American Idol: Revenge of the Runners-Up!

They were second place, but they're still Idols to millions. (Well, most of them.) Catch up with Clay, Katharine and the rest. By Brian Orloff

  • CLAY AIKEN photo | Clay Aiken

Credit: Courtesy: Everett Collection/20th Century FOX ; James Murphy/Loud & Clear;

Updated: Friday Jan 12, 2007 | 12:00 PM EST

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CLAY AIKEN

Season 2 Runner-Up
Ask the "Claymates" and they'll tell you 2003's real Idol was not Ruben Studdard but Aiken, 28, who recently released his third album A Thousand Different Ways. Despite some bumps in the road (his Kelly Ripa encounter!), Aiken continues to hit the right notes. But there's something else he'd like to accomplish: starting a family. "I want to be a father so badly," he told PEOPLE in September.