Clay Aiken (born Clayton Holmes Grissom, November 30th, 1978) 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.
Trivia[]
- Paula Abdul was absent for his audition.
| Season 2 |
| Finalists |
| Ruben Studdard · Clay Aiken · Kimberley Locke · Josh Gracin · Trenyce · Carmen Rasmusen · Kimberly Caldwell · Rickey Smith · Corey Clark · Julia DeMato · Charles Grigsby · Vanessa Olivarez |
| Semifinalists |
| Aliceyn Cooney · Chip Days · Janine Falsone · Olivia Mojica · Nasheka Siddall · Juanita Barber · Sylvia Chibiliti · Ashley Hartman · Patrick Lake · Samantha Cohen · Equoia Coleman · Lou Gazzara · Kimberly Kelsey · Jordan Segundo · George Trice · Rebecca Bond · Candice Coleman · Jennifer Fuentes · Hadas · Jacob John Smalley · J.D. Adams · Meosha Denton · Patrick Fortson · Bettis Richardson |