#32: Man with titanium balls and the voice to back them up!

[keepingfaith]

I think it's clear that Ashes will be the second single released -- but not for several months. It's OMWH single time now, and I'm very pleased with the overall responses it's getting. This could be the one.

Just watched Kimmel again ... and aha I spotted Solo and Scarlett in the audience!!

ETA: Disclaimer: Hair Talk

Clay must have had a fresh bleaching because the Rachael Ray hair was more strawberry blond, while Kimmel was blondest blond. I can't deny that I'm ready for highlighted brown with bangs again. Since he's just doing what they tell him, doesn't Jamie know how hot he is with darker hair and long bangs that cover his eyebrows? It's a no-brainer for me. I personally don't know a soul (excepting merrieeee, that is) who doesn't love the sexy hotness of dark haired/bangs Clay.

Hey, kareneh ... and :F_05BL17blowkiss:

And one more for the road ...

[playbiller]

What? you guys havea problem with the surfer boy look? he is in California, the only blondthey knowthere is almost white blond.

Well, I know I'm going to miss the almost daily dose of Clay Aiken that I've had since January 18th. I think I will try to concentrate on doing some fan things that might help. Instead of listening to Clay through my I-tunes I think I will seek out other places on the net to stream the songs. I'm not into my-space at all, but maybe listening to songs on his my space would be good.

Someone on CV mentioned that A Simpson had 19 million listens on her my space. Ashlee freakin' Simpson, good god.

Hitting the same drum. A lot of people set up myspaces, if only they would include Clay's OMWH player ontheir site AND NOT ASHES, he would get more spin. I have it set to go off when someoen wanders in. Ihave heard that the number of spins at your myspace indicates interest by the public and have tried to get it to at least 100K, right now, it is not that close, abut 5000 a day, mostly jus a few of us. If I hada myspace people really went ot, that would be great. I will have to actually work on making it appealing to draw people in.

Also, I play the yahoo video every day and the AOl thingie. No wonder I can't keep up with the boards anymore. But embeding in the myspace would be useful. Of course my myspace is dedicated to Sadie. I need to include pictures and make it public.

[FearofH2O]

I enjoyed Kimmel as usual. I didn't think it was the best or the worst of appearances, just another one. I really enjoyed the new topics Clay brought up and that flock of seagulls do was so funny. As long as he sings live I expect a glich or at least another interpretation of the song. He really is human.

I even enjoyed the clay statue skit. Those women and the guy were awfully brave to put themselves out there like that. If that were a statue of P Diddy it would have been just as funny. I don't think Clay should get special treatment from Kimmel. I just can't waste my time worrying over what other people will think. "let's make the most of our time" and all.

If anyone is thinking about getting a table at the BAF Gala would you please pm me. Right now there are three of us interested in getting together. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Playbiller why not just go to Clay's myspace and listen to the songs there. I don't do my space and I'm not even a friend of Clays but I can still go there and listen as well as AOL. My radio station took down the music on demand and no longer lets you email the dj's so nothing I can do there.

[merrieeee]

No, no, no. I love the dark hair/bangs Clay but not the sNOflake hair!!!!!

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE My hometown just won the FA cup!!!!!! They haven't won since 1939! Play Up Pompey!!

[FromClaygary]

OMG - this photo was too funny!!!

Thanks so much for catching that! It IS absolutely hilarious! I love his sense of humor about himself, and think this was a kind and generous thing to do for the newbie coming into Spamalot. Maybe from now on....that's what they'll do! Clay made them think about it...as he has made me think about different things differently.

I don't think that's Hannah in the thong to his left, though. Could be wrong. Hope I am. But I bet whoever it is, he's lovin' it!

Since I haven't watched AI for a long time, I haven't seen much of Ryan. He looked really different to me. His face looked fuller, I saw no spark in his eyes at all, one of the things that was really different, was no fake bake. When they showed pics from the show his face looked more chiseled, it sure didn't look that way tonight. His behavior was a little odd too. I thought Ryan was going to pull a Tom Cruise there in his chair a time or two.

That was SO weird!! He made me completely uncomfortable! Is the whole GROUP of them on that show on something?? It was like he was hotwired on uppers or something and literally could NOT sit still!

