Clay Aiken became an international sensation in the wake of his appearance on the hit television show, ‘American Idol.’ In spite of his growing stardom, Aiken has remained steadfast in his desire to remain true to the simple values he learned as a child in Raleigh, North Carolina. “I still live in the town where I grew up,” he says. “I like surrounding myself with people I know and love.” It is this authenticity that his millions of fans have responded to, an almost supernatural earnestness that feels unconventional in the cynical world of today.

While the accolades that followed his stunningly close second-place finish on the second season of American Idol have validated him in ways that he never could have dreamed of, it is the charitable work that his musical career has enabled him to do that means more to him than anything else these days.

Mr. Aiken created the Bubel/Aiken Foundation in 2003, an organization that promotes and funds educational and recreational programs for children with special needs. “I worked with Mike Bubel, who has autism, when I was going to school at UNCC,” says Mr. Aiken. “His mother was very instrumental in encouraging me to get into this business.” The Foundation remains close to the singer’s heart at all times. “My music career has allowed me to do the same thing I was doing before—work with kids with disabilities,” he says. “It has given me a big stage to talk about the same things I always cared about. I don’t get to be as hands-on with the kids anymore, but I do get to work toward enacting change on a much larger scale.”

Also important to Mr. Aiken’s life as a humanitarian is his work as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF. Since 2005, the singer has been passionately committed to supporting the organization’s education programs. Not only has Mr. Aiken testified before Congress urging the government to allocate more funds for UNICEF’s global work for children, he has also traveled to Indonesia and Uganda to see the devastating conditions affecting millions of the world’s children first-hand—disease, malnutrition, kidnapping, and war, chief among them. “You just cannot believe how some of these kids are forced to live,” says Mr. Aiken. “It’s truly heartbreaking, yet many people don’t even know these conditions exist. I am hoping to shed light on some of these problems and so that more resources can be allocated to help make things better.”

Mr. Aiken’s upcoming album A THOUSAND DIFFERENT WAYS expresses the many different kinds of love in the world, including his deep love for his fellow man, particularly the littlest ones among us. Where did such a driving need to help others come from? “The need for help!” he answers matter-of-factly. “You know, my mother has always been someone who urged me to help people in need. Maybe that’s it. I don’t think it’s something you can learn. It’s just something you do.”

11/22/06 CLAY APPEARS ON THE TYRA BANKS SHOW

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CLAY'S INTERVIEW WITH TYRA WAS THE "BEST EVER TO DATE" ACCORDING TO A NOTE CLAY SENT WITH FLOWERS - PROMPTLY CAUSING THE CLAY NATION TO SPECULATE:

CLAY AND TYRA - WHAT ARE YOU DOING NEW YEAR'S EVE?
YOUTUBE LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIcrd1p1ou8

CLAY AND TYRA FLIRT, HUG, DANCE AND FINALLY KISS GOODBYE AT THE END OF THE SHOW!