ldyjocelyn

Gay = "not cool" = unhappy ldyjocelyn. But that's the previous topic.

As far as the gnats go...how many times can I say "ignore" here? Because as much as curiosity can get the best of me, I refuse to click on the links for the gnat blogs. To me, it's a simple as that. They want hits. They don't get them, they should go away. Oh sure, they may try more and more outrageous things to get me to click -- but then they sound so damn silly that people just laugh instead.

I see some people still posting on the previous topic, but I'm going to move on...

Question 2:

2) What's the best way to deal with "gnats?"

OK, another 3 minutes, and then on to the next topic.....

*waves at atinal*

They were terrified not because they didn't like gay people (one has a brother who is gay, another has a best friend who is gay) but because if he were gay, how could they justify their lusting after him? I think they felt as if Clay were gay it somehow made a fool out of them. So, they became consumed by his sexuality - both by signs that might point to the idea he might be gay and by signs that he might not be.

This attitude floors me. It's as if I can't be attracted to a guy who might possibly be gay -- as if his attractiveness is gone. Nope -- cute guys can be straight, gay, bi, whatever. And couchie is right -- like I'll EVER have a chance with Clay....so what does it matter that I just think he's damn adorable?

Non-fans just like to drag people down and the media like sensationalism so taking the clean cut, goody t wo shoes image of Clay's and shattering it is reason enough for them to become fascinated by his sexuality. Imagine - this man who wore a WWJD bracelet and loves his mama and yet he's gay? That's some good, juicy stuff!

Again, another annoying thing to me -- I know there are many churches who totally condemn homosexuality. And yet, there are gay Christians everywhere.

I realize I'm talking as if Clay is gay. He's said he's not....and I believe him.

I think a lot of what people think of as gay is really southern - city southern, as opposed to Rough guy southern - John Edwards has some "pundits (i.e. deliberately slandering people on the payroll, if you know what I mean, Karl) state that he is gay - just because he has a lilt to his voice and he wears suits and cleans up nice, and doesn't have a reputation for bar fights.

Sheesh. Stereotypes are so damn hard to break.

It's extremely bothersome that much of the inuendo is so childish.

Exactly! IMO, human sexuality in general results in so many tittering laughs in American society. Why is that? Europeans, from what I've read, don't have that attitude.

I have to say that I totally admire Clay's stance on all this -- none of your business, next question please. Oh, and don't forget that "people will believe what they want to believe."

Why are the fans so interested? Partially, as play says, it fuels fantasies. It also fuels political agendas too.

To me -- this is as much a "society problem" as it is a "Clay problem." IMO, people are fascinated by the sex lives of all sorts of people...straight, gay, whatever. And I'll be honest here in that I cannot claim innocence in this regard. For some reason it is an interesting topic to me, even though I know full well it's none of my damn business. I honestly think, to pull history into this, that it is part of America's Puritanical roots.

Hee, in preview I see couchie and I think alike.

As far as Clay goes -- for some reason people cannot understand a man who seems to be as in touch with his feminine side as much as his masculine side. A lot of men think that weird -- and so the assumptions come in to play. But I think a lot of women LOVE that trait.

Greetings everyone!

Question 1:

1) Why do you think people (both fans and non-fans) find Clay's sexuality such a fascinating topic?

Part two of chat will start in 10 minutes....

Heh...I noticed the spikes too, and wonder if this show was the reason Clay cut his hair. Maybe he'll make a surprise appearance? Nah....

I also noticed that the head looks awfully small. Take that as you want.

For couchie: The Bobbsey Twins

I remember them as a book series that my Mom loved as a kid -- similar to the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew series.

I am actually afraid of an all DF project with Clay. I really don;t like Josh's cd's or Celines, when he produces them. I do think this is because I just don;t find Josh and Celine very compelling and DF tends to over produce their songs. Hopefully with Clay he will have a lighter touch.

I agree with this. I am sure there is more to DF than the Josh or Celine sound, but since I don't know of any (and am too lazy to look up what else he has done lately) and I don't like either Josh or Celine, then I have never been too excited about too much of a professional relationship between the two. That said, I think Clay can learn a lot about the business and music from DF and I think if DF can somehow nurture his songwriting ability, then that would be a good thing.

