OK The American Idol was crowned. What do you think?

[katerkat]

I was disappointed, of course. I was a Clay fan from day one. I really don't think it matters, though -- both will have music careers. We'll see who's still around in a couple years.

 

[disneychrista]

Actually Ryan first said it was 130,000 then at the end said the accountants messed up and it was only 1,300. I don't care which it is, with such a small % of the total votes (less then 1%) they are both winners in my book, even though Ruben will have the "title" of American Idol 2.

 

[chelsea&austinsmom]

I treid to vote for Clay but kept getting a busy signal.

 

[CourtasanSatine]

I ended up using the speed redial on my cell phone

 

[RweTHEREyet]

Ryan never struck me as the sharpest tool in the shed - I'll bet he read the number wrong.

Maybe he read the name wrong, too.

sorry, couldn't help it.

 

[Parrotheader]

I liked both of these guys from the first time I heard them sing. Clay's voice is nothing short of amazing and Ruben's is likewise extremely powerful and full of emotion and had me in awe from his first performance on. Granted, I'm from Birmingham so I'm biased.

But I've also got another angle on this that apparently puts me in the minority as far as demographics go on this particular forum - I'm a 27 year old male. It seems like the majority of people actively posting here are women and I've noticed that by and large women seem to be FAR more likely to like Clay than guys do. I'm not saying all guys don't like him (I personally do), I just think a lot of men are less likely to be drawn to Clay in comparison to Ruben. I'm sure it has to do with Clay's more effeminate nature and singing style in comparison to Ruben. I know most (but not all) of the guys I've met who have watched the show generally lean heavily toward Ruben with many citing that as one of the reasons (and that's not just guys from Birmingham; I travel to Chicago, Texas and California regularly and they all tend to say similar things in that regard.) I agree that as a fairly typical 'guy' I'm not personally drawn that much toward Clay's singing style, but I definitely admire and respect his overwhelming talent.

Like people stigmatize Ruben with the 'he always sounds R&B' comments, I likewise think Clay almost 'always sounds sort of Broadwayish.' We've all heard these generalizations and I honestly don't mean that as a slam. They each tried to sing different style and different paced songs at times during the competition, but they always end up having their own style shine through somehow - it just depends on whose style you're predisposed to like IMO. When we go to Vegas in a couple weeks, I'd love to see Clay perform because that's the style I personally can't help but think of every time he performs (especially in his amazing performance of Bridge Over Troubled Waters which was a DEAD ringer for Elvis' rendition.) But as a guy, I just can't see myself listening to a Clay CD while driving around in my car. I can easily see myself grooving along to some Ruben though. Of course I just finished burning a CD that had some of the best songs of both guys (as well as some of the other contestants) so I can take a little of many of the contestants in moderation.

They're both going to do fantastic after all of this given how much more publicity this year's show got and how strong of a fan base both guys have.

 

[disneycrazed139]

I think the lines were so flooded for Clay, that those who wanted to vote for Clay went to bed...giving Ruben the win. They're both great, but Clay should have won.

 

[disneychrista]

Well where it counted Clay won. He beat Ruben in sales.