Although viewers may be confused by Clay Aiken's recent wardrobe choice as he makes his "Celebrity Apprentice" promotion rounds, the hoodie-sporting "American Idol" alum's clothing choice has much significance -- it's Aiken's way of showing support for slain Florida teen, Trayvon Martin.
"The Trayvon Martin story has gotten a lot of coverage already but this is in memory of him," Clay told me on the set of 'New York Live.' "As a father, you think about your own kid and mine is really young but this could be anyone’s child. We need to have something happen here, some sort justice and arrest. I’m not saying a conviction, I'm just saying an arrest and a jury deciding this instead of just some cops.”
Clay has returned to reality TV with this season's "Celebrity Apprentice," on which insiders say he does very well. But it wasn't an easy road, Aiken says -- succeeding on Donald Trump's show is a lot harder than competing on "American Idol."
“When you put a bunch of people that are sort of Alpha into a room together, it can become difficult,” Clay tells me. “These are 15-hour days. You are in the room with someone from 5:00 in the morning until 10:00 at night. It’s a long, long day and after a while you get tired of hearing people talk.”
However, one thing Clay is not tired of is hearing people talk about Trayvon Martin.
Celebrities show their support for Trayvon Martin on Twitter.