hey, where are the male clay fans? no guts? http://www.elitestv.com/NewsPub/2004/Jan/ETV3ff6353b701b2.html Fans of Clay Let’s get one thing straight before we start, this is not a belligerent dissertation on the Ruben and Clay phenomenon. I think there has already been enough of that to extinguish everyone’s interest in American Idol. What is fascinating however, is the continued and expanding popularity for a particular member of this talented duo. The year of 2003 was certainly the year of Clay, as reviewed by others. [This was the year for Aiken by Matt Ehlers at newsobserver.com]. The last year has been a huge success for both Idols. Clay’s record sales, media appearances, and charitable accomplishments have created a much larger following than anyone expected. More and more people are latching onto the measure of Clay Aiken. He is starting to show a maturity and improvement in his performances. The music industry is beginning to accept him. Kudos to them! We have all read how the majority of Clay’s fans are female mostly residing at opposite spectrums of the age range. The younger fans who have been looking for someone to “idolize” (forgive the pun) and who’s music they can play without parental trepidation. The mature females who screamed and fantasized to the performances of pop-stars like The Beatles, The Osmonds (Donny?), early ‘80s Michael Jackson and so on. Admittedly, Clay Aiken’s style and/or his voice is not for everyone. I’m positive there are many people from both genders who dislike the middle-of-the-road (aka nice to listen to) quality of Clay’s songs. But I am also sure that we haven’t seen all that Clay has to offer yet. It appears everyone agrees with the member-base of Clay Aiken followers. However, what about the male fan? Surprisingly, there does seem to be an ever growing male appreciation and admiration of this young man's talent, originality, and even an interest in his career path. Don’t believe it? Well, I’ve seen it, heard it, and have discovered several male friends I know were as ardent an American Idol watcher (Clay watcher) as were their female partners. Plus it has been acknowledged that they listen (sometimes clandestinely) to “Measure of a Man” on a regular basis. In this society of brandish machismo the average man is apparently emotionless and their sole recreational pursuits appear to fall into very clear cut masculine activities. Should current trends in music, and the accompanying artists who perform enter into their list of pastime activities, then the objects of their admiration could often be categorized as either raunchy or provocative stage acts, or your typical tattoo infested mean-machine rock artist. Ok, I know there is some middle ground, but my point is that a great deal of men would not admit to having a respectful appreciation for good, clean, homely, female adorned male pop-stars. And most definitely not in the genre of one Mr. Clay Aiken. Or would they? Has our culture changed or is it in the midst of change? I think so. There is a big difference between male based followers of other male pop-stars and those of Clay Aiken. For example (as we are in Idol mode), the Ruben fans who are of the male gender don’t have a problem with Ruben. He has “street cred”, and he possesses a typical male disposition. He doesn’t emotionalize outwardly, and his dialogue is short and to the point. He represents what’s “cool” and has a Vandross style about him that male and females both enjoy. He is talented and has a bright future ahead, and will no doubt retain a huge following from both genders. Justin Guarini is another male archetype. Not particularly a great singer, but he has the look, a style considered “hip”, and is also is seen as “cool” – I’m not going to comment on his recent deportation from record company popularity. Clay however, goes against most of what the generic stereotypical male admires. He doesn’t appear to be street-wise, he isn’t physically representative of the “don’t mess with me” male attitude. He loves his mom openly (I don’t know why that is a problem, more men should be as demonstrative), its been said he has a slightly effeminate manner which I expect is nothing more than his willingness to be forthcoming with his emotions (men take note), and probably most of all he is openly religious, doesn’t drink, smoke, use the f-word, nor is willing to participate in sexual promiscuity. All these things do not fit the conventional pop-star male persona. Hence the dislike of him in certain circles. Regardless that he has a voice that can captivate the emotions of all who listen or that he’s proved to be entertaining on stage, he is not the kind of guy that other males admire, right? Well actually I’ve a sneaky feeling that many men are actually beginning to respect Clay Aiken. Respect – such a strange word – what is respect? To quote a passage, “Respect is closely allied to admiration; it is more cognitive and less affective, and in general, more permanent than admiration. Respect is perhaps the most intellectualized sentiment … Respect for another implies that one has analyzed the activities of the other person and has found them satisfactory, or in harmony with his own ideals or standards.” [Emory S. Bogardus's - “Essentials of Social Psychology”] So then, we could find that the aspects of Clay Aiken that we respect, underpin what we as males wish we could be, but can not, due to the constraints of our peers and the lifestyles we are expected to follow. Maybe there are other reasons that he is generating a growing male following. Perhaps he represents the ideal “mate” for our daughters. Perhaps he represents what we would hope our sons to evolve into. Perhaps he is an instrument in gaining the affections of a person from the opposite sex. Perhaps he epitomizes the new generation of the male society or the male pop-star. Whatever the reasons, there seems to have taken place, or is taking place, a change in social acceptance. There seems to be a willingness from a growing number of men not to hide behind their masculine guard. This has become evident if you look at the change in Film, TV and Drama over the last 25 years. It’s no longer weak for a male to admit he has inner emotions and sensitivity. For those men who wonder why so many female fans go crazy over anything Clay, I don’t think it is one singular attribute. I think you have to look at the whole image. The most commonly admired aspects of Clay (besides the voice) are his normality, level-headedness, compassion and openness. Yes, there’s a lesson there! I don’t think for one minute Clay is anything more than a fine young man, with a refreshing personality and an astounding voice. But for so long it seems that society in general has been confined to stereotypes. Maybe this ex-geek from North Carolina can pave the way for others. We will always have the entertainers who will remain at the top because of style, looks, and industry promotion regardless of their musical abilities. But there is hope. Let us not get too caught up in terms like revolution and fanatical adornment. Clay is just a unique entertainer with a gift. He has given others an optimistic view as to what can be achieved. American Idol has shown that dreams do come true. Lets hope that Clay continues on his adventure and not only makes 2004 another Year of Clay, but maintains who he is. Perhaps then, more members of the male breed will agree to acknowledge him as an admirable person and also as an artist worth following. Then just maybe, those (real) men, who actually do enjoy his talent, can at that point openly admit that it was they who had placed a Clay Aiken CD in the player. It really won’t be that bad! You might even start telling your male buddies that you’ve just purchased his latest release. If anything, I think we should at least start by taking our “hats off” to him. Yours truly has. Well done Clay! Antony A Jones posted by Yee 5:47 PM . . .
