I’ve seen and read several times over the weekend about Clay “losing” a battle between himself and RCA and/or Clive Davis. First of all, I have no idea if this whole battle thing is true, simply because it is only a rumor for me, not fact. Yes, I can imagine this scenario as a possibility…but since there are no facts that show me this happened (or is continuing to happen), I continue to treat this as speculation.

But let’s imagine for a second that this battle took place, and Clay actually did “lose.” If this were presented to me, here is what my I would say:

So?

I suppose that would seem callous to some…but let me explain something.

I can see a bit where people would be upset about Clay losing a battle such as this. First of all, there’s that darn AI training…and many of the fans managed to turn that into a plus. And then there is the “I want what Clay wants” idea. I do want that for Clay as well.

However…

I have a tremendous amount of faith in Clay Aiken. I think that one battle lost will not be the end of his career. I also fully believe that he is a man that can pick himself up, dust himself off, and start all over again when things don’t quite go the way he imagined.

The thing that keeps popping into my head is that he still has TIME. His first album? Wildly successful. The Christmas niche album? Also wildly successful. If this second album, no matter what kind of material is on it, sells half the units that MOAM did…he’ll have bought himself more time. Time to continue to explore artistic growth, if he feels that need. (BTW, yes, I do think the new album will sell a goodly number – those not.just.us fans are out there. And I do think the publicity for the new album will be there as well. Maybe my faith in RCA is misplaced, I don’t know…but they are in the record industry, I’m not.) Anyway, I get the feeling that many fans are losing patience – and this disappoints me. I sense that “since Clay lost this battle, he’ll NEVER be a pop/rock star” from at least a few people. I truly don’t believe that…because it is just way too soon to judge.

One more thing. Clay asked us in his blog to "open our minds." Again, the gnashing of teeth began almost immediately from some in the fandom. I, however, took this as a challenge...an exciting challenge. I think of it as a way to expand my horizons...something else that can take time. It's similar to those college classes that were hated at the time, because they were HARD. But, in retrospect, it is discovered that those turned out to be FAVORITE classes because they took time and challenged us. What this challege can mean, I don't really know. But you know what? I look forward to it, regardless.

Clay, I doubt seriously if you will read this. But if you do, I want you to know that as far as I’m concerned, you have all the time in the world. Continue to fight your fights, continue to “redefine your own pop star,” and know that at least one fan will be with you…always.