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By Carla Hay
Billboard
See Clay Aiken's new video "The
Way"
It is the stuff of
showbiz irony. The top-selling singer to emerge so far from the "American Idol"
TV talent showdown did not even win the contest.
Not that Clay Aiken is complaining. He is too busy leading the hectic
life of an in-demand pop star to dwell on the fact that he finished in second
place on "American Idol."
By now, most people familiar with American pop
culture know Aiken's story: As a contestant on the second season of "American
Idol," he transformed from a bookish-looking, gawky neophyte to a polished
performer who went through a striking image makeover.
During the season
finale last May, Aiken lost to Ruben Studdard by less than 1 percent of the vote. Although
the media often portrayed Aiken and Studdard as rivals, the two singers have
remained friends during and after their time on the show.
For the music
industry, the votes in the season finale have counted less than the votes of
fans that buy records.
And in that respect, Aiken is the true "American
Idol" champ. In the wake of his second-place finish, he signed a recording
contract with RCA Records, a management deal with 19 Entertainment, the company
behind "American Idol" and similar shows worldwide, and in June released his
first single, "This Is the Night." The song hit No. 1 on The Billboard Hot 100
and became the top-selling single of the year.
Aiken's debut album,
"Measure of a Man," released Oct. 14, 2003, sold 613,000 copies in its first
week and debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200.
Somewhere amid the
milestones of a new pop career, Aiken graduated from college last December (from
the University of North Carolina in Charlotte with a Bachelor of Arts degree in
special education), started a charity (the Bubel/Aiken Foundation for children
with disabilities) and launched his first tour. A new trek, co-headlining arenas
with first "American Idol" winner Kelly Clarkson, was set to begin Feb. 24.
According
to Aiken, the path to platinum has been a whirlwind experience that began during
the show's second-season finale last May. That's when he found out that he had a
record deal with RCA.
"Right after the [season finale], Ruben and I did a
press tour in New York," he recalls. "During that week I had a meeting with [BMG
North America chairman/CEO] Clive Davis at his house in Connecticut, where he
and Tom Ennis from 19 Entertainment, [RCA Music Group senior vice president of
talent] Steve Ferrera and I went up and listened to the stuff they already had
prepared for me. They did a lot of the song selections before the second season
on ["American Idol"] was over."
19 Entertainment founder Simon Fuller and
other members of his team also were an integral part of the song-selection
process.
According to Ennis, 19 Entertainment initially planned to sign
only the winner of that season's "American Idol." But that all changed when "we
saw the results of the voting were so close," he says. "We were also blown away
by Clay's talent and the fact that he appeals to millions of people. We knew we
had to sign him."
Although several songs on "Measure of a Man" were
picked for Aiken even before he knew he had a record deal, the singer insists
that the song-selection process for the album was a collaborative effort among
him, his record company and his management team.
"I went into it pretty
apprehensively, not knowing what to expect," Aiken continues. "I had been told
by a number of people that if you get half of what you want on your first album,
you're doing really well. Pretty much every single thing they had was something
that I liked. There were maybe one or two songs I didn't like, and they were
taken off the album quickly."
Once the songs were selected, Aiken got
down to the business of recording "Measure of a Man." He says he recorded most
of the album before he started the American Idols 2 tour last July.
Davis
served as the overall album producer, while several producers and songwriters
worked on individual tracks. Befitting a major pop star that is a top priority
for his record label, Aiken recorded the album in cities around the world, such
as Los Angeles, Miami, London, Oslo and New York.
"I went into it
open-minded, knowing that I didn't know much and that I should be prepared to
learn stuff," Aiken says of the recording sessions. "I really wasn't surprised
by much except [for] how often Clive Davis sent me back into the studio to
record [something] over. As a producer, he is meticulous. I liked being able to
work with all the different producers and take what they brought to the table
and bring my own style to it."
The chart-topping success of "This Is the
Night" fueled expectations for "Measure of a Man."
RCA Records GM Richard
Sanders says, "The first thing that you have to recognize is the power of
["American Idol"] and the vast audience it does have. A vehicle that week in and
week out generates millions of viewers to see your artist is the most powerful
marketing tool you can have right now. It's not a question of if you win or
lose; it's a question of how you relate to the audience that's watching you each
week."
So why has Aiken sold more records than all of the other former
"American Idol" finalists?
Sanders thinks there are two main reasons: "The
audience for the second season was twice as large as what it was for the first
season. Ruben Studdard's record is doing very well, but I think Clay was able to
touch an audience in a more mainstream way than Ruben was."
Aiken, who is
now based in Los Angeles, has branched out into acting. (He made a guest
appearance as himself last month on NBC TV series "Ed.") Aiken says that
although he is open to similar opportunities in the entertainment business,
music will remain his first priority.
Meanwhile, he admits all the fame
he has achieved in a short period of time has taken its toll.
"I'm
starting to become a little agoraphobic," he says. "I'm not too in love with
public places anymore, because it's hard to get used to."
What helps him
deal with the pressures of fame?
"I'm around a lot of good people who
keep me grounded and don't let me get too high above my raisings. I have some
good friends who don't talk about my job, and that's nice. Those are the friends
who are my favorites. That helps a lot."
Aiken is focused, without
apology. "I know this is going to sound cheesy and like I'm trying to be Miss
America, but the most important responsibility a celebrity has is to set an
example and be a role model. I want to make sure that no matter how long I go
through this, I don't fall into the trap of changing and modifying how I do
things that aren't a positive example. I want to remain somebody that the entire
family can listen to or watch."
