Saturday, December 1, 2007

Never underestimate a Claymate

Or is or it Clay-mate? Either way...

I've got to give a big thanks to all the Clay Aiken fans who have responded to "Sean's Space" since Wednesday night, shattering the single-day record for hits to the blog!

When I found at (at the last minute) around 10 p.m. EST on Wednesday night that I'd be interviewing Clay, I posted here asking for his fans to e-mail me with a question for Clay, and I'd pick the best one. Now, being late here on the East Coast, I thought maybe a few e-mails would trickle in. Nope! In the first two hours, I got 32 e-mails from Clay's fans, each asking a question!

Set to talk to Clay at 11 a.m. Thursday morning, I had to stop taking readers' questions at 10:45 to pick a few to ask him. I had more than 134 questions e-mailed to me in less than 12 hours!

Amazing, Claymates! Absolutely incredible!
Thanks for the help!

Oh, but it gets better...

Having posted Clay's answers to your questions right at midnight Thursday night, I waited to see who'd come back to read the post. The response was amazing! Between midnight 12 a.m. Friday morning and 11:59 p.m., you devoted Claymates jammed "Sean's Space," breaking my previous one-day total for visitors to the blog by 225 percent!

(BTW, the previous record came back in August when I interviewed "American Idol" champ Taylor Hicks and included a few of his fans' questions, and then wrote a review of his Poughkeepsie show.)

So, again Claymates (or Clay-mates), I give you a heartfelt thanks for your interest and for coming back in droves. Tell your friends and keep coming back throughout the next week, as I'll keep updating you on his Poughkeepsie show here in town on Dec. 8th.

With fans like you, it's no wonder Clay is always so happy and laughing!

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your blogs and article made me happy to, so in my book, your a good guy.

Anonymous said...

UH OH, Sean,
We Claymates are in trouble now. Seems you are picking up one of Clays' habits of ........ giving Us the goods, in trickles!!!
Making us come back, for more and more, as you slowly tease us with trinkets of info. Yep, we will ALWAYS be here, for Clay. He is amazing.
Wherever Clay and Clays name goes, we are there. Either as cuddly cute kittens, spewing love and praise at him, or fierce angry tigers defending the medias', biased/false reporting about him.
We much prefer the gushy stuff, as it does indeed keep Clay smiling. We tend to feel he's more than paid his dues in this world. :-)
His happiness keeps Us happy and content.
Keep up the enjoyment of good peoples' writings, to you. Claymates are Good Enthusiastic Fans!!

Anonymous said...

Oh see, now that last line just won over many a Claymate, I'm sure! :) It's true... we love our man and we appreciate those who treat him with the respect he so deserves. Thanks for being one of those we can appreciate!

Anonymous said...

It is nice to see someone write articles, reviews and blogs who doesn't have to make snide insulting remarksso that people will read them. Good for you, you have enough confidence in your ability not to do this. I will be back to read again. Looking forward to your review of Clay's concert.

Anonymous said...

Awwww ... Sean. You were doing so well! You were talking to all of Clay's fans, not referring to any one segment within "Clay Nation". Now you've fallen into the all to common trap of speaking only to the 'Claymates'.

Yes, there are many fans who use that word. However there are also many who might do you bodily harm should you ever address them by that name! *g*

Please don't ignore the rest of us if any future blogs follow-up on Clay's concerts. We 'just plain fans' enjoy finding a spot where we feel like the whole of Clay Nation is included in the audience being addressed.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your unbiased comments.
As fans of Clay Aiken we have been called alot of derogatory things. To find someone who has integrity and takes journalism seriously is a rare commodity. You didn't have to slam, or write a tabloid story just to get hits. You have earned my respect.

Anonymous said...

Clay-Mation, the nation of cupcake makeup dudes that look like Clay. Clay stinks...

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Anonymous 6:12, you said it all. Clay Nation member.

Anonymous said...

lame..............

Anonymous said...

Piss off Anonymous. Clay's a terrific guy & a big Thanks for Sean to supporting the fans' interests.

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Sean for all your kind comments re us fans and Clay. :0)

I can't wait to read your article in full.

Thanks for getting answers to some questions for us fans, whether we call oursleves claymates or not. ;)

Anonymous said...

Sean, reading your blog has been very entertaining and informative. We're always interested in ANYTHING related to Clay and including us, by way of asking for questions, made it so much more personal. Had my fingers crossed, but mine wasn't one of them chosen. Your reporting has been fair and humorous and I'd like to thank you for that. I'll certainly be back to read your review. If you haven't seen Clay LIVE before, you're in for a special treat!

Sean T. McMann said...

Hey, everyone!

Thanks for your kind words. It's fun to invite fans into the interviewing process, and being fan of his music (I even told Clay I voted for him on "AI" and have all his CDs) it's nice writing about things I enjoy.

As for those who left negative comments, don't sweat it: I've been a HUGE Barry Manilow fan (going to see my 10th show next week) for more more than a dozen years, so I've heard it all. Don't let the nay-sayers get you down. And think about it: Even those few who left negative comments took the time to read about Clay and then felt compelled to write a comment ... what does THAT say about THEM?!

Enjoy "Sean's Space." I'll be back with more soon!

Anonymous said...

I know clay is not a MW. thank you

Anonymous said...

awww!!!

I really liked your blog!
Thanks for taking the time to let the fans participate.
I loved the last line especially. Clay is always positive and happy despite of everything that happens.

Good Job!! :]

Anonymous said...

Thanks Sean for your interesting article. How nice that you solicited questions from fans ~ always interesting to learn more about this kind and talented man. Keep up the great work!

Anonymous said...

Hey Sean, glad to see you appreciate the finer things in life- like great music. I'm a Claymate, but no matter what you call us, we love Clay's voice and the kind of man he is. (Congrats on being named by the NY AP as top sports writer!)

Anonymous said...

TAYLOR WHO?? ROFL!!

Sean , never underestimate the depth of devotion of a determined Claymate!!!! Clay is blessed to have THE most dedicated fan base !
Thank you for your blog and if you ever want MEGA hits to your site....just mention Clay's name !!!

Anonymous said...

Yep, I'm a Claymate and have never had more fun in my life. I've been a fan of Clay's since his AI days and everyday it seems I find something else to like about him - his great gift and devotion to helping children, his sense of humor, his gift of gab, his comedic timing, his staying humble, his laugh, his ability to put on such great shows - you're in for a real treat!

Thank you for your very positive article. I just found your Blog, will be back.

Anonymous said...

Sean
I really enjoyed reading your blog! It's nice to know that there are still REAL journalists out there that recognize talent and feel he can speak the truth and not have to write a bunch of trash to get hits! GREAT job! I'll sure be back to read more! :)