I'm honestly very torn about DF and his involvement with Clay. I don't like Groban (find him and his voice boring); Celine is someone I can like or not, depending on the song (and one I DID like was BYLM), but I do like Buble and his style of singing and music. I honestly think that DF is a producer that can bring out Clay's best qualities, but could also over-bury him in sound. It's hard to tell at this point which way it could go -- it will probably depend on the songs. Also, we don't know how much of an influence Jaymes might have on the whole proceedings.

But I just have to laugh at the sudden turn around of many on Clay possibily collaborating with him! It is like suddenly David Foster is the anti-Clive!

I think for some fans Joe Blow from the corner diner would be better than Clive Davis. *shrug*

"Idol: the Musical" sounds like a blast. Would love to attend that show. Maybe in 20 years it will be one of those touring company shows. Heh.

Chat tonight is still on! But I'm hearing rumblings that we might be getting reports from Canada this evening too, if Clay appears. That may interrupt things a bit...heh.

Cute new pictures. Talk about a throwback look though -- just when we were so used to the long hair, he goes back to short. It will be interesting to see the length in another month.

Time for a nap. Shopping for a new dishwasher today wore me out!

So it appears that the guy is really busy this week and yet he found time to give us all a quick blog! He loves us! Awww

I honestly don't care what's in the blog or how long it is because anything is good!

I'm loving the David Foster connection. I hope some interesting things are on the horizon.

Big fat WORD. I love these times, when we find out that he's been busy -- but we find out after the fact. While I do miss the clack that comes, there are some times when I just believe he needs to work in private.

The blog made me smile last night -- HOORAY for the BAF. Also noticed a possible pattern -- April 2; May 1; June 1. Maybe his computer calendar is set monthly to remind him to blog? *g*

The David Foster connection is fantastic too, and I think that they could be a great collaboration. What I do wish, though, is that the fans will temper their expectations with some realism. David Foster may NOT be the second coming for Clay in regards to his music. I'm excited about the possibilities, but also know that things in this business change so quickly.

Hey -- we had a great time with the chat party last night. The ideas were flowing fast and furious (maybe too much so....), but I think the 20-30 minute format on each topic served well. Join us tonight for part two -- 9:00 - 11:00 p.m. EDT. The questions for tonight are as follows:

1) Why do you think people (both fans and non-fans) find Clay's sexuality such a fascinating topic?

2) What's the best way to deal with "gnats?"

3) Clay and the American Idol franchise -- how much of an influence does it still have on his career?

4) How has your fandom evolved in the past 3 years?

5) Why are people so fascinated with Clay's hair?

6) The fans: should they be involved in Clay's career? If so, how much? If not, why?

I'm off today to buy a new dishwasher, and other assorted household items. Have a great day everyone!

OK, at this point...the chat is officially over. HOWEVER....

....the thread will stay open for the next 24 hours, and ya'll can keep chatting if you want. Me? For now, I'm going to bed, but I'm going to go through this thread tomorrow and probably follow up on some stuff that I didn't get a chance to earlier this evening.

This was great...looking forward to tomorrow!

Wasn't me couchie, I'd never kick you off your own board....

jmh -- I think the beauty of this upcoming tour is that he'll get a LOT more men in attendance. Why? Two things: 1) the romance factor. Wooing a pretty lady by taking her to a show with some good romantic music (and Invisible thrown in for good measure *g*) will help later that night, if you know what I mean, and I think you do. 2) Many families will attend the outdoor shows -- Mom, Dad and the kids. It's a win-win situation, IMO -- he'll gain a houseful of fans, not just an individual.

That's true play -- but I guess I see the "die-hards" as the ones being up in front. The ones that stay connected via the internet. The ones that chat with their friends (such as we are now, heh). And that die-hard group is definitely over 40 and female.

The question really becomes -- who is a casual fan? Does Clay have casual fans of the male persuasion? The younger persuasion? I believe he does...but they are not traveling all over the country for him. And I think most of the casual fans give two twits about marketing. They just see the CD on the shelf, or (ideally) hear a song on the radio (hot AC, IMO), and buy a copy. Simple. Painless.

