Friday, May 22, 2009

A Few More Words From Clay Aiken

Clay Aiken responds. Here is his latest blog in it's entirety.


Clay's Blog

*

Wow! Such influence! ha ha
05/22/09

Who knew I had so much influence and that my words and opinion mattered so much to so many people!?!?! HA HA HA I'll be the first to admit that my opinion is just that, only my opinion, but for as much as some of the bloggers seem to dislike me and care so little about my thoughts, they sure can waste a lot of their space on what I say! If only many of them took the time to pay attention to important things like the US economy and the welfare of the world's children. But... nah... I could blog about that type of stuff anytime and most wouldn't think twice, but let me say something that they can pick and choose quotes and misinterpret me... and it's showtime! I never assumed my opinion mattered so much! I guess I may have been wrong.

That said, since my previous blog got dissected like a biology lab frog, i suppose I should clarify and even retract some of what I wrote.

I am sure that some were upset by my choice of words describing my opinion of a performance I heard from Adam Lambert. I hope no one actually believed that blood truly poured forth from my ears when I heard him. I obviously meant it as a colorful statement to imply that I did not enjoy what I heard. Any performer hopes that their music will appeal to all people, but no singer realistically expects it to. God knows, I am SURE there are PLENTY of people who can't stand to hear me sing either. I wouldn't dream of assuming that, and I am sure that far worse things have been said about my performances than I would even venture to type here. To me, that's fine. I don't expect unanimous, nor even majority support for my music. But, my guess is Adam doesn't either. I would not venture to make judgements on the personality or demeanor of anyone I don't know, so none of what I said in my previous blog was directed as a "slam" on Adam as a person. At the same time, I wouldn't dream of slamming him as an entertainer. He does what he does, because he enjoys it, and he obviously has many fans who enjoy it as well. If what i said in my previous blog regarding my impression of a single performance from Adam upset or offended any of his fans, I expect that the mature ones will realize that it was simply a poorly worded metaphor describing my personal tastes. The only person I would really dream of apologizing to is Adam. And the irony is, if he's smart he couldn't give a crap what I think of his Ring of Fire performance. As an entertainer, Adam knows that one person's opinion of one performance really matters a little less than zero, in the grand scheme of things. He could not have gotten on Idol (nor made it as far as he did) without an immense amount of talent. He surely doesn't need my approval to know he has a gift. At the same time, he realizes that amazing talent doesn't always equal universal appeal. (I could NEVER have the amount of skill and talent that ballet dancers have! that's talent! But, I don't particularly enjoy it!) I am sure that I will have plenty of opportunities in the coming years to hear Adam sing. I imagine he'll be around for years to come. But in the meantime, I definitely don't want to stoop to the level of so many negative freaks on the internet... so, I do apologize to Adam for my colorful (and negative) choice of words. I hope he can forgive me. I imagine he doesn't give a damn! :-) God knows he shouldn't. :-)

Now, for those of you who are able to comment on this.... lets take bets as to which bits and pieces of this blog will end up mass distributed. Be creative.... they don't seem to care about punctuation or whether or not they use all of the words in a sentence... so, have fun.... ;-)


Clay did not have to do this. He owed no one an apology for his opinion stated on a private board, and then taken and blown up into more than it was. I am proud, however, that he saw fit to do so anyway. Always fair. You rock, Clay.

A Few Words From Clay Aiken

I saw these quotes from Clay posted on a Clay Aiken fan site today....

From his book "Learning to Sing"

"Stop worrying what other people think of you.

Be willing to take risks.

Failing doesn't hurt. Not trying does.

You can make an impression on someone without having to win.

Listen to your heart.

Stand up for what you believe in.

Keep on the sunny side of life.

Use your voice.

Make a joyful noise."


Inspirational words for sure. Clay also in the past has said to say what you gotta say, some will like it, some won't. Here's a funny clip from him in concert saying just that.





So here we have a young man, who advocates free speech, who answers a fan question on a private site in a non-malicious way, with qualifiers, being attacked by those who do not share his opinion. He states an opinion based on his own admittedly limited knowledge, much like most of us do on a daily basis, and the resulting hoopla is unbelievable.

On many sites, Clay's blog has not been posted in it's entirety, and his words have been made to appear much worse than they are. To read his entire blog, go here.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Clay Aiken and Mother Teresa's Words

Clay Aiken has always struck me as an old soul. He is certainly wise beyond his years. Recently he posted on his blog the immortal words of the incomparable Mother Teresa.

5/12/2009

Love this

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway. In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

~Mother Teresa


A great philosophy to aspire to.
Add to Technorati Favorites