Even though, as Simon Cowell pointed out, discovering that Clay Aiken is gay is like “being told Santa Claus isn’t real,” apparently there are a few adults out there who still sit home on Christmas Eve hoping that St. Nick can navigate his way in foul weather.

Message boards devoted to the former “American Idol” runner-up included comments like, “This is really shocking news, as I had no idea he was gay” and “I feel numb I’m so upset; this can’t be real!”

Some among Aiken’s ardent fans, the so-called Claymates, had a visceral reaction to the singer’s announcement last week that he was gay, expressing dismay and questioning whether they can continue to support him. But most took the news with a blink and a shrug, and that seems to be true for the general public as well.
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Clay Aiken appears on the cover of the latest People magazine holding his infant son, Parker Foster Aiken, with the headline: “Yes, I’m Gay.”

The 29-year-old former “American Idol” runner-up, multiplatinum recording artist and Broadway star credits his son, conceived by in-vitro fertilization with friend and producer Jaymes Foster, with making him realize that he could no longer hide his homosexuality from the world.

“It was the first decision I made as a father,” Aiken told the magazine, which arrives on newsstands Friday. “I cannot raise a child to lie or to hide things. I wasn’t raised that way, and I’m not going to raise a child to do that.”

Aiken, who rose to fame on “Idol” in 2003, has long been the subject of rumors and tabloid fodder that he was gay, but usually refused to acknowledge them. In an interview with The Associated Press two years ago, he said of the talk: “I don’t really feel like I have anybody to answer to but myself and God and the people I love.”

Aiken said he only told his family that he was gay four years ago. He recalled a tearful discussion with his mother in a car after dropping off his brother, who was being sent to Iraq, at a military base.

“It was dark. I was sitting there, thinking to myself. I don’t know why I started thinking about it … I just started bawling. She made me pull over the car and it just came out,” he said. “She started crying. She was obviously somewhat stunned. But she was very supportive and very comforting.”

Aiken said his mother “still struggles with things quite a bit, but she’s come a long way.”

The magazine cover features Aiken holding his son, who was born in August. The baby’s mother is Aiken’s record producer, whom he met while performing on “Idol.”

Aiken, who considers himself a born-again Christian, said he knows he may turn off some fans — known as Claymates — with his admission and his decision to have a child outside traditional marriage.

“I’ve never intended to lie to anybody at all,” he said. “But if they leave, I don’t want them to leave hating me.”
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