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ldyjocelyn

By ldyjocelyn
in Let's Talk About Clay

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ldyjocelyn Campaign Manager

ldyjocelyn

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New article.  I'll post it here as well in the news section, because they want you to subscribe.

https://www.unionleader.com/clay-aiken-and-ruben-studdard-are-on-the-road-sharing-american-idol-stories-and-matching/article_e4897241-a367-57b2-9a82-55e2bef94e07.html

 

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Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard are on the road sharing 'American Idol' stories and matching wits

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Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken

Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken mark 20 years since their “American Idol” stint with a tour that includes a stop at the Nashua Center for the Arts this week.

AMPLIFIED ENTERTAINMENT INC.
 
It’s been a couple of decades since Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard took the spotlight on the second season of “American Idol,” but they consider themselves family.

Ask them a question and it’s like watching siblings take turns both praising and pestering one another.

Right now, they’re talking about a press release for their tour for “Ruben and Clay: Twenty Years/One Night.” In it, the two singers are referred to as “America’s favorite Odd Couple.”

“There’s this big, Black guy and a skinny White guy. Ok, there we go. We’re automatically different, right? But when you peel back the layers, we are very similar in a lot of ways. I don’t know what’s odd about that,” Studdard says in an interview that’s at turns playful and contemplative.

It’s all part of a camaraderie that extends back to 2003, when Studdard, who was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and raised in Alabama, won the “Idol” title and Aiken, a North Carolina native, was a runner-up in one of the closest finales in the long-running competition.

Since then, the artists have recorded a combined 12 albums, sold more than eight million albums worldwide, toured the country 14 times, starred together on Broadway and won four Billboard Music Awards and an American Music Award.

At the start of April, Aiken earlier returned as a guest mentor for Hollywood Week of “Idol,” which for the past six years has run on ABC. He got a kick out of talking to one of this season’s contestants who didn’t recognize him. She mentioned that her mother had auditioned for “Idol” back in the day in “whatever season Clay Aiken auditioned.” Without missing a beat, Aiken grinned, leaned back and quipped, “This is going to be fun.”

Meanwhile, Aiken and Studdard, who visit the Nashua Center for the Arts this week, are sharing “Idol” stories on the road. Back in the early days of “Idol,” the show didn’t track the singers’ lives off stage and don’t house them in the same place to give the contest a more competitive edge.

“Our house was like a big college dormitory — all in one house (with) the girls on one side and the guys on the other,” Studdard says. “We were all practicing together and giving each other tips. There was a veil between what the fans were able to see, even though it was a reality show.”

Aiken says they were lucky to make it to the show when they did. “Had we done it later we might not have gone into it with the same sense of innocence and naivety. I think that helped make the experience so much better for us.”

Studdard wishes he had realized that way back when.

“Listen, life is intense. I wish that the 24-year-old me could have understood how light (the competition) was in comparison to the way that the music industry really is. I remember Randy (Jackson, a record producer who was a judge for a dozen years) saying this to us all the time: ‘The pressure starts when the show is over.’ The business after (‘Idol’) was 10 times harder.”

Both Aiken and Studdard say the biggest takeaway has been the lasting friendships. They’re still on a group text with contestants from the second season, and reach out on birthdays and special occasions.

Studdard gets choked up remembering Rickey Smith, a suite mate back then, who died in a car crash in 2016 at age 36. “I think about him often, as much as I think about my own brother. Kevin was 44 when he died in 2018.

Studdard has said he and Kristin Moore Studdard named their son Olivier — Kevin’s middle name — to keep that family connection alive.

Good timing Studdard and Aiken may have gotten their golden tickets to the live shows on “Idol,” though it wasn’t quite the promised land they were expecting.

“We were at the Hilton Hotel in Glendale. Most of the people who made it to the show were not Californians, so everybody thought we were in Hollywood at first.”

Aiken laughs when asked if he recalls when he and Studdard first met. “Yes, but we tell it differently.”

Studdard says he walked into the hotel bar and spied Aiken surrounded by women. Aiken pipes in to sarcastically add, “Yeah, like fruit flies.”

Studdard contends his first thought was, “Man, who is this boy sitting at the bar by himself with all these girls? He clearly needs some help talking to all these people (so) I gave him a little assistance.”

Aiken jokingly gives a different account. “I like to tell it as if he saw me with all these ladies and he came over because he needed some pointers, but he never lets me get away with saying that.”

One thing they agree on is spirituality and a sense that their paths have crossed paths for a reason, and that “Idol” helped build opportunities and platforms.

Aiken wanted to be a special education teacher. It was the mother of one of his students with disabilities who convinced him to give singing a shot.

