#20: Clay is just so frickin' cute! Cute, cute, cute!

[soulsista4clay]

Don't worry, I am always a shy person outside the home board. and i am always afraid of soing something, that is why always I chose to lurk, but I will try to post more on here. At times i just don't have time, but I will chime in as long as much as i can.

[Ansamcw]

back to lurking then, because i always mess up and start something.

anyway, I am swooning all over clay on American idol rewind, "Superstar" and "Unchained melody" every time, has got me so fangirly. Clay is so amazing, there inho has never been a contestant like him or will ever be he is unique. Now back to lurking agian.

Tidbit: I join my first board ever,it is a little known Clayboard and i still a member there, in march of 2005.

Aww don;t go lurking soulsista...you were just sharing your own experience and since you were on both side of the fence at one time then you must have different experience than most of us. I think its a very interesting perspective because often times this fandom becomes so Clay centric that we forget that other Idols and their fans had their own share of problems to deal with. Ruben certainly didn't have an easy time of it and some of it is due to the fact that Clay ended up having more success than him. I am always very impressed that Ruben never showed any bitterness towards Clay and always defended him. If there are extreme fans of his that harbour bitterness towards Clay, that is not his fault and certainly not the fault of other Ruben fans that is just enjoying their guy.

I think what is not healthy is the finger pointing and the fault finding, the its them not us mentality. As much as Clay fans want to think we are above it all...we also have our extreme factions.

[jamar1700]

I will chime in as long as much as i can.

Good for you. No need to lurk. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Ummm. I'm with couchie...saw plenty of Ruben bashing too, both subtle and not so subtle. I used to defend him on RHT all the time and got attacked for it. I'm probably still on some "bad fan" lists. Hee.

I liked Ruben right away on AI, and Ricky and Charles and Josh and Treynce. Yes and ... Clay. Very much Clay. E. really liked Josh and Ruben and we watched the show together whenever we could. I really really really just thought it was another reality show for me. If fact I used to think to myself .... who actually picks up a phone and votes on these shows? Then came Grease night and Simon was soooo nasty and I was petrified that Clay was going to go home. I wasn't on the boards so I had no idea how much support he really had. So I picked up the phone and didn't put it down for two hours (or was it just an hour for the regular shows???) E. was away at school by this point and would always call right after the show to talk about it. I was voitng my little fingers off and she kept beeiping in. I finally had to stop voting and click over. She said ... MOM! Who were you talking to for sooo long? I said... Clay needs me! & hung up on her and resumed voting.

Yep...over the top she went and nothing's been the same since.

---

Darn it! Back to work today. Everyone have a good one!

[luckiest1]

eta -another poster on this board was cp-organizer of the Winston Salem IT with Delmezza

Oh, cool, thanks for that info. Since I didn't know anyone at the time, the only two I'd had contact via PM with were Demelza (who convinced me to come) and Fully Functional (under her original name) who sold me a 9th row centre ticket. Wheeeeeeeeee!

So, we are less than 2 weeks from the first concert on the CITH tour. I wonder when those first people will hear about winning m&g's, or hear about their stories being chosen? So much to look forward to!

[Desertflower]

I guess you were not on the boards when the hint of the rolling stone cover was leaked and no one believed it. That was such a hoot - everyone saying NO WAY! and the poor kid kept saying, but my cousin prints the cover to Rolling stone, Really, he does. The kid was supposed to post an alternate more revealing shot, but I think they just went away mad. Our loss.

No I wasn't on the Boards then.

I guess I just have a different view on what bashing is. I never really hung out at RHT, but I can imagine it got nasty over there. All past history anyhow.

I like Ruben. I think he has shown himself to be a class act. He has remained supportive to Clay despite everything that has happened since AI. He had plenty of reasons to turn against Clay, and he never did. I may not like his music, but I have immense respect for him as a man.

I remember during the AI Tour, Faye told some fans that both Clay and Ruben had been victim of AI. I think the show instilled a real competitive spirit in the fans that continues to this day. The whole mind-set back in the early years of AI was the only way to be successful was to win. Their attempts to pimp Ruben, and diss Clay really rubbed a lot of people the wrong way....and unfortunately I think Ruben was the scapegoat for some of the anger people felt toward AI.

