The Right Sh- Stuff

or, A Clay Aiken Mashup!



The search for an American Idol was not unlike the search for astronauts a generation ago. A "mashup" featuring Clay Aiken and the casts of "The Right Stuff" and American Idol Season 2.

Academy Award winning music by Bill Conti; original film written for the screen and directed by Philip Kaufman. Montage by hosaa. Download more polished version from Megaupload.

love, hosaa
stargazing

What It's All About

Since everyone else is pontificating on Clay Aiken's "trashing" of American Idol, why not me?

I won't repost his members-only blog or link to the sites that did, but basically Clay said he was glad that "boy-next-door" Kris Allen won the eighth season of the show that gave Clay his start.

His actual opinions of the artists' performances don't really mean much since he didn't watch the entire season. He did say that he didn't like what Adam Lambert did with a classic country song ("Ring of Fire"), and based on very limited exposure to either finalist said that public perceptions may have formed around Adam as being "arrogant" (because of all the support that the producers and media had given him over the course of the season).

Clay didn't say Adam was arrogant, just that - rightly or wrongly - the perception of him may have been strong enough to encourage some voters to vote against him.

So what Clay was really lamenting in his blog was Idol's loss of innocence, the loss of the vision of what it was all about in the first place. Like Linus in "Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown," Clay took the thumb out of his mouth, dropped his security blanket, stepped out alone onto a stage and a single spotlight, and said what AI was all about: giving opportunities to people with raw talent who would not otherwise have that chance.

The truth is, Adam and Kris are both extremely talented, but since Adam was already a professional with lots of opportunities, he didn't need Idol as much as Kris did. The fact that Idol producers and judges (and the media they seem to control with their targeted messages) had so transparently supported the contestant most likely to become a superstar (and make them all richer) was disillusioning to Clay (and to many of us who have loved Idol over the years).

It's always disheartening to see the crass commercialization of our cherished traditions. Charlie Brown winced at Snoopy's enthusiasm in the neighborhood Christmas display competition. And Clay winced at the obvious AI bias for hot-property Adam.

So, like Linus, that's what Clay was talking about in his blog. He was simply reminding us why the AI experience burrowed itself into our hearts in the first place, with Kelly, Tamyra, Ruben, Clay, Fantasia, and Carrie. The kids next door were getting a chance to make it big.... That could be us! And now with Kris, it still can be.

That's what it's all about, Simon!

Love, hosaa
"id(o)ling"

Clay Aiken Stimulates the Economy

Clay Aiken needs to go on tour. If increased consumer spending is what it takes to stimulate the economy, this is the way to go.

Here are just a few of the products, services, and brands that fully stimulated Clay Aiken fans support:

- computers,
- peripherals (keyboards,printers, optical mice, scanners),
- routers,
- wireless services,
- external hard drives,
- computer repair services,
- binoculars,
- cameras,
- videocams,
- flash drives,
- cell phones,
- BlackBerrys,
- GPS navigation systems,
- DVD and CD blank discs,
- Yahoo!
- AOL,
- Google,
- Lycos,
- Rhapsody,
- Pandora,
- Ticketmaster,
- iTunes,
- iPods, iPhones, iTouch, iWhatNot
- video and photo editing software,
- photo gift services,
- concert tickets,
- airplane tickets,
- train tickets,
- bus tickets,
- hotel rooms,
- Hotels.com,
- cheesecake,
- peach ice cream,
- chips,
- McDonald's
- Sardi's,
- Radio Shack,
- Best Buy,
- Walmart,
- Target,
- Kmart,
- Amazon.com,
- Burberry,
- Paul Smith,
- hats,
- scarves,
- pashminas,
- T-shirts,
- university hoodies (sweat shirts)
- books,
- magazines,
- photo paper,
- frames,
- new clothes!
- shoes,
- makeovers and spa treatments,
- new cars,
- gasoline and oil,
- car repair services...

The producers of American Idol should also pay attention to the Clay Aiken Economic Package. American Idol is about selling advertising, so if you have any of these products to promote, consider encouraging [i.e., demanding] that Clay Aiken appear on AI with at least two performances (for example, "Lover All Alone" and, for dramatic irony, "Everything I Don't Need"), an interview segment, guest mentoring, and all what-not.

Win big by paying tribute to the man (so he doesn't sneak up and take the wind out of the show's sails on the finale next time).

Love, hosaa
Stimulated by Clay

Director's Cut

Clay Aiken's audition for American Idol, as broadcast six years ago (January 28, 2003), left a few things out... e.g., his initial audition in Charlotte ("Somewhere Over the Rainbow") and the song he nervously sang for the screening producers in Atlanta (the theme from "Perfect Strangers").

There were also bits of his Atlanta audition song ("Always and Forever") that were left on the cutting room floor (fortunately picked up by various news clips about him), such as two lines from the song that showcased Clay's beautiful lower-register range.

Here is the complete story of Clay Aiken's March through Atlanta: