Showing posts with label interviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label interviews. Show all posts

Friday, February 18, 2011

Clay Aiken Talks Tried & True Tour, Music


TRIED & TRUE Tour bus heads north. - Photo by Invisible926 expands.

Pittsburgh, Cleveland Interviews

Clay Previews Upcoming Shows

Every concert on Clay Aiken's current Tried & True Tour inspires audience accolades topping previous performances, and Knoxville was no different.

Paired with video recaps from Thursday night's performance at the Bijou Theatre in East Tennessee are outstanding interviews of the singer by media personnel along the tour route.

An excellent example is Dee Perry's Around Noon radio conversation in conjunction with Saturday's show in the PlayhouseSquare Palace Theatre in Cleveland.


Cleveland 'Around Noon' interview with Dee Perry.

For tonight's concert in Pittsburgh, Patricia Sheridan interviewed Clay on radio and made the dialogue available as a podcast and in print version with the Post-Gazette: Patricia Sheridan's Breakfast ... with Clay Aiken. Here is a Sendspace download of the podcast.

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review also published an interesting preview for the concert: Clay Aiken believes the music should be about the singer.

Below are this weekend's T&T Concerts:

2.18.11 Pittsburgh, PA Carnegie Music Hall, 8 pm
2.19.11 Cleveland, OH Playhouse Square, 7:30 pm
2.20.11 Waterbury, CT Palace Theater, 7:30 pm


Thanks to the clack gatherers, previous concerts are just a click away. Not only do they render/upload videos after a performance, many process the latest while waiting to catch flights home or to the next concert.

Below are three styles of "Who's Sorry Now" from the Knoxville Concert as suggested by the audience: bossa nova, disco, and Cajun.


Clay & Co. perform 'Who's Sorry Now' bossa nova style.
View Knoxville video by Scarlett full screen at YouTube.


Quiana sings WSN with Clay as backup in this version.
View video by Scarlett full screen at YouTube.


Clay and Quiana sing WSN Cajun/Zydeco style.
View Knoxville video by Scarlett full screen at YouTube.

Have a great weekend, Clay Nation! See you after Pittsburgh!

Caro

Saturday, February 05, 2011

Clay Aiken Fans Relish Tried & True Tour Promos


Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Clay Aiken
View montage by LovesClaysVoice full screen at YouTube.
Download video with this Sendspace file.

Meet & Greet Winners Elated

Interviews Build Tour Excitement

Clay Aiken concerts are always exciting events, but special spin offs this week before the singer's much anticipated Tried & True Tour highlighting his current Decca release have been the exceptional interviews and media promotional spots.

Portions of four articles are printed below in concert order. To read the complete interviews, click on the headline links. In some cases, I took liberties with the accompanying art.

For concert times, locations, driving instructions, contact numbers, seating charts, even the weather, refer to additional info in the sidebar calendar prepared by Scarlett. Expand to full size by clicking on the "Mark Your Calendar" link.


2010 graphic by AmazingCA is expandable.

Clay Aiken throws back the 50s and 60s in his fifth studio album

Clay Aiken: Tried and True Tour
Friday, 8 p.m., Feb. 11,
Hard Rock Live, Orlando, FL
Saturday, 8 p.m., Feb. 12, Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Sarasota, FL
Erik R. Caban, Watermark

In a day of reality-show instant celebrities, still only a select few know the exhilarating feat of being plucked out of anonymity and thrown into the proverbial fishbowl of super-stardom.

Clay Aiken was a fan favorite during the sophomore season of American Idol, where he finished second to Ruben Studdard.


Eight years later, despite rumors and set-backs, Aiken's grit, determination and raw talent have proven why he's a household name.

While Aiken may have acquiesced to a few minor alterations, he has stayed true to himself and his passion, using his celebrity as a platform to raise awareness for gay rights, AIDS and children with disabilities.


Just a few weeks out from a major U.S. tour that brings him to Orlando’s Hard Rock Live Feb. 11 and Sarasota’s Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall Feb. 12, the 32-year-old North Carolina native talks about coming out, fatherhood, Broadway and Richard Chamberlain.


Clickable Tried & True ~ LIVE graphic by ACA with caps by Scarlett.

Clay Aiken remains 'Tried and True'

Clay Aiken: Tried and True Tour
8 p.m. Feb. 16,
Cobb Energy Centre, Marietta, GA
Jim Farmer, The GA Voice

Performing in Atlanta has been special for singer Clay Aiken. It’s not his birthplace — that would be Raleigh, N.C. — but he feels partial to the city.

“I auditioned for ‘American Idol’ in Atlanta so it’s full circle when I return,” says Aiken, who brings his “Tried and True” tour to the Cobb Energy Centre on Feb. 16.

Aiken was featured on the second season of "American Idol," where he eventually was runner-up to Ruben Studdard. On the show, he was an audience favorite, never once appearing in the bottom three for viewer votes. It helped him, he feels, that he was able to sing songs he was familiar with.


