American Idol 7

[Iseeme]

Maybe Sanjaya bought a ticket and wasn't invitedby the show's producers. I see no issue with him being there. He's a joke to AI watchers. I wouldn't have wanted to see Clay in the audience and I agree that somebody would have cracked on him and Clay probably would have had to sit there with a smile on his face after they said it and the audience panned to him. Not what I would want to see for the sweetsingerman.

I just believe that AI is OVER for Clay in every way. I seriously doubt we'll ever see him "live" on that show again! He said that himself and I believe him!

[djs111]

Maybe Sanjaya bought a ticket and wasn't invitedby the show's producers. I see no issue with him being there. He's a joke to AI watchers. I wouldn't have wanted to see Clay in the audience and I agree that somebody would have cracked on him and Clay probably would have had to sit there with a smile on his face after they said it and the audience panned to him. Not what I would want to see for the sweetsingerman.

That's what I'm sayin' :-)

I am sure Sanjaya was invited, though, due to Kimmel's joke. Clay just sitting in the audience would have been kind bizarre.

It was a Sanjaya-type show, really, the marching band stuff was pretty weird and tacky.

[playbiller]

Quickie post.

Ruben used his uncle as a personal financial manager, (write check, etc.), not manager. I felt Ruben was screwed when he went on Leno the first time and said how nice simon Fuller was and how he trusted him. He did have professionals, but did not go ith the big guns like Clay did right away. but since Clay had family in show business (his mothers cousin was in the film institue), he woiuld get more professional advice. Big guns cost big money, also. I think the biggest dsrawback Ruben had was being unfit (he had gained 60 pounds during AI) and being ill the first year.

I believe Clay wanted o perform his own music and the show Ai was seet up to be a circus, no room for him. Fine either way. I don't think he had time to sit in the audience for a show he was not watching.

Sanjaya is looking at a kids show starring him and his sister for Nickelodeon, may or may not happen, but he does have some interesting opportunities. But he did have time to sit in the audience and any exposure is good for him, he is still the most talked about person from his year.

[Iseeme]

Yes, I think Clay was VERY smart right out of the chute! He did make some good business decisions and apparently had some very good counsel. I would also like to think that Clay is pretty intelligent, reads the fine print, and didn't want to lose control if at all possible. Perhaps I'm putting too much faith in him, but getting away from19 as quickly as he did (if not completely) was a brilliant move I think.

Ruben. Gotta love the guy! I often wonder if he would have been just as content singing with his band in little clubs around Birmingham. His weight is scarey. And after seeing him on AI7 I don't think he's kept off what he had lost there for awhile. But.....when I watched the uTube of KLo talking about Clay the other night there were also some other uTubes...one of which was Ruben introducing Clay and Klo singing White Christmas on the AI Christmas Special. He said " here is double-platinum recording artist and my friend..Clay Aiken....." I liked that. Maybe it was scripted but in my own little world I want to think that he was happy for Clay and not resentful.

Sanjaya - no words!

[claytonic]

http://cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=428308&a...D=428307&r=

Michael Johns interview... in case there are any fans here.

I liked him but was not heartbroken when he left earlier than expected. Frankly, I thought Carly leaving before Top 3 was a bigger travesty. My favourite was the little guy who was runner-up.

[djs111]

Thanks, Claytonic! I like Michael! To me, he is/was the only really attractive guy on the show this year. He has a good voice and good instincts, I think he is missing that little "extra oomph", or a niche, is all. He and Carly have been getting good reviews, in the reviews I have read.

[tribeca]

I have watched all 7 seasons of Idol. Although I liked lots of the contestants in season 7 I thought it was so predictable.

Really by the top 8 it was very obvious that David Cook was going to win and David A was going to come in second. Season 7 was about who would come in 3rd place and I am not even sure after going to the tour that Syesha (who I rooted for because I always root for the underdog) was really the 3rd place finisher.

As for Clay's OMWH I forget who said it but there are many people who don't know it is out there. It wasn't really promoted outside his fanbase. Some of the shows he was on to promote it Clay didn't even sing. The single they sent out to radio was the worst choice IMO. (OMWH is not a radio song). Also I was at Walmart the other day and there are zero Clay cd's there.

I also don't think I will see Clay on AI again but maybe I will be wrong with them bringing the wild card back next season perhaps we will see Clay.

[keepingfaith]

I also don't think I will see Clay on AI again but maybe I will be wrong with them bringing the wild card back next season perhaps we will see Clay.

Hi tribeca! I suppose we should have a new thread for American Idol 8 as it will begin in a couple of weeks. I may, and I stress MAY, enjoy AI a bit more this year with one less audition show. I like the over the top, the flamboyant, and the ones that surprise, but I cringe when the innocent are made laughingstocks and that's hard to watch. I had not thought about it til you brought it up, but with Idol doing a wild card show it would be the perfect opportunity for Clay to be on. If they do it the same way as in 2003, it will give the 4 judges an opportunity to put on contestants they feel are deserving after America votes. In 2003, my favorite after Clay was Trenyce -- and neither of them would have made it without a wild card.

I have this feeling that there will be another AI/AIKEN convergence in the future, and I don't have a clue what it will be. Clay has made clear that AI was the biggest thing in his life and what's he's enjoyed most in the business ... and that he'd do it again in a heartbeat. I don't see Idol going away any time soon -- I see it like an SNL that goes on and on and on and when the originals are gone a new cast comes in and while there are ups and downs and twists and changes, the show goes on. People love talent shows from Major Bowes to Ted Mack to Star Search to Idol -- and Idol has the golden formula. Increasingly, having the Idol designation is a plus and not a minus for an entertainer. IMO, a lot of stars who came up independently of Idol could have never made it on the show. The Jonas Brothers? I think not.

Is there anyone here old enough to remember little Leslie Uggams winning the Ted Mack Amateur Hour? I was a small child at the time, but I remember that she was so amazing it was the talk of the neighborhood, and if I remember correctly, she had a good 25 year run as a celebrated singer and actress.

ETA: Checking my recollection, I see that it was Gladys Knight who was discovered on Ted Mack, and Leslie Uggams was discovered on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts:

Another early example of “Real TV” in the 50's was Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts, which also came to television after a major success on radio. On ABC every Monday night for ten years, Godfrey’s half hour show was at one point the number one rated program on the air. The winner of each airing was selected by the studio audience using an “applause meter” to determine each contestant’s popularity. Perhaps one of the greatest moments of the program was provided by Patsy Cline who sent the “applause meter” off the scale. Others who emerged with stellar careers out of Talent Scouts were Tony Bennett, Eddie Fisher, Leslie Uggams, Lenny Bruce, and Connie Francis.

[tribeca]

Hi Keeping Faith

I skip the auditions altogether. I have since season 5. If there is someone good their auditions are always on YouTube. I just don't find them that funny. Most of them are fake and the ones that aren't I feel bad for those people (espcecially the ones who really have mental issues).

Sorry I don't know that show you are talking about but it sounded good.

Guess we will see about Clay. Maybe even a nice mention of him would be nice. I have heard lots of different things said about how they are going to do the wildcard. But right now Jennifer Hudson is probably more likely the wildcard they will mention.