Aiken came in second place in 2003 behind Ruben Studdard, with whom he is still close friends
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NEED TO KNOW
- Clay Aiken revealed that American Idol season 2 contestants still stay in touch through a group chat
- Aiken and Ruben Studdard celebrated their season’s 20th anniversary with a joint tour in 2023
- Aiken recently released his first new single in 18 years
American Idol's second season transformed the show into a cultural phenomenon in 2003 — and all these years later, the singers who made it happen are still in touch.
Clay Aiken, who was the season's runner-up, revealed that the contestants all still talk in a group chat, and some even met up a few years ago when he toured with winner Ruben Studdard.
“We stay in touch. I mean, I don't see how anybody could go through that experience and not be very good friends with people who they did it with,” Aiken said on the Classic Conversations podcast with Jeff Dwoskin on Sunday, June 14. “Our whole season is connected… It's 23 years on and we still have a thread that we can all pop into and check in with each other, and wish happy birthday and whatnot.”
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The singer, 47, said they “mostly don't talk business,” and instead check on how their respective families are doing and celebrate various milestones.
“The only time we ever talk business is back when I was touring — and I may be again — folks will come out to the show when you're in their town,” he explained.
Aiken and Studdard, 47, celebrated their season's 20th anniversary with a joint tour in 2023, and Aiken said fellow season 2 stars Julia DeMato, Charles Grigsby, Carmen Rasumsen and Vanessa Olivarez all attended a show.
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“We sit down and talk crap about, ‘Oh, remember such and such,'” he said. “They're those friends who you can get together with and talk to like it hasn't been 23 years.”
In the post-Idol years, Aiken— who recently released the single “Rewind,” his first new original music in 18 years — and Studdard have forged a special bond. In addition to their recent tour, they competed together on The Masked Singer in 2024, and also consider one another uncles to their respective children.
“I love working with Ruben. I love being around him,” said Aiken. “He's my brother.”
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Meanwhile, American Idol season 6 winner Jordin Sparks previously told PEOPLE that the Top 10 contestants on her season, which aired in 2007, are also still in touch via group chat.
"Melinda, my beautiful, loving Melinda, she just celebrated a birthday and so we were all making sure that we told her about that, but it's really cool to be able to keep in touch with them because… I feel like I can't speak for other seasons, but for my season we really all got very close, and I don't know what I would've done without all of them," she told PEOPLE in October.
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