And I did nearly throw my remote during that commercial break between Ryan and Clay - dear god, I lost count!!

Me too! EIGHT MINUTES in my neck of the woods! EIGHT minutes! of phone sex and Pizza Hut commercials!!! AAAAAaaaaagggggggggggggggggggg!!!

[FromClaygary]

Hitting the same drum. A lot of people set up myspaces, if only they would include Clay's OMWH player ontheir site AND NOT ASHES, he would get more spin. I have it set to go off when someoen wanders in.

Could you walk me through doing that? I have it on my myspace, but it doesn't automatically play I don't think.

ETA: I'd also like to add it to gather.com, which is the more adult (or more old-fogy? ) version of myspace. If anyone knows how to do THAT, I'd appreciate it as well!

[aikim]

Hi All,

Just taking a break from the book sale to have a bite of lunch and thought I would check in. Haven't had time to re-watch Kimmel, but will do when I get home...probably will have a different perspective when I am not so tired.

The flock of seagulls hair style is too much; but I love that about Clay; he just does his thing and never worries about what people think...I think this fandom would be a lot happier if some could follow his lead.

Kim

[Jaycee]

Clay must have had a fresh bleaching because the Rachael Ray hair was more strawberry blond, while Kimmel was blondest blond. I can't deny that I'm ready for highlighted brown with bangs again. Since he's just doing what they tell him, doesn't Jamie know how hot he is with darker hair and long bangs that cover his eyebrows? It's a no-brainer for me. I personally don't know a soul (excepting merrieeee, that is) who doesn't love the sexy hotness of dark haired/bangs Clay.

I like the bangs too and I like light brown hair. I don't like it when it gets too dark though. The thing is, since Jamie has been doing Clay's hair she has never seemed to get that look right. It will look good one day and then the next day she will have trimed it again. Too often it has the bowl look. It makes it easy to identify when a picture is taken though (which concert) because his hair never lookes the same two days in a row.

I am happy with brown or blond but I do think he should pick a color and stay there.

[bottlecap]

From an Ashlee Simpson fan site:

Ashlee Simpson Music

[bTW, Autobiography sold 398,000 copies its first week, and I Am Me sold 220,000 in its first week. Whereas Bittersweet World sold 47,000 copies its first week. And yet it still made it to number 4. But then it's a whole different, digital world now. The sales figures represent only store-bought albums. It does not include online digital sales, such as from iTunes, etc. Digital sales are up, album leaks and rips are way up, and overall the music industry is down.]

Yeah, I think someone at Ashlee Simp's site is spinning a bit, as her 47,000 copies sold most certainly does include legal iTunes and Amazon downloads - it's not just physical CD sales that get counted for the Billboard charts.

============================================

I agree that something was just "off" with Ryan last night. He seemed very hyper and uncomfortable in his own skin. Frankly, I'm glad Ryan and Clay didn't interact on air, because it would probably just have been another AI rehash. Clay didn't need that to cut into his already limited time.

I watched a bit of Craig Ferguson during the numerous commercial breaks. I really hope Clay gets to go on his show in the near future, because I think they could be very funny together

[Claygasm]

Anyway in some interview Clay said that Ashes may be the first single and some people latched on to that for dear life. Now wouldn't it be funny if RCA wanted it to be the first single and Clay fought them on it?

this is purely MO, but the way he included it in every appearance where he got to sing more than 1 song tells me that he'd like it as first single, too.

Or it could mean he just likes the song so when he needs a second song he picks that!

I need to get this off my chest....

If I read one more time that RCA FORCED Clay to release OMWH as the first single I may puke!!!!!! How did that ever become fact? Where did Clay ever say he wanted Ashes as the first single? Where did he ever indicate he and RCA were not on the same page when it came to choosing the first single? Yes, RCA ultimately gets to choose the single, but did he EVER indicate he was unhappy with the choice???????

Not that I know of, he didn't. I think people are making assumptions. Or maybe FC is texting them the info.

BWAH!

OMG - this photo was too funny!!!

^^^Concept for the Ashes video: Flock of Seagulls meets Flashdance, with extra eyeliner just for CG.