[ivy]

My two favorites were Clay and Ruben but Clay won me in the end. There were some catty remarks about Ruben on the boards which I hated but no extended bashing. There were nasty comments and heavy bashing about Clay on various boards like TWOP and any board that allowed general music threads including FORT, Pulse and Promosquad. On my first board ever, FORT, they loved Ruben and hated Clay. I came late to the boards so never knew the reasons. It was frustrating. I posted a little but moved on after awhile. After all these years, I'm now getting "we miss you" emails from them. After several emails from them, I wrote to them a couple of days ago to tell them that I was made to feel unwelcome and pushed away so why would I return! Other contestants may have been bashed too but since I rarely looked into their threads would have missed it. Since I was not in the fan wars, I never knew who started what. A lot of the Clay responses were a defense but I could have missed what set things off in the first place.

I hope we have reached a point where we can celebrate the talent of all of these artists. If Ruben puts out a CD that matches my taste in music, I will not hesitate to buy it. He has a great voice.

[aikim]

Good Morning Everyone,

I never blamed Ruben for Clay losing; yes the constant Ruben pimping got annoying and it was obvious they were trying to downplay Clay, but the show was all about competition and in the end it made for a good show. Never understood all the fan wars either; why spend so much time hating another contestant when you could be using that time to support your favorite.

Sexy Clay? Wildcard Finale Night...he is reprising DLTSGDOM and at one point wraps his arms around himself and turns his head to the side and we get the first shot of his profile...he looked vulnerable and sexy all at once; that was when I knew he was going to be a star...it was like a glimpse into the future.

13 Days until The Christmas Tour Starts!

39 Days until Christmas in Merrillville!

42 Days until The Skating Show Starts!

55 Days until The BAF Golf Outing!

66 Days until Clay is on Broadway!

Everyone have a great day!

Kim

[keepingfaith]

Was the situation that bad back in the early days? I've heard about the wars between Kelly and Clay fans ... didn't realize there was such a Ruben fans vs. Clay fans war going on in the background. To me that had to be destructive for everybody concerned. It really baffles me because Clay was obviously a huge star coming off Idol, and I don't think Ruben was. Clay was the ding-dang IDOL. Why would there be jealousy toward Ruben? What a wa-a-a-a-a-aste of time. Picking back through my brain I remember a conversation with my sister a day or two after The Anomaly, and opining that the show "picked" Ruben to win because he needed the help and Clay's stardom was a done deal. This way the show got TWO idols instead of one. Of course, that was just an attempt to justify a result we disagreed with, but, from my point of view, the only thing Clay didn't get were the streamers and confetti at the end of the show. What Ruben didn't get was a non-controversial win ~~ and he was saddled with questions about the results for months. I'm glad I missed those fan wars. If I had been online back then, I probably wouldn't have stayed around long. I was upset when Clay didn't win Idol, but I certainly never blamed Ruben for it. In fact, coming in second that year gave Clay a sympathy factor that increased his fanbase, so it's all good.

I read a news story about the upcoming Idol season yesterday, and changes are coming, or so they say. For one thing, they are pulling back on the guest stars to focus more on the contestants. Randy Jackson thinks they have one of the best groups ever coming up .... and, because the Idol tour took a bath this year, next year the So You Think You Can Dance? finalists will join the AI tour for a song AND dance tour. I think there was more, but that's all I remember. EGADS, it's 7:30 and I haven't had coffee!!!

[Guest Toots]

yeah, I like that!

I liked Ruben, still like Ruben. I think he has a nice mellow voice and he's such a laid back nice guy, how could you not like him. I think AI did him a disservice by pimping him because it just turned a lot of Clay fans into assholes. I also like that Ruben and Clay are such good friends because I think they share a great big heart. Fans focus in on what Clay has done for Ruben but never focus on what Ruben has done for Clay. Ruben had nothing to do with the results and probably wished he could have shared it with his friends Clay and Kim.