Aiken, who is active in political and social activism, also ran twice for Congress in North Carolina, though the bids didn’t pan out.

“I don’t make plans, because it seems like it always works out the way God wants it to – to let ‘Jesus Take the Wheel’ in the words of another ‘American Idol alumni’ (Carrie Underwood, 2005 Idol champ.)

For his part, Studdard, whose gospel roots reflect his own faith, never planned on becoming a teacher but today he’s guiding students at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and trying to give would be musicians and musicians a leg up into the entertainment industry.

 

 

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ldyjocelyn Campaign Manager

ldyjocelyn

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Series of pictures via Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq-YDdtuDEx/

(I'll edit this post after I get off the reference desk to post the pictures themselves)

Video from Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/julie.crawley.1829/posts/pfbid036GbJe5186nLH1EtpUQFZ7kB9xxa98XyYthqyR6VY5m7d3WpCQcQMaFVYetJQQUpkl

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ldyjocelyn Campaign Manager

ldyjocelyn

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Another article from last night.

https://www.troyrecord.com/2023/04/13/ruben-studdard-and-clay-aiken-begin-20th-anniversary-tour-in-troy/?utm_content=tw-troyrecord&utm_campaign=socialflow&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com

Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken begin 20th anniversary tour in Troy

Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken smile on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken smile on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
By LAUREN HALLIGAN | lhalligan@troyrecord.com | Troy Record
PUBLISHED:  | UPDATED: 

TROY, N.Y. — Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken came to the Collar City this week, celebrating 20 years since their debut on “American Idol.”

As the kickoff to the 20th anniversary tour, Aiken and Studdard performed at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on Wednesday to a crowd of Capital Region fans.

The duo is thrilled to reunite two decades after captivating audiences during their historic run on the second season of Fox’s American Idol in 2003 – and their enthusiasm is evident in the live show.

Both plucked from the relative obscurity of their hometowns in the South, the unlikely pair quickly became viewer favorites instrumental in helping propel Idol to the top of the Nielsen ratings, nearly tripling the viewership of the previous season, and securing its place as one of the most consequential TV series in American history. More than 38 million viewers tuned in to hear the results of more than 124 million votes cast during their finale, making it the most-watched Idol episode in history and the highest rated regularly scheduled, live, non-sporting television episode of the 21st century.

Today, Aiken and Studdard remain thankful for those fans who voted for them on American Idol 20 years ago – giving them both the opportunity to live their dreams – and they are extra appreciative of the ones still cheering them on now.

Though Studdard officially won the game show and Aiken was the runner-up, they have both earned success, fame and fiercely passionate fanbases over the years. Combined they have recorded 12 albums, sold more than eight million albums worldwide, toured the nation 14 times, starred together on Broadway, won four Billboard Music Awards, an American Music Award, and have been nominated for two Grammys.

Twenty | The Tour highlights the music that made Studdard and Aiken American Idol favorites and household names. From Aiken’s iconic rendition of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” to Studdard’s soulful “Flying Without Wings,” audiences around the country are joining America’s favorite odd couple for an unforgettable evening of music and memories, spanning two decades, delivered as only these two can.

In between songs, the stars spend a good portion of their stage time reminiscing and sharing stories about their experience on American Idol – the weekly themes, their competitors and the industry giants they got to work with – while keeping attendees smiling and laughing with their banter.

As Studdard and Aiken head out on this tour together, concertgoers can expect a nostalgic evening of entertainment, along with the opportunity to witness the undeniable talent that makes them true American Idols.

Troy Savings Bank Music Hall’s spring concert schedule continues with Little Feat on April 18, The SteelDrivers on April 27 and Martin Sexton & KT Tunstall on April 29, followed by Morgan Wade, Béla Fleck, and The Platters in May.

More information about these events can be found online at www.troymusichall.org.

Ruben Studdard sings for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard sings for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Clay Aiken sings for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Clay Aiken sings for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken smile on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken smile on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken reminisce about American Idol on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken reminisce about American Idol on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken sing for fans on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken sing for fans on stage at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall on the first night of their 20th anniversary tour. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Clay Aiken performs for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Clay Aiken performs for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard performs for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan - Medianews Group)
Ruben Studdard performs for fans on Wednesday at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. (Lauren Halligan – Medianews Group)
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FearofH2O

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Happy to see that the show is a success. Playbiller is coming to visit and we will go to Charlotte and Cary (Koka Booth). Glad I got a newer car for those trips. Feels so much safer than the Prius ( only because it was totally devoid of safety features). Hope you all can go to a show or more. 

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