I want to keep that picture in my photobucket, and bust it out whenever the complaining about how Jamie does Clay's hair starts. IT COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE!

I still bet that...in the fall there will be a second wave of promo...he will be visiting Jimmy again maybe for his upcoming tour or maybe to support his next Single. He will be better rested and more time to get involved with a skit...

My fear is if they wait until fall, there will be no reason for a second wave of promotion. I HOPE perhaps he can at least get a few singing appearances in before then - just one here and there might help.

The commercials between Ryan and Clay? Eight freakin’ minutes!!! So it wasn’t just my imagination….

It seemed like 8 freakin hours!!!!

I think Ryan was on drugs - and I am being serious. His eyes looked funny and he was acting very odd. He's not my favorite but I am concerned about him. And I don't think there is any animosity between Ryan and Clay and bet they talked backstage and were friendly.

I haven't watched it again and don't think I will for awhile. I don't think it can do him any harm. Just don't think it would do him any good. What I am going to do is use it as an excuse to email the only AC station in my area that MIGHT one day be willing to play Clay (ducky - I speak of WJBR). All I am going to say is that I stumbled upon Clay on Kimmel and liked his new song and was wondering if they might be adding it to their playlist soon. I know if I hear back at all it will probably be something like no plans yet we'll see, but at least they'll know someone would like to hear his single!

I hope Clay gets a good rest, enjoys the backyard with the dogs and sleeps in a lot. I just hope he also has plans that will help this album maybe get legs.

I know he needs a break - and probably from "us" as much as anything. Between his blog and his comments on the fans last night (which didn't bother me at all - I thought it was funny!), I think he has had enough of "us" for awhile!

[playbiller]

Playbiller why not just go to Clay's myspace and listen to the songs there. I don't do my space and I'm not even a friend of Clays but I can still go there and listen as well as AOL. My radio station took down the music on demand and no longer lets you email the dj's so nothing I can do there.

When I go and play it is one play, if I have it on myspace, othrs will play it and it gets counted as well.

OK, FromCalgary, You have added it from Clay's site with the add button, then in your myspace, edit profile. In profile, click onthe heading song and video. Once inthere after the song name is a blue "Account settings>miscellaneous change settings" in the line under profile song, click on that and then click on autoplay, You can do what ever to your other choices, like color and hide etc. Save.

I still bet that...in the fall there will be a second wave of promo...he will be visiting Jimmy again maybe for his upcoming tour or maybe to support his next Single. He will be better rested and more time to get involved with a skit...

My fear is if they wait until fall, there will be no reason for a second wave of promotion. I HOPE perhaps he can at least get a few singing appearances in before then - just one here and there might help.

This is unlikely because of the time and money to get band together and practice and appear. I think someone said just getting a band on TV cost about 50K an appearance (In 2003), now add getting them together and rehearsing. Ithinkthe budget is quite tight on this album and Clay is saving some for part two when TV shows are watched again.

And I don't think there is any animosity between Ryan and Clay and bet they talked backstage and were friendly.

Well, the infamous qote that people use to show animosity was when LKL said Ryan said hi and Clay replied Oh did he? LKL followed up with Ryan was good to you wasn't he? To which Clay replied If you say so, then said Of Course he was and they moved on.

All conversation is approximate and my external hard drives are turned off right now, I am connected to something else (old computer with falling USB ports)

[luckiest1]

Not that I know of, he didn't. I think people are making assumptions. Or maybe FC is texting them the info.

BWAH!

Yeah, it would be BWAH worthy if I didn't think it might be true.

I think Ryan was on drugs - and I am being serious. His eyes looked funny and he was acting very odd. He's not my favorite but I am concerned about him. And I don't think there is any animosity between Ryan and Clay and bet they talked backstage and were friendly.

