Best of 2004...Biggest Bitch
This may be old news by now since I avoided all news while on vacay. But I never miss the chance to drag the name of one of those obnoxious American Idols through the mud. Especially when they deserve it. And pulling a bitch-on-wheels routine with a group of high schoolers is surely a deserving act. Especially when you're trying to convince the world you're not gay, CLAY.
So here's the background:
Clay Aiken invited a high school singing group from south Jersey to sing with him at his concert. Not just any group. These kids have sung Mozart's Requiem at Carnegie Hall. They've preformed on the Today show, and at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. They were given no advance notice about this great "opportunity" and only had two days to learn the music. Clay promised a nice donation to the school's music program, as well as "face-time" with the teens to sign autographs and take photos.
Fast-forward to show rehearsal:
Wherein Ms. Aiken pulls a Grand Bitch Diva act on the kids, berating them, calling security on one who took a photo of him without permission, renegging on the promised face-time and photo opps. Fed them an hour and a half late and brought in cold chicken mcnuggets. Happy Meals, for high schoolers. Woot! When one of the teachers dared to stand up for the students, the Idol told her she was a disgrace and had the NJ Teacher of the Year removed from the premises.
And his Diva-ness made a big to-do about presenting a $500 check to the students...who realized later that the envelope was EMPTY.
One student said, "I'd say I felt like a prostitute, but even a whore would've gotten paid. It was more like we got raped."
Way to go, Clay. You big man, you.
One bold teacher, in spite of Aiken's threats to "make trouble" for anyone who talked to the media, wrote an email that ended up on gawker.com. She was suspended from her job for it.
Then the Philadelphia Inquirer picked up the story. (A one-time free registration may be necessary to read this link.) Notice how the Principal of the school doesn't exactly rise to Clay's defense.
Clay, you really are the Biggest Bitch of 2004.
