Clayton Holmes Grissom (born November 30, 1978), known professionally as Clay Aiken, was a contestant on Season 2 of American Idol.
Audition[]
Clay auditioned in Atlanta. He sang "Always and Forever" by Heatwave. Randy and Simon both voted "yes", sending him to the next round.
Hollywood Round[]
Clay was shown in the second part of Hollywood Round. He did manage to make the judges' final forty-eight and did enough to make the eventual Top 32.
Top 32[]
Clay performed in Group 2. He sang "Open Arms" by Journey. He made the Top 3 in the voting for that week, but did not advance. He was however selected to compete in the Wild-Card round.
Wild-Card[]
On the Wild-Card round, Clay sang "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" by Elton John. Clay won the public vote for that week, advancing him to the Top 12.
Top 12[]
Clay sang "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" by The Four Tops. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 11[]
Clay sang "Somewhere Out There" by Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 10[]
Clay sang "Someone Else's Star" by Davis Daniel. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 8 (Week 1)[]
Clay sang "Everlasting Love" by Robert Knight. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 8 (Week 2)[]
Clay sang "At This Moment" by Billy Vera. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 7[]
Clay sang "Tell Her About It" by Billy Joel. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 6[]
Clay sang "I Could Not Ask for More" by Edwin McCain. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 5[]
Clay sang "Build Me Up Buttercup" by The Foundations and "Solitaire" by Neil Sedaka. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 4[]
Clay sang "To Love Somebody" by The Bee Gees and "Grease" by Frankie Valli. He received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 3[]
Clay sang "Vincent" by Don McLean, "Mack the Knife" by Louis Armstrong (per request of Paula Abdul) and "Unchained Melody" by Todd Duncan. He received enough votes to advance to the Finale.
Season 2 Finale[]
Clay sang "This is the Night", "Here, There and Everywhere" by The Beatles and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel. He did not receive more votes than Ruben Studdard, making him the runner-up.
After the Show[]
Clay served as a mentor for Season 21's Hollywood Round, mentoring in the "Confidence" category" alongside David Archuleta. In 2024, he and Ruben participated together in the 11th season of The Masked Singer as the "Beets", finishing in 5th place.
Trivia[]
- Paula Abdul was absent for his audition.