It is hard to realize that it has been eight years since Clay Aiken released his first album titled Measure of A Man.  

When one tries to imagine what it was like for Clay, I realize I have NO IDEA!!  There had to be a combination of excitement, awe, amazement, fear, fatigue, and hopefully, lots of fun!!  It was his first time jumping into the blender and going round and round and round!!

And…Clay found himself in New York, making the rounds of all the important shows, singing and charming the hosts and audiences with his talent and charm.

So…now, Clay is back in New York, preparing for another show and another round of  hard work!!  And, for his fans, it is a time of wait and hope for a picture here and there.    Just think, we have to wait until the first of 2012 before we get to see Clay each week on our TV.  By this time, you probably saw the newest picture of Clay coming out of Trump Tower.  It was posted on-line and is Clay being pre-recorded for the good-bye of the show.  Personally, I hope I never see it again as I hope Clay never needs to say good-bye on the show!!

Well….what was Clay doing eight years ago on October 15th?

It was one day after Clay Aiken’s new CD, Measure Of A Man hit the stores. As part of the promotional tour for the CD, Clay visited Good Morning America which is taped in New York City.

Diane Sawyer interviewed Clay and they talked about the sales numbers and expectations for the album. Clay told Diane that he went out the day before and bought his CD at the store on the advice of Randy Jackson. Randy said that it was tradition to do that in the music business for good luck.

It was announced on the show that morning that Clay would be singing the National Anthem at Game 1 of the World Series. Both Diane and Clay seemed excited about that honor.

The audience was filled with Clay fans that arrived early to be sure they could get into the studio to see and hear Clay perform. The enthusiastic group was supportive of Clay and his band and seemed bored with the 50 Hunks from Cosmo Magazine that were introduced to the audience.

The fans on TV saw Clay sing two songs from his album. He performed both Invisible and The Way. But the fans in the studio got a bonus as Clay pre-recorded The First Noel that morning to be shown on Christmas Day.

“When Clay came back out to do TFN, the first thing he did was walk right over to the group of very young children….kneel right down and sign things for them and talk to them. It was absolutely adorable.” This statement was written on-line from a fan that was lucky enough to be at the taping. She also stated that she got the feeling Clay wasn’t 100% awake yet!

The visit and performance at GMA was exciting and wonderful to see. Clay had to be tired, but his performance was fabulous.