That's Clay Aiken???

Boy, has he changed! I didn't recognize him when he first appeared in the finale of American Idol tonight, but the voice and the smile? Yup, that's him.

If you haven't followed his career since his "loss" on American Idol in 2003, check out this blog. Give yourself a few minutes because he's been busy.

In a nutshell, over 4 million CDs sold, 6 tours, including the American Idol tour, a co-headlining tour with Kelly Clarkson, 2 tours on his own, and 2 Christmas tours ($28 million in ticket sales), his Bubel/Aiken foundation, a UNICEF ambassadorship, a NY Times best seller, plus other TV and charity bits.

Congratulations to Taylor - may you follow in Kelly's footsteps! And Kat? Give Clay a call. He seems to have done just fine without the win.

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Clay Aiken
American Idol
Kelly Clarkson
Taylor Hicks
Katherine McPhee