[bottlecap]

I need the animated GIF of Clay banging on the Coke machine from the AI: Life on the Road special. If you've got it, could you post it in the thread? Thanks muchly!

[luckiest1]

I read a news story about the upcoming Idol season yesterday, and changes are coming, or so they say. For one thing, they are pulling back on the guest stars to focus more on the contestants. Randy Jackson thinks they have one of the best groups ever coming up .... and, because the Idol tour took a bath this year, next year the So You Think You Can Dance? finalists will join the AI tour for a song AND dance tour. I think there was more, but that's all I remember. EGADS, it's 7:30 and I haven't had coffee!!!

Oh, wow. So glad I got off the AI train a long time ago.

[KAndre]

Oooo, the Clay (fans) vs Ruben (fans) thing...it was never as simple as the Clay (fans) vs Kelly (fans) things...nor as complicated as the Clay (fans) vs. Clay (fans), but did get really, really nasty on both sides from the getgo...but it did demonstrate that honestly Clay and Ruben are really nice guys basically. Neither played into the mess at all. I'm not sure it was jealousy toward Ruben - more resentment and bitterness and a LOT of fat bashing and taking the worst interpretation of anything he said and glorying in negative stuff associated with him.

The To Love Somebody performance is still head and shoulders above all others on AI2; TITN/BOTW have their own perfectly lovely pedestal just below; and BMUB is lounging around, pinching our butts, naughty thing that it is.

I didn't really hit a lot of boards - stayed at TWoP until the end of the season and when Shack kicked us out...then went over to the CH. If I have ten posts at the CB, I'd be shocked; never knew was Bolt was. Hung out a little more at RHT until Todd made it clear he was in it for the money.

Oh, I still on the Idol train, away from the anomaly that was the second season, where it was vital to me, and back to the way I watch more reality shows...to mock!

[luckiest1]

Was this posted here yet?

Rosie's Charity Auction

Includes 4 tickets to a Clay concert between Dec 16th and 22nd, and a meet & greet. I wonder if the meet & greet is for all four, or just for one?

[ldyjocelyn]

I hope we have reached a point where we can celebrate the talent of all of these artists.

That is what I'm hoping for with watching Rewind this season too. I think I got so Clay-centric during the show that I sometimes totally blew off some of the performers, or some of the greater performances during the run of the show originally. I'm hoping that I, along with many others in the fandom, will be surprised and pleased in hindsight watching a few of these performances. Or at least appreciate them with a new set of eyes. Or at least be less quick to judge. *crosses fingers*

That Rosie charity thing looks cool, but the bid is already at $1000. Sure that's 4 tickets and a M&G, but still -- out of my price range. Bad enough that I'm splurging for a hotel room connected to the theater at Merrillville, and am looking to upgrade my seats for that show anyway....

Besides, I'm crossing my fingers that I get a M&G for St. Louis.

Speaking of St. Louis -- two weeks from today!!!! EEEEEEEEEE! And there's going to be a cool multi-board party at the Hard Rock Cafe beforehand!

[Guest Toots]

Oooo, the Clay (fans) vs Ruben (fans) thing...it was never as simple as the Clay (fans) vs Kelly (fans) things...nor as complicated as the Clay (fans) vs. Clay (fans), but did get really, really nasty on both sides from the getgo...but it did demonstrate that honestly Clay and Ruben are really nice guys basically. Neither played into the mess at all. I'm not sure it was jealousy toward Ruben - more resentment and bitterness and a LOT of fat bashing and taking the worst interpretation of anything he said and glorying in negative stuff associated with him.

The To Love Somebody performance is still head and shoulders above all others on AI2; TITN/BOTW have their own perfectly lovely pedestal just below; and BMUB is lounging around, pinching our butts, naughty thing that it is.

I didn't really hit a lot of boards - stayed at TWoP until the end of the season and when Shack kicked us out...then went over to the CH. If I have ten posts at the CB, I'd be shocked; never knew was Bolt was. Hung out a little more at RHT until Todd made it clear he was in it for the money.

Oh, I still on the Idol train, away from the anomaly that was the second season, where it was vital to me, and back to the way I watch more reality shows...to mock!

