5.22.13 Adam would be a great dad!!

Clay Aiken/Adam Lambert Duet: Not. Gonna. Happen.
By Lyndsey Parker | Reality Rocks – Thu, May 14, 2009 10:42 AM EDT
music.yahoo.com/blogs/reality-rocks/clay-aikenadam-lambert-duet-not-gonna-happen.html

According to reports today by The Chicago Sun-Times, Access Hollywood, and several NBC affiliates, season 2 American Idol alum Clay Aiken would love to collaborate with this season's golden-boy frontrunner, Adam Lambert.

But that's one duet that's NEVER going to happen, if the powers-that-be at Idol have any say in the matter.
In a story first reported in The Chicago Sun-Times by Bill Zwecker, Clay apparently turned up unannounced at the AmIdol set in L.A. last week, hoping for some face time with Adam and--according to an Idol staffer--some "VIP treatment."

''I don't know why Clay felt that way,'' the staff member told Zwecker. ''Everyone knows--and certainly Clay knows--he's persona non grata around here.''

Clay was reportedly promptly escorted off the set, and a Lambert/Aiken meeting of the minds never took place. ''To say the least, it was tense around here when Clay showed up--and boy, did they hustle him off the premises as fast as possible," the anonymous staffer told the Sun-Times. "If he didn't get the hint after that--he never will.''

This news actually shocked me. Yes, it was a little self-serving and desperate of Clay, whose career is currently in a serious slump (he was recently released from BMG, and his contract-fulfilling greatest-hits album humiliatingly stalled on the Billboard chart at #173) to seemingly try to hitch his wagon to Adam's star. But he's still one of the biggest-selling Idols in the series' history. He's made American Idol a whole lot of money in the past--the kind of money that Idol producers probably hope Adam will make after he (presumably) wins.

Clay's 2004 debut, Measure Of A Man, still holds the record for highest first-week sales for any Idol album (a whopping 613,000), and as of this writing, he's still the third-top-selling Idol ever, behind only Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, with almost 5 million albums sold. He's also still the highest-selling male contestant ever and the highest-selling non-winner, closely trailed in both categories by fellow male runner-up Chris Daughtry.

And speaking of finales...the best American Idol finale moment EVER came courtesy of Clay, when a drastically madeover, KD Lang-resembling Aiken surprised psycho-fan Michael Sandecki onstage.

So you'd think after all that, Clay would still be considered a member of the extended Idol family.

However, according to Zwecker's article, Clay burned a bridge with American Idol when he became the first contestant to leave the show's management company, 19 Entertainment, and, according to Zwecker's source, "also talked Kelly Clarkson into dropping us, too."

But the way I see it, if Kelly Clarkson can be invited back to the Idol set to perform her new single (even after her very public and very bitter feud with BMG's Clive Davis over writing her own "dark" songs), and if other dropped contestants like Ruben Studdard and the famously combative Taylor Hicks can retake the Idol stage, Clay Aiken should be permitted to pay Adam Lambert a friendly little visit.

Still, that being said, perhaps it IS a good thing that the Idol producers prevented this encounter from taking place, since Clay did supposedly visit the set with intentions of proposing a musical collaboration with Adam....and a Clay/Adam duet is probably NOT a wise move (at least not for Adam, who needs Clay a whole lot less than Clay needs Adam right now).

May I suggest a Clay Aiken/Danny Noriega duet instead?

Quote from May 22 2009 | Cele|bitchy » Blog Archive www.celebitchy.com/52375/clay_aiken_slams_american_idol/

[From Clay Aiken’s blog via Gawker]

Now that it’s all over, and for the record…. I couldn’t be happier about the way AI ended this year. I only turn the show on once a season, and only to see what the set looks like each year. This year, I happened to turn it during the minute that Adam Lambert was singing “Ring of Fire” and, at that moment, thought my ears would bleed. Contrived, awful, and slightly frightening! I wasn’t really a fan and found myself surprised whenever folks told me that they liked him. Granted, I never saw another performance (and many folks who I trust said that he was great) but I can’t imagine I would have enjoyed it. Just not my cup of tea at all. To each his own. I never saw Kris sing on the show, but whether he was good or not is really relative. It’s usually a matter of taste, right? But Idol is not always a matter of musical taste only. It’s about the person you like. From what little I saw, Kris seemed likable. (That’s not to say that Adam isn’t just as likable as anyone.. maybe more so… I don’t know) When Ruben and I were standing next to each other every night (many years ago) you had two equally talented, equally unlikely, equally unpolished contestants…. so it really was a matter of taste as to who was voted for. While some may argue that one of us was hyped more than the other, I don’t feel that was the case. However, this year, there was an obvious bias. Not even having watched the show, I can tell you that I was WELL aware of the bias from the judges as to who should win. In my opinion, that is awfully unattractive. I don’t think I am alone