2010 Early Show graphic by Fountaindawg is expandable.

Clay Aiken Set To Play PlayhouseSquare 2/19

Clay Aiken: Tried and True Tour
7:30 p.m., Feb. 19 at PlayhouseSquare Palace Theater, Cleveland, OH
BWW News Desk, Broadway World

As American Idol runner-up on the 2003 Idol season, Clay Aiken appears to have emerged the career winner.

Standing room-only concerts, an extended run on Broadway starring in Spamalot, an autobiography at #2 on the New York Times Best Sellers list, five albums selling millions of copies and an avid international fan club of "Claymates," all integrated with intense charity involvement have kept Clay firmly in the spotlight.


Now, following in the wake of a critically acclaimed tour with fellow American Idol alum, Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken is treating his fans to another solo tour...the Tried and True Tour, which highlights his current album of the same title.

PlayhouseSquare's Palace Theatre on February 19th is one of the 20-city stages that will welcome the Raleigh, NC native. The 7:30 pm concert will be Clay's third PlayhouseSquare appearance.
[snip]

An unlikely pop star, Aiken has remained steadfast in his desire to remain true to the simple values he learned as a child in Raleigh, North Carolina. "I still live in the town where I grew up," he says. "I like surrounding myself with people I know and love."

It is this authenticity that his millions of fans have responded to, an almost supernatural earnestness that feels unconventional in the cynical world today.


Clay Aiken - Tried & True photo by Vincent Soyez

North Carolina Always Home for Idol Clay Aiken

Clay Aiken: Tried and True Tour
7:30 p.m. Feb. 23, Belk Theater at Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, Charlotte, NC
Bernie Petit,
Gaston Gazette
North Carolina has been good to the hit reality television show "American Idol." [snip]

But Raleigh native Clay Aiken still lays claim as the first North Carolinian to hit it big on the show, finishing second in the show’s sophomore season.

Since then, he’s toured relentlessly, starred on Broadway in "Monty Python’s Spamalot" and become one of the biggest stars "Idol" has ever produced. [snip]


This month, the soulful homegrown crooner is launching his "Tried and True" tour in support of his fifth full-length album, a collection of classics from the ’50s and ’60s. He’ll bring his tour to the Belk Theater in Charlotte Feb. 23. [snip]

What should people expect when they come see your show?

Aiken: The most enjoyable ones for me have been the ones where we don’t overproduce. I’ve done the shows with dancers and actors and the big tours. The ones I have the most fun with are the ones that aren’t overly produced and I have time where I can talk to the audience and change things up. I want to keep this as laid back and low key as possible and change things up as we go.

Your latest album, "Tried and True," has received a lot of positive feedback. Why did you want to do an album like that?

Aiken: These are songs that are a comfortable fit for me. They’re singer songs, crooner songs, classic melodies. That makes them like a comfortable shoe to me. Songs on the radio today, it’s about the producer nowadays and how good they can make them sound. They’re not necessarily about the singer.

Back in the ’50s and ’60s, singers went into the studio and sang these timeless melodies and sang them beautifully. That to me is what’s most impressive. They just don’t write songs like that anymore.


LOADS OF FUN - Clay Aiken concerts are not only jam packed with his extraordinary vocals but also the entertainer's quick wit as he competently banters with audiences. The graphic by AmazingCA with photos by Diana Levine is clickable.

M&G Winners Make Merry

In addition to the avalanche of media activity about the Tried & True Tour, the other big news has been the excitement of fans notified they will have a Meet & Greet with Clay. For many, this will be their first M&G ever.

Representative are these EEEEEE!!! reports posted by delighted winners on CA message boards during the past two days:


Poison Ivy: In other news, a certain poisonous plant, after five years of trying, has finally won a Meet and Greet for Clay Aiken's concert in Memphis.

sugrbugr: I won a Meet & Greet for Grand Prairie! OMG, I've never met him!!!

luckiest1: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Cleveland, here I come! Only took me 8 years to meet the man!!!

canfly172: OMG!!!! I actually WON A MEET AND GREET!!!!!

**faintsdeadawaycuzsheneverwinsanything**

CharmedbyClay: I WON A MEET & GREET!!! I'm going to the concert in Knoxville on the 17th, and I've won my first Meet and Greet!

clazybones
: I won a Meet & Greet for Minneapolis! It only took 8 years. I am so excited I don't think I will be able to eat or sleep for the next month.

Congratulations to all M&G winners throughout the fandom!

TWWMAD Provides Tour Tickets

Since Clay's 2004 Summer Tour, The Way We Make a Difference has generated tickets for concert goers who otherwise would have been unable to attend.

Through donated tickets, as well as monetary contributions, TWWMAD fosters the cause of inclusion. With the support of CA fans, people with and without disabilities have been able to experience the joy of attending a concert together.

Among the organizations benefiting from TWWMAD program in past seasons have been Best Buddies, Special Olympics, YMCA, The Arc of the United States, and Ronald McDonald houses.

To offer assistance for the Tried & True Tour, click on the Make a Donation button or contact TWWMAD regarding extra tickets at the linked website.

Check the weather forecast and pack your bag. The curtain rises on the Tried & True Tour in Miami in a matter of days!

Have an awesome weekend, Clay Nation!