To Love Somebody, sung by Clay, was my all time favorite song of any AI song then and now. Clay just sang that with so much heart and soul and the fact that he looked so hot he sizzled (or was that me?) didn't hurt either. I think that's when he experienced people clapping and screaming mid-song and the mania that was to come later. BMUB may be pinching out butts but TLS is stroking them! :o

I'm not so much on the Idol train anymore because I just couldn't stand all the atta boys Idol gave Idol. I will watch and give it a chance but won't stick if it's anything like last year.

This is my first board but I did read at TWOP until it got so fricking nasty it turned my stomach. I think it's a bit tamer now but I only peek my head in once in a while.

Well shit am I glad we don't have the edit counter anymore.

[jumpingjacks]

My favorite performance from Idol: To Love Somebody

Yep, yep, yep. He knocked me out that night.

[Gibby]

I need the animated GIF of Clay banging on the Coke machine from the AI: Life on the Road special. If you've got it, could you post it in the thread? Thanks muchly!

Is this what you need?

[muskifest]

Randy Jackson thinks they have one of the best groups ever coming up

Let's see...is this the 2008 season iteration of the promise that AI's only getting better and better? :lmaosmiley-1: I swear, those 3 Stooges are sooooooo predictable...

Yep. TLS killt me dead. and then kilt me again with that long, lingering eyefuck at the end. Gawd. Loved Slimon's comment after it too. And yes, that outfit of the blue tee shirt and dark jacket he wore for Billy Joel night kilt me again. Oh, and the leather jacket outfit for Dianne Warren did a number on me. Loved the too-big tux for Mac the Knife. Cringed at the purple lip gloss and face bronzer for Billboard night but FLOVED his performance that night. My jaw dropped in disbelief when Pauler said there wasn't enough "heartbreak" in it. I could feel his heartbreak, for god's sake! And I remember a little whimper escaping when his voice ached and broke at the end of a word...

I wasn't a TITN lover...never have grown to love that song. And I remember thinking that his singing of that song was the first time I heard the strain of overuse in his voice. He was great, no doubt. But I could hear how the weeks and months of competition were wearing on him. Also in HTAE...that was the first time I heard him with less than wonderful breath support. Then....then....all that was forgotten with BOTW. sigh.

What a fun ride he is....

[luckiest1]

OMG I loved TITN. Other than my Solitaire defining fandom moment, TITN was it for me. When he came out to sing "his" song, and he got so into it, with the knee bends, and then the wild eyes afterwards, where it looked to me that he was just about jumping out of his skin with excitement.....well, I was toast. Maybe it wasn't a perfect vocal performance, but it was the most exciting thing I'd ever seen. And then the difference between that and the absolute certainty and power of the BOTW performance.....I was a goner.

How can it only be 10:30 am? I feel like I've been at work for 6 hours already. Ugh.

[ncgran4clay]

I didn' t watch AI during season 1 & only started watching when my husband called me into the room because some buy from Raleigh ( my birthplace) was singing his face off. I was smitten from the get go. I waited with anticipation each week to see his performance..I really fell when he sang TLS. I remember going to the store & got home too late & missed his performance. I cried like a baby. The look on hubby's face was priceless. He was beginning to think he had created a monster!! As it got closer to the end I began to feel AI wasn't going to let him win. The Ruben pimping was just too obvious. After it was over I was depressed for weeks. Hubby said I needed an intervention. He found me one. 2nd row seats to the AI concert in Charlotte. I was really a goner after that. Didn't know about the boards during the show. I learned about them from the lady sitting beside me that there were boards on the net solely for Clay.

OMG!! I couldn't find them fast enough!! I never saw the sexxy when he was on the show. Just thought he was adorable. Don't remember exactly when it hit me, but Oh Mama, when it did, I jumped from the frying pan into the fire!! It has been a wonderful ride, even with all the ups & downs along the way. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.!! Especially the Clay friends I have made along the way. I hope we are all sitting here years from now still waiting with anticipation as we continue on this wonderful journey with Clay!!