His demographic is those who dare to brave the music elitists who try to tell us it's not cool to be a fan of an amazing singer because he got his start on ai, is geeky, goofy, and doesn't pander to them.

This is the most insightful sentence I've seen in a LONG time. Thank you.

Now this is one that annoys me elsewhere - Clay's market demo is whoever the hell buys his CD.

If it's baby boomers, well, hell, there's a lot of 'em!

I know I already proposed to YSRN this evening -- KAndre, are you into polygamy? *g*

I'm proud to be "Clay's market demographic." Just because I'm a female and approaching middle age (some would say I'm there already)...does this mean that my money's not good? Does it have female cooties?

As for expanding to other demographics -- listen, Clay doesn't care about cool all that much, IMO. So getting those teen age boys to buy his album (even if it is a heavy metal disc) is probably pretty low on his list of priorities.

play, I think it could be WY (if he's looking for big and bombastic, like Solitaire)....or it could be LAA (for the soft and quiet, such as ICMYLM (sorry YSRN)).

Final question for the night:

6) What is Clay's market demographic at the moment? What do you think should be Clay's market demographic? How can any of these demographics be expanded?

I think the opening song will be RHW -- with Clay striding onto the stage as if he owns the place! I also don't think there's going to be much of a "set," not enough room on the stage!

I think he loved last Christmas when he found out he had a whole bunch of people in the audience that had never seen him.

Agree! Hee. I think he was really getting scared there for a minute that he only had 5000 fans that follow him around. That's gotta be kinda freaky!

Hmmmm...that reminds me of the last question....

But that's in about 5 minutes.

At some point his hair will look like a) crap; ambrosia; c) a toupee.

Hair discussion, tomorrow night. *g*

I also think it does NOT represent that Clay always wants to sing with symphonies. I just think he really loves to and since he was going to tour with songs from ATDW aanyway, why not!

ITA. I'm not sure that symphonies = cheap for touring, but I think he got a major rush last Christmas performing with all those orchestras. First of all, that rush of sound behind him had to be major cool. But also, he got to control a LOT of people. I bet that felt pretty good too.

Forgot about LAA....IF he does sing it (and I'm not positive he will either), I think it might be the encore.

{{{{{{{those not getting to a show this year}}}}}}}}}}}

I definitely think the focus of the music for the tour will be ATDW. I'm wondering if there will be a song that gets left out, and I'm deathly afraid that this song will be BW!!! (I HOPE NOT!!!) MOAM songs as well -- especially MOAM itself. I also giggle every time I think of him doing Invisible on this tour. Will he do new songs? Maybe one or two. I think he may also pull a cover out that didn't make any album or digital download.

I think what I'm most excited about with the tour are the arrangements. I'm looking forward to the extra lush sound of the orchestra backing him. I also think Q&A will be there (Angela singing the Suzi part on IWKWLI), and I hope that Daniel the bass player is back -- love him.

Ansa -- why would David Foster want Clay? Because he's a) a singer! I mean, a real singer -- and DF likes those. DF likes money, right? Hee.

Question 5:

5) The Upcoming Tour -- what songs will he sing? Who will be with him besides the orchestra? What will the musical arrangements be like?

Yes, a duet or collaboration would make me HAPPY! It could work in a couple of ways too -- someone who is a bigger star than Clay, working with him, bringing him up to that level. Or, CLAY could be considered the star, and work with a new up-and-comer.

What I'd like is for that mythical collaboration to get a movie soundtrack.

Do we need two more minutes here?

Oh yeah, forgot the "where" question. Will he continue with RCA? While I have no facts on this whatsoever, I think his contract is still probably with RCA. I can see David Foster's label collaborating with them though. I do think that if he DOES leave RCA, he'll go with another company that will still try to fit him into a box, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's the crooner/song stylist box too. Also, I think companies will be falling all ove themselves to sign him if RCA ever does let him go.

This is one of those topics where I get kinda mean -- because I think heads would explode if he does resign with RCA, and for some reason, I get hungry for popcorn when that happens.

Clay seems to like to take his time on things since that mad rush of 03/04/partial05 ended.

You know, that's a fantastic point. I would venture that while he's proud of MOAM, it felt like a major rush job to him. I'm sure he doesn't want that kind of feeling ever again.