Clay still finds home welcome

behinds. The collective scream from the overwhelmingly female crowd -- lots of middle- aged women with their daughters --bounced off the glass walls of Dorton Arena.<br><br> Then Clay Aiken appeared, putting his twist on U2's 1987 hit "Where the Streets Have No Name." All seemed right in their world. It's been a year since the Raleigh native's debut album "Measure of a Man" hit stores. The sheen of "American Idol," with its weekly TV appearances and constant hype, has faded.<br><br> But the second part of Aiken's career is just beginning. Whether he will keep the momentum he's built over the last year and a half, or vanish like so many other pop stars, is anybody's guess. He has plenty to keep him busy in the meantime.<br><br> His inspirational book, "Learning to Sing: Hearing the Music in Your Life," will be released in November, along with a new Christmas album. An Aiken Christmas special will air Dec. 8 on NBC.<br><br> A sk his fans what they think about his future, and they'll tell you they're following A iken wherever his career takes them. Published: Oct 19, 2004 Modified: Oct 19, 2004 6:02 AM Hometown boy Clay Aiken croons for fans at the N.C. State Fair during a concert that sold out in minutes.<br><br> Staff Photos by Scott Lewis Story Tools Printer friendly Send to a friend Related T hey get their s a More informati o Fair Info r Direction s Fairgrou n Events s c Official W Choose an a d Do You Owe Do You Owe What's Next ? Pa g e 1of 3 newsobserver.com | News 10/19/2004 htt p ://newsobserver.com/news/stor y /1746370 p -8020339c.html " Position Available Erg: Ind. Hygiene/safety Prof.; Environ.<br><br> Scientist " Associate Physician- student Health Services Unc-greensboro " Sensory Technologist Nomacorc " Position Available Fayetteville State University " Multiple Positions Available Marquee Cinemas " Maintenance Mechanic Ii North Carolina Justice Academy " Director Of Career Services Barton College View all TopJobs "I think the hoopla's dying down already, but he has lots more outlets to explore," said Jenny Hudson, 29, an elementary teacher from Clayton who took half a day off work to attend the show. Fans still buy his first record, "Measure of a Man," 2.6 million copies so far, according to Nielsen SoundScan. His two-track single, "Solitaire/The Way," is No.<br><br> 12 on the Hot 100 singles sales chart in the latest Billboard magazine, its 29th week on the chart, even without major Top 40 radio airplay. A nd Aiken's a draw on the road. An average of 4,539 people attended his concerts during the past three months, said Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar, a publication that covers that concert-tour industry.<br><br> "He's not selling out every city, but he's doing respectable business for a new artist," he said. By comparison, the "American Idol" summer package tour, which featured High Point native Fantasia Barrino, averaged an attendance of 5,358 people. A bout 12,000 attended Monday's shows, which earned Aiken's tour $200,000.<br><br> A iken was supposed to do one N.C. State Fair concert, but when the evening show sold out in about 10 minutes, organizers added a matinee performance. That one sold out just as quickly.<br><br> Slow sales elsewhere On the other side of the state, fans haven't been as receptive. Aiken played a show Saturday at Paramount Carowinds amusement park outside Charlotte. Park officials wouldn't release attendance figures but said the amphitheater seats 13,000.<br><br> Tickets were still available the day before the show. During an interview last week, Aiken expressed his gratitude that the two Raleigh shows sold out so quickly. But he also wondered about the Charlotte show.<br><br> "It's kind of amazing to me that we could do so well in Raleigh and then, what, j ust 200 miles down the road, not be able to completely sell out yet," he said. It's too early to tell whether reality-show-bred pop stars can make a long-term go of it, Bongiovanni said. "Let's face it, very few of the singers who have gone through 'American Idol' have emerged as artists whose careers have lasted more than a few minutes," he said.<br><br> "It'll be interesting to see if we're still talking about Clay Aiken a year from now." Kelly Clarkson, the show's first-year winner, seems to be beating that trend. Her first album, "Thankful," went multiplatinum. Her latest single, "Breakaway," was a late-summer hit.<br><br> Perhaps Aiken, the runner-up from "Idol" second's year, will follow her lead. One factor working against Aiken is his lukewarm reception from mainstream radio. Pop stations gave some spins to "This is the Night" and "Invisible," but A iken has not yet had a breakout Top 40 radio hit.<br><br> Sean Ross, vice president of music and programming for Edison Media Research, isn't sure how much that matters. He remembers e-mail he received from a 50-year-old woman who said she'd listened to nothing but National Public Radio for years until Aiken came along. "If you can put together a career of a million of those people, then what does it necessarily matter if you're not on the radio?" Ross said.<br><br> Pa g e 2of 3 newsobserver.com | News 10/19/2004 htt p ://newsobserver.com/news/stor y /1746370 p -8020339c.html The state fair concerts Monday were the last two of his summerlong solo tour. For Aiken, the shows were special, a homecoming, a stop off in the part of the world where he grew up, where the fans are especially fired up. "Hello, Raleigh, North Carolina," he yelled.<br><br> "Whoo!" They yelled right back. A nd they likely always will. Staff writer Matt Ehlers can be reached at 829-4889 or mehlers@newsobserver.com.<br><br> Related They get their say on Clay News Clay still finds home welcome U.S. to get more flu shots Social Security gets boost Three tied to Phipps scandal sentenced Panel seeks church apology Bar set to defend its ruling © Copyright 2004, The News & Observer Publishing Company A subsidiary of The McClatchy Company Help | Contact Us | Parental Consent | Privacy Policy | User Agreement Hosting Partners o f newsobserver.com Member of the Real Cities Network Pa g e 3of 3 newsobserver.com | News 10/19/2004 htt p ://newsobserver.com/news/stor y /1746370 p -8020339c.html

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