[bottlecap]

I need the animated GIF of Clay banging on the Coke machine from the AI: Life on the Road special. If you've got it, could you post it in the thread? Thanks muchly!

Is this what you need?

Yes!

[Couch Tomato]

She said ... MOM! Who were you talking to for sooo long? I said... Clay needs me! & hung up on her and resumed voting.

Girl you crack me up. Clay lost because of MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE because I got in about 5 votes the entire season. Just wasn't a voter.

Funny the different perspectives. Ruben and every other idol get extended bashing for the simple fact that they are not Clay. And yep like KAndre said.. there were all sorts of combinations of hate. I'm not saying Clay fans were the only bad ones but there were a hell of a lot more of them to notice. I totally remember this because I was not even a fan of ruben and I found my self defending him all the time. And I won't start on Fantasia who seemed to get it worse and she wasn't even against Clay during his season. AI breeds competition and it wasn't just season 2 and as long as I followed it, which was through season 5 the only fan group that remained above it all were Carrie fans. And they get the last laugh (well so far). She took it hard, from two fan groups and so I'm really enjoying her success.

I read a news story about the upcoming Idol season yesterday, and changes are coming, or so they say. For one thing, they are pulling back on the guest stars to focus more on the contestants. Randy Jackson thinks they have one of the best groups ever coming up .... and, because the Idol tour took a bath this year, next year the So You Think You Can Dance? finalists will join the AI tour for a song AND dance tour. I think there was more, but that's all I remember. EGADS, it's 7:30 and I haven't had coffee!!!

Well I think these are good changes actually. The show became more about the superstars who suddenly found AI cool enough to go on so they could push their product. Get back to the kids and the group numbers and have less focus on the stars. Randy says it's the best group ever every year. I can set my clock to it. But that's his job. His loyalty is to idol not to past contestants. As for SYTYCD..I have tickets to see that show the day after Thanksgiving. If it was part and parcel of an idol show I wouldn't go.

It has been a wonderful ride, even with all the ups & downs along the way. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.!! Especially the Clay friends I have made along the way. I hope we are all sitting here years from now still waiting with anticipation as we continue on this wonderful journey with Clay!!

I know I'll be right here with ya.

[bottlecap]

I read a news story about the upcoming Idol season yesterday, and changes are coming, or so they say. For one thing, they are pulling back on the guest stars to focus more on the contestants. Randy Jackson thinks they have one of the best groups ever coming up .... and, because the Idol tour took a bath this year, next year the So You Think You Can Dance? finalists will join the AI tour for a song AND dance tour. I think there was more, but that's all I remember. EGADS, it's 7:30 and I haven't had coffee!!!

Well I think these are good changes actually. The show became more about the superstars who suddenly found AI cool enough to go on so they could push their product. Get back to the kids and the group numbers and have less focus on the stars. Randy says it's the best group ever every year. I can set my clock to it. But that's his job. His loyalty is to idol not to past contestants. As for SYTYCD..I have tickets to see that show the day after Thanksgiving. If it was part and parcel of an idol show I wouldn't go.

I'm guillible, and am actually hoping TPTB at AI learned from last season's sucky season, and will make legitimate changes for AI7. I'm also hoping Nigel figures out from his experience with SYTYCD that's it's worthwhile to cast a reality show with, you know, 12 people with ACTUAL TALENT instead of stacking the deck with contestants that have looks or hype but no real performing skillz. Yeah, I crack myself up over that one, too.

Fans Wars - you're right Couchie. It ain't just Clay that has the hatahs. Almost every contestant and every season that has ongoing rivalries. AI is set up to encourage "Brand Loyalty" to a contestant, and the crazy-types that buy heavily into that mindset carry it out after the season ends. Check the comments section of almost any entertainment blog entry about an AI'er, and you'll see the fight is probably still going on.

[playbiller]

Wow, Gibby, I am impressed you came out with the gif so quick! I never saved these things so would not know where to look for them.

