Ruben Studdard is dishing all about his close friendship with Clay Aiken.
The 46-year-old singer opened up about their relationship while chatting exclusively with Parade amid working on his new acoustic cover album. Studdard and Aiken, 46, competed on Season 2 of American Idol together, with Studdard being crowned winner over Aiken in the finale (Kimberley Locke came in third).
Studdard and Aiken also reunited on Broadway in 2018 for a limited run of Ruben & Clay’s First Annual Christmas Carol Family Fun Pageant Spectacular Reunion Show. They’ve also toured together and appeared on The Masked Singer last year.
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“I think that it is probably different for people to see people that competed with one another have a relationship or a friendship, and I think that’s what is interesting,” Studdard explains. “But we are family. Especially the people that were on my season, we built [a] bond with each other. I think that is definitely familiar, and not just something that is passing. We still have a Season 2, Top 3 [chat], that we text each other every other day. We see pictures of each other’s kids, and we talk. And we’re family because we lived with each other for months, you know?”
He adds: “Clay and I, we got a chance to be on the road together. We’ve done Broadway and tours and all kinds of things. His son [Parker, 17] calls me Uncle Ruben, and my son [Olivier, 5] calls him Uncle Clay. I mean, we’re family. So, just when you see us on the road together, just know we definitely built a familiar relationship early on.”
Related: Ruben Studdard Reveals If He’s Seen ‘Biggest Loser’ Doc — and Who He Keeps in Touch With (Exclusive)
As for his new music, Studdard says that he hopes his acoustic cover album will hopefully be out early next year.
“I’ve been in the studio for the last couple of months working [on a] ‘my ode to Billy Joel‘ kind of album,” he explains. “So it’s kind of a piano project.”
Related: ‘American Idol’ Reveals Judges and Audition Info for 2026
