base... Aiken still outsold [Ruben], and his fan club, the Claymates, are almost as obsessive as Harry Potter fans. Clay Aiken has perhaps the most obsessive and devoted fans in the entire Idol universe. Clay's first single went platinum and debuted at no. 1, and he's released two albums, including a Christmas album last year which debuted at no. 4. His first album debuted at no. 1. So where is Clay now? He is currently on his fourth solo tour and that's in addition to leading the Bubel/Aiken Foundation and serving as a Unicef ambassador.

• Clay mention in StubHub PR... nothing much. Clay is mentioned in all of these PRs.
• FoxesOnIdol: Idol history... top 3! Clay sang Unchained Melody. MediaFiends also posted one of these... pretty much the same thing.
  
• BOI AI5 article... compares Elliott to Clay.
• Florida Sun Sentinel: Taylor Hicks won't win because he hasn't matured as "Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken did."
• Steel Kaleidoscopes blog: AI blog praises Clay saying: "Daughtry draws comparisons to Clay Aiken in how much of a buzz he creates. In Season 2, Aiken was the reason to watch the show. Every night he gave a brilliant performance, his next one seemingly better than the one the week before. In Season 2, you didn't want to miss Clay Aiken. In Season 5, you didn't want to miss Chris Daughtry."
• Small Clay mention in TV Guide community's article about AI5 ("pictures of Clay Aiken").

Philippine News Article Has Great Clay Mentions

For those of us who have heard the phrase, "Clay is Everywhere!", a great Clay mentioned in the Philippines online newspaper, Malaya Entertainment, proves this to be true!

In the article, "Idols Make it Big", by Jen M. Pangilinan, both the Idol winners and those who didn't win but have still made it big are discussed. Clay, the biggest "non winner" to come out of the show, is talked about first in the article. Ms. Pangilinan says of Clay, "Aiken, who placed second behind Ruben Studdard in Season Two of "Idol," has far surpassed Studdard in album sales and fan base." She also says that Clay's fan base is more than likely the most devoted in the "idol universe". I think she just might have that right!!

At the end of the article, it was also interesting to see that a Philippines Idol is in the works.

If you would like to read more about what is said concerning Clay, click on Malaya.

Calling All Clay Aiken Website Webmasters

Share your Clay site with THOUSANDS!

Thanks to a suggestion by one of our visitors, CDD, one of the largest and most visited Clay Aiken news sites, will be offering free advertisement space for your Clay website, blog, or "creation."

We plan to publish a list of Clay websites on June 14, 2006.

If you want your website included, please fill out the contact form. Please note we can only accept sites that are explicitly linked with Clay. We will not accept any personal blogs or websites that may only have one or several Clay mentions.

An Editorial From Nageea - Clay Needs Only 1 Hit

BeaversOnIdol published an interesting editorial by Nageea about the sophomore album. Nageea says that Clay only needs one hit for the sophomore album to be successful - much in the same manner Kelly's 2004 song, Since U Been Gone, got her onto the radar screen.

She argues that Clay's problem is not celebrity power: "the efforts of the Clay Nation [have made] him known...he is well known, and now the media is curious." That being said, only "one song from his lips on the stage and they were dead. It only took one arrow slung from his bow and he had new converts. Clay was never your ordinary run of the mill singer, he was always different. And it's that difference that does it."

Continue reading this article over at BOI.

Google Trends Charts Clay's Popularity Since 2003

Blogger's parent company, Google, launched a new Google Trends service today which allows users to track the popularity of a particular search team.

We tried looking up the term "Clay Aiken" an received this graph along with some cool stats.


The top 3 Clay-searching cities were (unsurprisingly) Raleigh, Charlotte and Philidelphia. On a per capita basis, Singapore was the most Clay hungry country followed closely by Indonisia, Malaysia, the United States and Canada. Additionally, almost all of Clay's searches were done in English.

Although the data presented here is perfectly logical (with spikes near the release of MOAM, MCWL and LTS), this new service does bring some interesting perspective on Clay's popularity.

Clay Mention On Saturday Night Live

Fantastic Clay mention on last night's Saturday Night Live which was hosted by actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Here's the CB's ClayBearLady's short recap:

The intro for Saturday Night Live was discussing happenings in an "Alternate Universe"....Clay Aiken beat Ruben Studdard. They can't get away from OMC!!

Amazon Cancels Calendar Orders

Everyone who ordered a 2007 Clay Aiken calendar on Amazon.com received this message yesterday:

Hello from Amazon.com.

We are sorry to report that the release of the following item has been
cancelled:

"Clay Aiken 2007 Calendar"

Though we had expected to be able to send this item to you, we've
since found that it will not be released after all. Please accept
our sincerest apologies for the inconvenience we have caused you.

We have cancelled this item from your order.

Amazon pulled the calendar from its store yesterday due to copyright problems and issues with the vendor, MeadWestco.

There is still a good chance that there will be a 2007 calendar. These indications are probably good ones because it shows that Team Clay is actually trying to get a calendar out there for 2007, unlike last year - which resulted in there being no 2006 calendar.

Update 5/14: The Calendar has been relisted on the manufacturer, Meadwestco's website. Confused yet? Status is "Out of Stock".

MOAM Sales Skyrocket

Measure of a Man cracked the Amazon.com music top 100 bestsellers list for the first time in years yesterday as it became the 58th bestselling CD on the retailer's website! According to Amazon's Movers and Shakers list, sales of MOAM increased by over 1500% yesterday.

MOAM is currently sitting in the 200's. It's a mystery as to why sales skyrocketed since Clay hasn't been on TV in months and the CD is not on sale. However, MTV's Hits program played Clay's The Way video 4 times yesterday, so that may have been a contributing factor.

Tidbits 5/14

• Happy Mother's Day!
• The Chronicle Herald (Canada) reviews Terry Piper's The Invisible Revolution book. As we reviewed back in January, this book is about Clay and us -- Claymates. This book has also been subject to a considerable amount of controversy as many Claymates insist, according to the Chronicle Herald, that Ms. Piper is a "publicity hound trying to turn a profit off the popularity of the young man who is rated highly by women across a wide age demographic."
• Courier Post Online columnist says that fans are telling him that Idols, including Clay, have 'paid their dues'. (duh) Here are all the letters he received from fans... lots of Clay mentions.
  
• WebMetricsGuru article about art praises Clay saying "Artists such as Clay Aiken, Tony Bennet and Elvis inspire feelings beyound the words. It's not just the words, it's the feelings behind them."
• andPOP has posted a video of a 2004 interview with Kimberley Locke in which she talks about roommating with Clay.
• Bored? Here's some jigsaw Cluzzles for you to solve.
• Livingston Daily: Chris Daughtry will be AI5's Clay Aiken.