Clay Aiken
News (Page 7)

They can sing. That, we know already.

But, according to E!, Clay Aiken and Taylor Hicks are also strangely sexy. In fact, these two American Idol crooner comprise a pair of months on the network's Strangely Sexy Calendar of Hollywood'd Most Unlikely Man Candy.

Let's take a look at their pages:

You know, ladies may also like how charitable and adorable this Idol is.

You just can't compete with the Soul Patrol, people. You can't.

As he's proven so many times, Clay Aiken is about more than just great music. The American Idol runner-up often comes in first when it comes to charitable causes.

This is no different.

According to the White House, Aiken has been named to the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities. The committee was originally formed in 1961 by President Kennedy as the President's Panel on Mental Retardation.

With his widely-anticipated sophomore studio CD, A Thousand Different Ways, due out next month, Clay Aiken is making the TV rounds.

AIW has received news that Clay will appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday, September 15, 2006, and a week later, on September 22, he'll be appearing on the popular The View.

These appearances will come on top of the Good Morning America visit scheduled for September 19 (the same day as his album's release), and a concert/interview trip to Jimmy Kimmel Live on the 26th.

Looks like Clay's adoring fans will soon get ample chances to see their man. For the moment, you can hear new song, "Without You," by visiting Aiken's official web pages. Check it out at his official site and MySpace page!

AIW has learned from its inside sources that there are now five confirmed Clay Aiken holiday performances on the immensely popular singer's schedule.

According to Clay's blog at his Official Fan Club, he was invited by several symphony orchestras to perform a Christmas program with them.

December 9, 2006 -- Williamsport, Pa., Community Arts Center
December 14, 2006 -- Long Island, N.Y., Tilles Center for the Performing Arts
December 15, 2006 -- West Point, N.Y., Eisenhower Hall
December 16, 2006 -- Red Bank, N.J., Count Basie Theater
December 19, 2006 -- Grand Rapids, Mich., Devos Performance Hall

We're not sure if tickets for all of these shows have gone on sale yet, but it's a pretty safe bet that they won't -- or didn't -- last long. We saw what happened in the case of the December 9 show, the first one announced. When small venues and Clay Nation combine, the typical result seems to be crashed ticket systems and packed houses!

Several news sources report that Clay will be performing live on Good Morning America at 8:00 am on September 19. That's the same day his much-anticipated new album, A Thousand Different Ways, is scheduled to be released!

We've also learned that Clay will be given interview time during his forthcoming appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, in addition to the mini-concert held on the outdoor stage.

Two of American Idol's best known personalities have made the short list for the inaugural Top 49 Men of 2006 at AskMen.com. We may pretend to hate Simon Cowell, but secretly, a lot of us wish we could be in his shoes. As for the other Idol star to make the list, Clay Aiken? We know never to underestimate any measure of this man.

Out over 15,000 names submitted to the popular site by its readers, the list has been narrowed down to 100. The purpose of the poll is to find out which of these men readers consider to be the best representatives of the gender. Who among them best exemplifies what it means to be a man? Do you want Simon and or Clay to make the final cut? If so, you can vote here.

Add another live performance from Clay Aiken to your schedule in the coming months -- but unless you already have tickets, you're not getting them!

On September 26, Clay will be performing an outdoor mini-concert on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live. Not surprisingly, at least to those familiar with Aiken fans, that date is one of only two Jimmy Kimmel shows sold out thus far in the month of September. At least there's television!

In another news, we've come across the cover art for Clay's upcoming CD, A Thousand Different Ways (right). It looks pretty sharp! The album is scheduled to hit stores September 19. Clay's official website has been updated with a new look and a sharp new picture from his album photoshoot.

Clay also has a new, official MySpace page for fans to check out. Rest assured, it's the real deal, not one of the many celebrity impostor pages out there in the crazy myspace world.

One of the songs on the upcoming CD -- "Without You," a cover of the song by Badfinger and made famous by Harry Nilsson -- is already up on the myspace page and has fans raving. Imagine when we hear the whole album.

They came for the voice. They stayed for the man. They buy many tickets really, really fast!

Yesterday, tickets went on sale to the general public for the only Clay Aiken appearance scheduled this year -- at least that is known, as of this posting. Aiken enthusiasts, known for being the most loyal of all Idol fans, were true to form in bringing yet another in-house ticketing system to its knees.

Clay is slated to perform with several Symphony Orchestras across the U.S. this holiday season, with only a December 9 concert in Williamsport, Pa., officially scheduled so far. According to insider sources, fans alerted the venue in advance that Clay Nation has a reputation for crashing ticketing systems, but the location wasn't concerned.

As it turned out, except for a few seats that were sold online before the official start time of 10 a.m., all the rest were done via phone. Memo to future concert sites: Do not underestimate the power of Claymates missing their Idol and looking for tickets en masse.

Clay's new CD, A Thousand Different Ways, is scheduled to be released September 19. We're no math geniuses here at AIW, but we think that's only 35 more days away! Holla!

Clay Aiken is being sued for more than $250,000 by the author of an "unauthorized tribute" to the second season American Idol runner-up.

