they are showing this american idol recap show (not American Idol rewind, which is the rerun of the first season- this is a cheesy show they play on the tvguide channel that has interviews, etc)- and they interviewed Clay Aiken about his AI experience.
Apparently Clay didn't get past the producers on TWO occasions in the AI prelims and finally got in.
All that means to me is that there are a lot of talented people out there- just that this time the producers didn't pick the right group. Maybe we will get more variety next season.
The answer can be found in two words - Clay Aiken. Just six months ago, Clay Aiken was carrying on his admirable work teaching autistic children in Raleigh, North Carolina. He scarcely looked beyond his chosen career as a Special Education teacher. Yes, he had gained excellent musical experience through his participation in his high school choir, but, according to all news sources, this was the extent of his musical training. Then, a mother of one of his students encouraged him to audition for American Idol Season 2. He was hesitant at first, but through this parent's encouragement, he agreed to give it a try.
After being rejected at the Regional competition, Clay tenaciously journeyed to Atlanta and tried again. After completing the preliminary rounds, he confidently performed for Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson, who, thankfully, saw that something special, that spark, that star quality - despite the fact that his "image" was not correct according to today's standards. Of course, the rest is history. Within six months, Clay was a superstar. Yet, in order to achieve this status, this young man had to perform live and flawlessly each week before millions of viewers. The transformation of Clay Aiken, teacher, to Clay Aiken, superstar, is, in my opinion, nothing short of spectacular. |