Yep. Our conclusion was that he looked stoned. He was definitely manic and strange. And as much as I dislike Ryan and the 3 asshats from AI, I've never got the sense that Clay is anything but friendly with them. In fact, look what I just read on CH:

A little tidbit from TCB via Clayversity:

QUOTE(siclayfan @ May 17 2008, 11:31 AM)

I just read this over at the CB--posted by Claygal

Up too earlyfor a Saturday, but after the excitement of last night at Kimmel, just thought that I would add that Ryan was there, not for a skit, but to promote the up coming shows he was producing and AI finale. One of my friends was in the "green room" for special guests, which happened to be across from Clay's dressing room. When Ryan's segment was over, Clay came out and he and Ryan hugged and talked a bit.

And no, I'm not suggesting it has anything to do with Clay appearing on the AI Finale!

[Claygasm]

Screencap of Clay on the telephone pole or tree or whatever:

Now i must go and do something productive!

[laljeterfan]

MAJOR RANT ON THE WAY- PLEASE SCROLL IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH!!!! (Disclaimer:This rant is not directed to anyone on this board- in fact, this is probably the only board on which I would ever feel comfortable saying these things. If it's too much, feel free to wrestle me to the ground and tranquilize me- I just feel the need to vent )

There seems to be a really interesting dynamic at play every time there is a Clay performance on tv- lets see if I have this down.....

Anticipation before the show runs high. Someone somewhere will get the word from one of their "sources" that something particularly fun or amusing will occur, and speculation goes into overdrive! Everything that has happened in the past will pale in comparison! He will make an incredible entrance, there will be a gut-bustingly funny skit, he will give a special performance of one of the songs on the CD that "we" the all-knowing fans, have deemed to be the "correct" showcase, rather than the one chosen for him by the label. He will look better than he ever has before, he will sing better than he ever has before, and it will be the BEST.APPEARANCE.EVER!

And then the show begins.....wait, he didn't make a special entrance. And man, what's up with his hair? It's too blond, too dark, too straight, too styled, blah, blah, blah. And what's up with his clothes? Who is dressing him? Why is he wearing THAT, when he should have been wearing THIS? What will the NJU think if he isn't wearing the trendiest, hottest, most flattering clothes available?

And now the fans are being made a part of the show- oh no, what will all of the potential Clay-fans-in-the-making think of him? (and by extension, US???) Wait, are the fans that they are showcasing of the "approved" demographic? Are they PYT's or old blue-haired grandma's? And if they are women-of-a-certain-age, do they get a pass because they are considered to be from one of the "cool" boards, and therefore acceptable?

And now Clay is talking- wait, why did he say THIS when he should have said THAT?? OMG, he talked about some of the fans who are "enthusiatic" and "loud" and may have participated in "x,y,z" behaviors. I've never done that, so why would he say that I do? Why doesn't he appreciate us and praise us with every word that comes out of his mouth?

OMG, did you hear what he just said? Do you think that that comment will be considered offensive by this demographic? Man, I wish he wouldn't even talk at all sometimes- why doesn't he just shut up and sing?.....

But wait- NOT THIS SONG! It's too slow, too boring. No one will ever like this song because WE (I)don't like this song. And OMG, did his voice just break? Was that the worst rendition of that song that he's ever sung live? No one will ever buy his CD after hearing THAT!

Well, that whole appearance was just a waste of my time. He should have appeared on X, Y Z instead cause I just KNOW that appearance would have been 10x better. Those of you on the West coast, don't even bother watching, cause it was just horrible!!! Have fun sitting on your porch at home Clay, when you should clearly be out hustling your CD, because your career is over!

So, is that it in a nutshell, or not? Cause it seems to happen this way EVERY TIME!

My thoughts- I thought he looked gorgeous- clothes and hair! The attacks on his looks always make me uncomfortable, because as someone who is not a PYT (even when I was Y I was not a PT! ), the obsession with looking a certain way, lest you not be considered worthy of anyone's approval, is very bothersome to me. And that goes not just for Clay, but for his fans as well. Why am I any less valuable as a fan, as a person, than the PYT? The fan part was definitely my least favorite part of the show, but it was meant to be over-the-top. Clay himself was adorable and charming as usual. I "get" his sense of humor, and always find his way of expressing himself amusing. The fan comments don't refer to me, cause I never engaged in those behaviors he was talking about, so why would I think he was painting the whole fandom with the same brush? As for his performance, I guess that the fact that his voice may not always be pitch-perfect doesn't mean the end of the world to me. At least you always know that he is live- not lip-synching to a background tape as so many so-called "singers" do- or SHOULD do!

End of rant! Hope I didn't piss off too many people!

[Claygasm]

I just watched RR. Shallow person that I am - I thought his hair looked MUCH better cause it had more red in it and.... I MISS THE SIDEBURNS!!!!!!

But I still love him.

And yes, I did say I was going to do something productive. You mean watching RR wasn't productive?????

[luckiest1]

laljeterfan, I think you nailed it!

And now I should go do something productive........like lay on the couch and listen to OMWH, the album, on the stereo! Imagine, I have a house devoid of children, I can do what I want for a change.

[playbiller]

laljeterfan

What, haven't I said that yet? It is not only TV appearances, it is everything Clay does or thinks of doing. I think the term jaded comes to mind. Anyways, Ithinkthat is why Clay keeps things close to his vest, like this album which people heard little about in advance and seem to love.

[liney23]

ETA: Disclaimer: Hair Talk

Clay must have had a fresh bleaching because the Rachael Ray hair was more strawberry blond, while Kimmel was blondest blond. I can't deny that I'm ready for highlighted brown with bangs again. Since he's just doing what they tell him, doesn't Jamie know how hot he is with darker hair and long bangs that cover his eyebrows? It's a no-brainer for me. I personally don't know a soul (excepting merrieeee, that is) who doesn't love the sexy hotness of dark haired/bangs Clay.

keeping... as someone else all ready said, the problem is that Jamie could NEVER get his hair to look like it did on GMA or the View, much less AI5 and the styles she did come up with were awful IMO.

However, she did really good with the solo Christmas tour... YUM!

I have gotten used to and love the blonde hair now and thought he looked great last night and since I was 6 feet away and have superb taste (hence my residing on this board), my opinion obviously counts more than anyone else's!

laljeter... you have so hit the nail on the head. Being out all day yesterday and knowing what a hubabaloo was going on the boards, (poshpenny had internet access on her phone and was checking periodically and keeping us posted... funny, many there were keeping the boards posted on happenings and we were kept up on the boards reactions at the same time.). Anywho, I decided this morning that I'm not even going to go back and read, but just go forward from this morning. Just not interested in reading the angst.

I do, however, retain my right to comment on his hair or outfit. I do not, tho, think his career rides on what he looks like on any given appearance, so no angst from me, just observation.

I do defend the angsters just a bit cause I believe they are, partly, relieving their fears of losing Clay if everything isn't perfect every time he does anything.

I'm chill about his vacation. One, he desperately needs some downtime. Two, the song needs time to build on AC. Someone said it is around #37 and once it gets to the Top 20, more AC stations will add it. As Play said, hitting it on his MySpace and on any radio stations that are hosting it will help a lot getting it into the Top 20.

I do not like hot weather and this weekend, starting yesterday, is HOT! Several people had those little fans connected to bottle of water yesterday. I have GOT to get me one of those, they felt soooo good!

[playbiller]

During the down time, I thought of another topic that could be added to this site - official Clay merchandise. If we can't get the original pictures, I have most of the stuff, including the elusive paper book marker, and I know my sister has the rare candle holders, so we can always add our own pictures. I haveto look around ans see if anyone has that category covered. I would have to search through my receipts to find the original prices though.

[cha cha trusty]

Just checking in to make a couple of comments about the Kimmel appearance......

First off - that bust was some kinda fugly!!! And I am chiming in to say "What the HELL is he gonna do with that??" I wonder if he even took it - maybe he had it arranged to have it sent to himself somewhere!!

I read an account from someone who was there at Kimmel last night and said that the fan/bust video wasn't as bad as it could've been! But I agree that it was definitely cringe-worthy!

I have changed my player on myspace to play OMWH on autoplay, and will try to get others to hit it regularly, it's the least I can do!! Thanks for the instructions play! I'm going to pass it around!

Playing OMWH on Clay's myspace right now.... I am play #1111! I'll take that as a good sign!!