According to People and MSNBC, Jeannie Holleman of Raleigh, N.C., claims Aiken defamed her and conspired to hinder sales of her 2005 book, Out of the Blue - 'Clay' it Forward.

Holleman, 50, describes herself as a lifelong friend and neighbor of the McGhees, a Raleigh family that was close to Aiken's mother, Faye Parker. Holleman says she took in Parker and a young Aiken when Parker left her abusive husband. The book is a compilation of interviews with the McGhees, along with the author's recollections and anecdotes from Aiken fans.

In her lawsuit, Holleman alleges that Aiken, his mother and others denied her stories and unfairly criticized the book on Aiken fan sites.

She is seeking at least $260,000 in damages, and has asked that the court order Aiken to retract his critical comments or endorse Out of the Blue on his official website.

Yesterday, Aiken issued a statement.

"[I've] instructed my attorneys to not only vigorously dispute the claims that have been made but to also pursue all possible remedies against those involved in the perpetration of these untruths," Aiken said.

"As a so-called 'celebrity' I have become used to scurrilous allegations and untruths being made about me and my work. I have always taken the path of not reacting to these matters and have accepted them as, somehow, coming with the 'job.' However, I cannot, and will not, stand by when these attacks are made on my family," he continued.

Clay's upcoming and highly-anticipated album, A Thousand Different Ways, is due out September 19.

NOTE: American Idol Worship supports Clay in his efforts to settle this dispute amicably and permanently, and welcomes comments from fans with greater insight on the issue.

As we reported yesterday, Clay Aiken is gearing up for the release of his long-awaited and highly-anticipated new album. A Thousand Different Ways will hit shelves September 19 (giving it a nice two-month buffer before the November 14 Idol onslaught), and consists of 14 songs, 10 of them covers.

Clay will cover a variety of songs from the '70s, '80s and '90s, in addition to his four original recordings. Here's the complete track listing, and list of original artists when applicable, for A Thousand Different Ways. Thanks to USA Today for providing this.

In alphabetical order:

-- "A Thousand Days" -- NEW
-- "Because You Loved Me" -- Celine Dion
-- "Broken Wings" (Mr. Mister)
-- "Every Time You Go Away" -- Hall & Oates (original), Paul Young (best-known)
-- "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)" -- Bryan Adams
-- "Everything I Have" -- NEW
-- "Here You Come Again" -- Dolly Parton
-- "I Want to Know What Love Is" -- Foreigner
-- "Lonely No More" -- NEW
-- "Right Here Waiting" -- Richard Marx
-- "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" -- Elton John
-- "These Open Arms" -- NEW
-- "When I See You Smile" -- Bad English
-- "Without You" -- Badfinger (original), Nilsson (best-known)

Interestingly, Aiken will receive a co-writing credit for "Lonely No More," while Jon Bon Jovi co-wrote "These Open Arms." In a press release about the album, Clay expressed his excitement in recording songs from his youth.

"These are songs I heard growing up. I loved them then and I still love them today, but we decided to do them a little differently. They have new arrangements, and we put our own style on some of them," he said.

Aiken, 27, expounded further on the pure emotion of some of his selections, and how that led to the name of the new album:

"This is an album of love songs, but they are about all different kinds of love. Romantic love, friendship, unconditional love. There are a thousand different kinds of love; a thousand different ways to tell someone you love them. And, on top of that, since so many of these songs are covers, it's realistic to say that many of them have been or could be sung a thousand different ways."

We're eagerly waiting to hear the different ways in which Clay performs these classics, as well as his new material!

Set your VCR (or DVR, or TiVo), Clay Aiken fans. Below are some details about a television "exclusive" featuring the singer tonight, along with other pieces of information from Clay's camp. Thanks to a member of Clay Nation for forwarding this along...

-- Entertainment Tonight promises a "Clay Aiken Exclusive" on Wednesday's episode. The subject will likely be the newest information on the release of Clay's forthcoming CD, A Thousand Different Ways. We aren't sure if this exclusive will be an interview, or a performance, but it should be interesting, as Clay has not been interviewed by the media since December. Be sure your local listings for the time and channel of the syndicated show.

-- According to Clay's blog, found on his official fan club site, A Thousand Different Ways is set for release on September 19. An official press release containing more information is expected later this week.

-- On Monday, Promosquad's "Rate Songs" Jukebox began playing clips of two new Clay songs: "1000 Days" and "I Want To Know What Love Is," a cover of the Foreigner hit that Clay recorded as a duet with Suzie McNeil (of Rock Star: INXS fame). Yesterday, Promosquad also added snippets from a third track, "Without You," a remake of a 1972 Harry Nilsson song from 1972.

-- Last week, as we reported, Clay asked fans to support UNICEF in its mission to aid children displaced and injured by the recent Middle East conflict. By Friday, fans had raised over $47,000, accounting for a full 17 percent of the funds donated for the crisis there.

UNICEF called the response to Clay's plea "unprecedented," and by Monday, the amount had risen to over $66,000. Fans who wish to donate may do so by following the link above.