Aw,ncgran4clay, how cute. Second row seats at Charlotte! That is pretty good. My sister had the same, but they were second row in the balcony next to a very emotional friend of ours who was still a stranger at that time, fully about this fandom. Hee, I told the woman next to me in NJ about boards as well. She had come alone and my seat mates upgraded and left me, so we talked. I was driving around and didn't know about upgrading then, so I was in row R with her. Can you imagine row R! In the front section, I thought it would be a good ticket, didn't even bring binoculars. We learn fast.

Boards - FORT was not really Clay friendly, many boards were not, but truthfully during the show Carmen and Josh got beat up pretty good by posters, they had fans but a lot more people made fun of them. Like - how could Simon complain about Clay's faces when Josh made such strange ones? I won't even get into what those faces were called. The IE section was quite a reprieve from the regular TWOP thread and TWOP made out OK as we contributed to the board, bought gifts for Shack and bought board ads for Clay.

TTC was the big one, now it is a nice small community where EZboard membership is required.

CB - I didn't even know the board existed for months, neve clicked on forum. I joined after the TTC explosion.

RHT -

I was at Joker's and TVclubhouse and moved over to TWOP when I realized I could post about AI as well as TAR on that board. I didn't like the regular thread, but discovered the IE on the third thread and posted there. TVclubhouse was nice but it is hard to find your place when you come back, you have to remember when you were there last so you could wade back into the archived posts. I like it for less active threads. Joker's was pleasant as well, I think people who posted there were happier than most, it was just very Big brother centric.

I used to post on Salon as well, until it became an expensive pay for play site, then it was just too many boards.

Now, for politics, I do post on a lot of different boards irregularly and find that political sides both think Clay is not cool. I swear I want to smack the cool kids all the time, but then they look at me as a crazed fan when I say - come up with something clever for a change, don't just repeat the same old jokes. It is like talking to a little kid that thinks they are funny.

Fan wars are alive and well, just more underground. Just go to idolstalker.com. I get so embarrassed by some people, right now it is Clay fans and Elliott fans who think they are better, but they are not, still name calling. I think this is an over lap from the Moosak competitions where the Elliott people would win each week by pure intense devotion. I have not checked on Moosak for months, done with that poll, it is so tiresome, just tests dedication to vote on their site, nothing more. The Ruben hate is still there, the Clay hate is still there, I could point you to posts, but it is tiresome. The Clelly hate is still there, etc. The Elliott hate also has to do with Simon saying that Elliott was probably the best singer ever on AI. But then again, Simon loves El Divo!

ETA - adding group songs back to I? Don't hold your breath, they tried and abandoned group songs for a reason, out side the pimpermercials. Season 3 had too many kids under 18, so with tutoring and guardians making sure they were rested, they just did not cut it probably with the reduced rehersal time they had. Season 4, they were mostly individuals nad not choir members so only a few, like (believe it or not, you can tell if you listen) Scott Savol, who sang mostly in a choir, could cut the group songs. Season 5, well there were a lot of older contestants who did like their time off at night and they lived in apartments, not in one house where they could rehearse. Season 6 - well, group songs became taking turns one line at a time, rather than song snippets. I think the back ups sang with them.

Hey, at least we always get the Fordmercials.

[Couch Tomato]

I don't know why they are panicking over the tour. The tour will do well when they contestants that resonate with America. Idol depends on the contestants. A slightly down year is meaningless and I'm sure if they cast well it will be rebound. And it's so funny to say as it's still the number one show on TV. It will be around for a long time.

I'm not pointing fingers at the bad bad Clay fans..I've played in the pool known as TWoP since the beginning. I find it mild and fun for the most part..but yeah I can get my passive agressive on if need be. But although I read the other idol threads at TWoP I rarely post in those threads. Only when I have something genuine to say and usually it's something positive. I don't go looking to stir the pot in other idol threads. TWoP for Survivor and TAR and a few other shows for me is just a fun place to be. I do think we are slow on the uptake on how to deal with some of the trolls. It's been 5 years.

Clay and Idol... This connection with always be. One of these days it may get to be a footnote but I think that will be a long long time. I don't look at it as a negative thing. Every year from January through may, Clay doesn't have to do a thing... and hundreds of articles are posted that mention his time on that show and 95% of it is positive. That season was just phenomenal.