When he’s not singing, you can tell that Clay Aiken is a southern boy, born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, in fact. His manners and drawl would, later in life, help him win over the heart of America on the popular television show American Idol. But before he entered the living rooms of the nation, Clay Aiken was simply a face in the crowd, one of the thousands and thousands of amateur vocalists trying out for the show. Although he had been singing in local choirs and performing in theatre productions in and around Raleigh for years, taking a stab at the AI audition in the hopes of achieving international stardom was never one of his life-long ambitions.Aiken was actually planning on spending his life working with children suffering from autism, as he’d earned a degree in special education, but a friend of his insisted that he try out for the show. Aiken’s Atlanta audition had a shaky start. Simon Cowell, the notoriously ill-tempered judge, commented that the lanky, four-eyed Clay didn’t look much like a pop star. However, Simon straightened up in his chair after hearing Aiken sing “Always and Forever.”Clay Aiken never actually won American Idol, and in fact he was nearly eliminated from the competition after just two rounds, only remaining in the pool of contestants by winning a wild card competition. Midway through the show Clay changed up his appearance to look more like an idol. He lost his glasses, spiked his hair and wore flashy, striped shirts, all to the delight of the judges and the voting public. He wound up losing to Ruben Studdard in the show’s final episode, but his appeal was undeniable and record agencies clamored to take advantage of the buzz around Clay Aiken.After signing with RCA, Aiken debuted with a No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 single “This Is the Night.” His first studio album, The Measure of a Man, actually came out earlier than Ruben Studdard’s debut album. After releasing a Christmas album, Aiken branched out to work in both theatre and television, while also working on A Thousand Different Ways (released in 2006) and On My Way Here (2008).
