American Idol Vital News, October 10: Measure of a Man

I could not type another letter without thanking Donna Reynolds for filling in for me these last couple of weeks! If I were asked who loves Idol as much as I do, the very first name that comes to mind is Donna Reynolds, and I knew she would keep your Idol news jones satisfied! My move back to United States from Europe was filled with potholes and hurdles, and Donna definitely came to the rescue. A thousand kisses and hugs for her!

He’s Not Sorry
Weeks have passed now since Clay Aiken announced what some of us (me) suspected all along—he’s gay. (Of course, he waits until I am off the circuit to do this!) It was a brave choice for Clay, the right choice to be honest with himself and the world as he begins the daunting responsibility of raising a child. Little did he know what a maelstrom he would unleash.

As reported by Donna Reynolds last week, many of Clay’s fans remain staunch in their support, promising to stay true and defend him to the end. Others just can’t seem to reconcile Clay’s sexuality with their ardor. They are calling him “liar” and say they feel “betrayed.”

It was high time Clay address his fans with something a bit more substantive than his stiff “thanks for your support” message. Now, he has.

"I would have preferred to separate my personal life from my professional life," Aiken wrote on clayonline.com. "But, living as myself without discussing my sexuality publicly would have been as impossible."

A lot of Claymates take umbrage to the fact that Clay flat out lied in the famous Rolling Stone interview of 2003. Clay says he believed that interviewer was definitely trying to get Clay to admit something he wasn’t ready to admit. He does not apologize for his answers.

"When this guy started asking me about things that I didn't really know how to answer for myself, things that I was not yet ready to admit to folks like my mother and my family, things that I found intimidating and invasive, I responded in what I assumed was a benign way at the time."

As everyone involved in Idol seems to have an opinion about Clay’s emergence from the proverbial closet, Simon Cowell may have said it best, “Let’s face it. It’s 2008. You know, who cares? Good for him. If he said it, it's the right thing for him. Good for him."

Birth of A Nation
Expecting Paris Bennett has now delivered on expectations and given birth to a five pound 15 ounce baby girl named Egypt. Both mom and baby are doing just great. Daddy remains shrouded in mystery.

Paris got the job done in an efficient five hour labor, but is understandably pleased with her work, “"I'm so excited to finally see my little angel and, man, does she have lungs on her. I guess she’s gearing up to be the next American Idol!” she jokes in a press release.

While Egypt may seem like an odd choice for a name, Babynames.com says Paris is following a growing trend. "People use place names when they have an emotional bond to fond memories of a particular location. It could be a romantic getaway or the city in which they grew up," says Babynames.com’s Jennifer Moss, who cites Brooklyn Beckham as another example. Whether Victoria Beckham has ever dipped a carefully pedicured toe in Brooklyn, or Paris has ever dared walk like an Egyptian in Egypt is debatable.

What is a fact, however, is Paris is releasing a Christmas album, entitled A Royal Christmas (you know… royal… Princess P…. get it?) on October 14.

He’s Careful What He Wished For
Among the post-Idol success stories, Josh Gracin must be considered as one of the biggest surprises. The fact that he was an active-duty Marine at a time when America had engaged in a new war made it easy to pull for the guy. His singing? Not so spectacular. So the fact that Josh remains one of country music’s hot young stars is a bit of a surprise… but, not to him.

"I was proud to have gone as far as I did. The American people choose. If they like you, they like you; if they don't, they don't. Everything was fair," he told the Albuquerque Journal.

"Truth is, who knows what I might have been doing had I won the competition. I might not have been getting to sing country music."

And sing country is what he always wanted to do. "When I was 16, I had an opportunity to get up and sing on the Grand Ole Opry stage. The contest was mainly for people who wrote their own songs and for those who had bands and stuff. But it was neat for me to have that feeling of standing where so many country legends had stood."

How successful has he been? His debut album, Nothin’ To Lose garnered three consecutive top five hits, making him one of only three male country acts to do so in recent years. His latest, We Weren’t Crazy is keeping the hit train rolling, and his latest single “Unbelievable (Ann Marie)” is an open love letter to his wife, who’s been there love before he was an aspiring Idol.