Signature by Linda


For related stories, see:

Clay Aiken: An American Idol, MiamiArtZine

Clay Aiken: Out 'American Idol' singing star says life is good as he launches 'Tried & True' tour, The Miami Herald

Friday, June 18, 2010

Clay Aiken Makes Interview Rounds


BRINGING BROADWAY HOME - Clay Aiken stopped by WRAL to promote Monday's benefit concert for the NC Theatre. Screen cap by Cotton links to the video at WRAL.

In WRAL, Insider Interviews

Clay Promotes Benefit, Album

With my bum ankle, I would have had a hard time keeping up with Clay Aiken Thursday as he made the interview rounds on television talking about Monday's NC Theatre benefit concert "Bringing Broadway Home," his new Tried & True CD, PBS Special, upcoming tour, and the changes in his life.

A click of the screen cap links to the WRAL video interview, which works great for those of us with ailing ankles.

While in the studios, Clay signed several autographs, one for the mother of a WRAL staffer who revealed a special story in his blog, A Clay Aiken Autograph Four Years in the Making.


Bringing Broadway Home
Clickable poster

Mix 101.5 has posted a podcast of the Bill and Lynda in the Morning Show on the WRAL website. Download Clay's portion of the show with this mp3 Sendspace file. From stubble, the topic shifted back to Clay's beard and preparations for his UNICEF Afghanistan trip.

Below are clickables of three WRAL screen caps by Cotton:





Later, in an interview with the The Insider, Clay talked about the his new Decca release, the PBS Special taped in his hometown, and fatherhood. To view the interview, click on Queen's screen cap below:


Screen cap by Queen links to Clay's interview on The Insider.

Below are other clickable caps by Queen from The Insider interview:





T&T Album Kindles NJU Stories

CA fans continue to share Not.Just.Us stories from family, friends, and associates excited about the new Tried & True CD, as well as the singer's appearances on TV. Here are a couple:

LADYD: I sometimes talk music with a guy I know through the VFW. He always tells me how he hates the type of music that's out there today, so I decided to gift him with a copy of Tried & True. I told him to give it a listen and let me know what he thinks of it. He said he would listen and return it to me. I told him that it was a gift and I didn't want it back.
He looked at me like I had grown two heads for giving him a new unopened CD. When his shock wore off, he thanked me and told me he'd let me know.

Yesterday he told me that he loves the CD and has been playing it non-stop in his car since I gave it to him. Because his young granddaughter was with him, rock music was playing; but he said as soon as he took her home, he'd be listening to Clay again.

janfan821: I always buy a copy of Clay's CD for my older brother, who is an attorney. He's always supported my love of Clay and his music as I have supported his hobby of astronomy. He also watches PBS faithfully and was very impressed when I told him Clay will have a special in August.

On Monday, I dropped by his office to deliver the CD. He was in court; so I left it with his receptionist to give to him. She looked at the cover and said, "We don't see much of him anymore." She then told me her friend had seen him on one of the morning TV shows and called her to let her know.

When I got to my car, it hit me. Her friend called her so she could tune in to see Clay? A fan!

A couple of hours later, my brother emailed me to thank me for the CD and said his receptionist told him she was trying to figure out ways to tear off the wrapper and look inside without him noticing.

Later that afternoon, my brother emailed again to tell me how much fun the CD is and that Clay is "wailing away" in his office. He again mentioned his receptionist's reaction.

The next morning I took the receptionist a CD (the only remaining one at our Target). I thought the woman was going to cry. She apparently was a huge fan after AI, and she and her friend went to some concerts, but she had drifted away over the years. Let's just say her "fan-girlyness" has been revived.

She asked me if she could pay me for the CD and I told her to buy one for her Clay-loving friend. I have a feeling she'll be doing just that!

American Idol News Spotlights CD, Tour

In a new article Friday, American Idol News is touting Clay Aiken: Tried, True, and Timeless. Besides listing the Deluxe CD tracks, the story also includes the Timeless Tour dates.
Clay Aiken recently released his fifth full length studio album, Tried & True.

The album includes classic songs performed by the Season 2 runner-up. In an interview about the album, Clay said Tried & True “is special to me simply because these are songs that everyone recognize. [snip]

This summer, Clay will tour the nation with his Season 2 pal, American Idol Ruben Studdard, on "The Timeless Tour." [snip]

But first, Clay will perform solo at the Progress Energy Center at Raleigh Memorial Auditorium in his hometown of Raleigh, NC on June 21.


Sprain Yields Rainbow of Colors

Thank you for your good wishes for a speedy recovery from Tuesday's bathtub disaster. I am learning that coming back from a sprained ankle is slow, and I am a walking (somewhat) testament to the multiple shades of blue and purple on the color chart. Two of my favorite colors, at least!

New muscles join the "hurt" column daily, but I probably employed many that aren't normally required for writing a blog or teaching music lessons. My piano/violin students are supposedly practicing with plans to regroup next week.

Have a wonderful weekend, Clay Nation!

Caro

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Visitors have come to this site from 153 countries. Thank you for stopping by the Carolina blog! - Caro