Today is our 33rd anniversary!! mrchach and I are going to visit our old stomping grounds in DC, including the restaurant where he proposed, and the one where we almost made whoppee under the table in a deserted part of the restaurant - yep - we were kinda wild in our youth in a horny kind of way!!

This needs to be posted again.......

He looks 18 in that pic, and I wonder if any of his HS peeps would recognize him in that hairstyle!!

And speaking of sideburns - I see sideburns in this picture!!!

:F_05BL17blowkiss: :F_05BL17blowkiss: :F_05BL17blowkiss:

eta: good idea about the merchandise index play! I started one back in 04, but I can't remember if I did it for the subsequent tours... you can see it here.

[laughn]

*glances lovingly at sideburns*

from Notacanuck...

"On My Way Here" is #9 on the Billboard Global Album Chart:

#1 Madonna - Hard Candy (340,000)

#2 Neil Diamond - Home Before Dark (158,000)

#3 Leona Lewis - Spirit (151,000)

#4 Mariah Carey - E=MC2 (142,000)

#5 Portishead - Third (120,000)

#6 Amy Winehouse - Back to Black (116,000)

#7 Toby Keith - 35 Biggest Hits (105,000)

#8 Duffy - Rockferry (105,000)

#9 Clay Aiken - On My Way Here (96,000)

#10 Gavin DeGraw - Gavin DeGraw (76,000)

[luckiest1]

I just had a pretty neat experience at the craft store. I took my Spamalot poster in for framing when I got back from NYC, and the guy was very friendly. We chatted while he helped me pick out mattes, etc, and he said there was another employee who worked there who loved Clay, but she wasn't on duty that day.

Anyways, they called me about an hour ago to come and get it, because it was ready. When I got there it was both the same guy I dealt with, and this girl, the one who loves Clay. She was just in awe of the signatures, and kept asking me if I was mad when he didn't win American Idol. LOL. Apparently she loves MOAM and plays it in her car all the time. She got MCWL about 2 years ago and plays it in her car at Christmas. Her husband won't tolerate her playing either CD in the house and makes fun of her, but she says she doesn't care.

So after I took the framed poster back to the car, I decided to go back in and take her my car copy of OMWH. You should have seen her face when she saw the cover, she said "omg isn't he good looking?". Hee. We talked a bit about the album and I found out she had never even heard of ATDW, never mind own it. I told her he does a lot of concert tours that come within a few hours of our area, and she said she would LOVE to see him in concert but wouldn't have anyone to go with. I started telling her about our little local group and said we often pile into a van or two when concert time comes around. I tried not to make us sound too crazy. Anyways, she ended up taking down my email address and said she would email me about the CD and maybe coming to our next local get together. So we'll see!

I love it when things like that happen.

Now, I really am going to lay on the couch and listen to OMWH while I admire my framed poster.

ETA: play & cha cha, I have a folder of pix of JBT merchandise if that would help you. It includes scans of the program as well. PM me an email addy and I can send them to you if you like.

[cha cha trusty]

well crap!!! on closer inspection... it does appear he has both shortened them and lightened them....

They don't even show out from under his long hair!!

[keepingfaith]

as someone else all ready said, the problem is that Jamie could NEVER get his hair to look like it did on GMA or the View, much less AI5 and the styles she did come up with were awful IMO.

I'm perplexed about the GMA appearance in 2006, because although I know Steeve gets credit for his hair that day, there was a picture on OFC of a group picture taken with the GMA staff that day, and Jamie was very definitely in the picture. This was back when I had no idea there even was a Jamie.

My problem with the blond right now is threefold: it washes him out, it makes him look older, and it seriously dries out his hair.

My vote on hair is that Clay lets the chemically-colored hair grow out while he's on hiatus, and then let's see the real thing!

ETA: Everyone does remember, right?, that I was grabbed by the hair -- the AI5 hair -- and therefore always love to talk about it. Clay can wear his hair however he likes, as most everyone does. Clay's hair can change his appearance dramatically, so I guess it depends on whether he wants to look like the kid next door, a college professor, or that hot sexy man down the street -- and I suppose he doesn't mind being all three!

[FearofH2O]

Hey playbiller looks like the CB is taking you up on the single but they are doing itunes.

Download OMWH