In my opinion, it all often comes down to that last night of voting. Until the finale, folks are voting for the contestant that they want to see continue. But, I believe that on that last night, the dynamic changes. No longer forced to choose one person that they want to see win, the audience can effectively vote AGAINST the person that they don’t want to see win. In the case of season two this might have happened. There may have been some folks who voted for myself or Ruben because they didn’t like the other of us. I was the nerdy little girly boy who some didn’t want to see win, so they may have voted for Ruben. I don’t know. .. But again, I feel that Ruben and I were fairly matched. We both had our detractors and negatives, but I feel we were both very worthy of being on that stage in that moment, and either of us would have been worthy of winning. The show was different then, and folks made it in seasons 1-3 because they were “real” people who happened to sing/entertain well. But, somewhere along the way, AI stopped being about real people.

Clay Aiken's apology (sort of):
www.queerty.com/apology-clay-aiken-sorry-he-insulted-fellow-idol-gay-adam-lambert-20090523/

I’ll be the first to admit that my opinion is just that, only my opinion, but for as much as some of the bloggers seem to dislike me and care so little about my thoughts, they sure can waste a lot of their space on what I say! If only many of them took the time to pay attention to important things like the US economy and the welfare of the world’s children. But… nah… I could blog about that type of stuff anytime and most wouldn’t think twice, but let me say something that they can pick and choose quotes and misinterpret me… and it’s showtime! I never assumed my opinion mattered so much! I guess I may have been wrong.

That said, since my previous blog got dissected like a biology lab frog, i suppose I should clarify and even retract some of what I wrote. I am sure that some were upset by my choice of words describing my opinion of a performance I heard from Adam Lambert. I hope no one actually believed that blood truly poured forth from my ears when I heard him. I obviously meant it as a colorful statement to imply that I did not enjoy what I heard. Any performer hopes that their music will appeal to all people, but no singer realistically expects it to. God knows, I am SURE there are PLENTY of people who can’t stand to hear me sing either. I wouldn’t dream of assuming that, and I am sure that far worse things have been said about my performances than I would even venture to type here. To me, that’s fine. I don’t expect unanimous, nor even majority support for my music. But, my guess is Adam doesn’t either. I would not venture to make judgements [sic] on the personality or demeanor of anyone I don’t know, so none of what I said in my previous blog was directed as a ‘slam’ on Adam as a person. At the same time, I wouldn’t dream of slamming him as an entertainer. He does what he does, because he enjoys it, and he obviously has many fans who enjoy it as well. If what I said in my previous blog regarding my impression of a single performance from Adam upset or offended any of his fans, I expect that the mature ones will realize that it was simply a poorly worded metaphor describing my personal tastes. The only person I would really dream of apologizing to is Adam. And the irony is, if he’s smart he couldn’t give a crap what I think of his ‘Ring of Fire’ performance. As an entertainer, Adam knows that one person’s opinion of one performance really matters a little less than zero, in the grand scheme of things. He could not have gotten on Idol (nor made it as far as he did) without an immense amount of talent. He surely doesn’t need my approval to know he has a gift. At the same time, he realizes that amazing talent doesn’t always equal universal appeal. (I could NEVER have the amount of skill and talent that ballet dancers have! that’s talent! But, I don’t particularly enjoy it!) I am sure that I will have plenty of opportunities in the coming years to hear Adam sing. I imagine he’ll be around for years to come. But in the meantime, I definitely don’t want to stoop to the level of so many negative freaks on the internet… so, I do apologize to Adam for my colorful (and negative) choice of words. I hope he can forgive me. I imagine he doesn’t give a d—! God knows he shouldn’t.”

Adam Lambert Responds to Clay Aiken's Insulting Comments
May 29, 2009 by: Paulene Brooks
www.hollyscoop.com/adam-lambert/adam-lambert-responds-to-clay-aikens-insulting-comments.html

On Thursday night during an episode of Access Hollywood, Adam finally addressed Aiken's comments, and boy did he have a great comment about the situation!

"I don't know Clay," Lambert told Access Thursday. "I'm glad he's getting headlines now though, because he wasn't before."

"If he wants to ride my coattails about it, good for him," Lambert added by giving Aiken a thumbs-up sign.