2003-08-10
5:54 a.m.

BEVR: Erin/Atlanta

My boyfriend gave me this advice today as I was driving down to the concert, "Do not let anyone poop on your party!" And boy I didn't. I did what I wanted, acted like I was the only person there, and didn't give a flip what people thought!

As many of you know I went to the Clay concert with my mom, sister and 75 year old grandmother. Robin (who lives down the road from me) and I had talked on the phone and decided to meet early before the concert at the CNN center which is attached to Phillips arena. Well, I was late, traffic was crazy because there was a Falcons game being held next door and I was so scared that I would miss Robin and never get to meet her! My sister and I left my mom and grandmother behind to go directly into the arena and find their seats. My sister and I took off to see if I could find Robin. I walk in the door of CNN, looked to my left, looked to my right and there she is, that little 5'2" Robin!!!!! I couldn't believe I had spotted her so quickly. Serendipity. She had brought her son Max with her and Amber, a Broad who has posted before, but never met either one of us until tonight!

Robin and Amber had decorated their shoes with 'I love Clay,' and Robin had pinned on the back of her red shirt a white piece of cloth with LBFCA written on it. Robin, Amber and I started hugging and screaming and comparing signs that we had made (on cloth material to sneak in easily). Some woman walked up to us and said "I know who you are! You're the LECHEROUS BROADS!" We beamed. I'm so proud to be a Broad.

Two young girls (aged 13 and 11, I would surmise) walked up to me and told me that they loved my shirt. I had on a red t-shirt with a picture of Clay singing airbrushed on the back of it. I bought it off of ebay for $65. I know that we don't like that people are making money off of him, but I had to buy it y'all, it was part of my concert get up. One of the young girls had this cute purse her mom had made for her with all kinds of pictures of Clay on it. It was so cute. I told her that her mom rocked. I asked them where their seats were and they were very close to me.

Ok, so we finally decide we should head into the concert, after making the required bathroom stop. Amber and I were sitting pretty close to one another (on the right side of the stage near the stage). Robin was on the other side and we could wave to one another the whole time. We would flash our signs back and forth! It was so wonderful knowing that I had a "an old friend" there.

Before the concert started I took out my first sign. It was the smallest one I had made, just a 4 foot by 1 foot banner with L B F C A in huge purple letters (on yeah and it had glitter on it, too). I never paid attention to any of the crappy commercials on the big screens. I just kept holding up my sign and looking into the crowd to see all the Clay fans. I had fifth row seats on the right side of the stage (not on the floor, in the first section up). I saw Jerome, he was pretty close to where I was, but I didn't do anything. At this point, I was beginning to have an out of body experience.

That's when all of a sudden I hear "HEY YOU, LECHEROUS BROAD, COME DOWN HERE!" And there is this woman standing on the floor in front of me motioning at me. I think to myself, "oh my God, Erin, you are famous!" hehehe. So as I am walking down I realize that this woman is saying "I AM THERESA, I AM THERESA!" I start screaming and sprint down the steps. I give her this huge hug! Can you believe it, I hugged someone who hugged Clay!

Theresa is so wonderful! I told her how awesome she did and how we love her so much for mentioning us! I thanked her a thousand times. We talked about her BEVR! I told her how I couldn't believe that she was able to speak coherently to him and that we loved any and all press we could get. Theresa told me that she had heard the first interview where Clay said that we were frightening and she wanted to make sure that he knew that we are NOT frightening, but that we are so funny. That's right girl, we are soooooo funny! I just couldn't believe that she had driven down here to Atlanta to come to the concert. Thank you again Theresa for mentioning LBFCA and Kat's donut pic! I told Theresa that we all watched her on video. Can you believe that Theresa had no idea that there was video of her meeting him! Theresa was so sweet and I'm so proud that I got the chance to meet her. Thank God I made my Lecherous Broad signs.

So the concert starts, fortunately to my right there are about six seats totally empty and the six rows behind me are basically empty. I stand up for Charles because I'm so ding dang excited! Charles sings...you know...I re-apply lipstick during Kim Caldwell's number, I have to look hot for Clay. During Carmen, I decide that I need some gum, because the beer that I had earlier at CNN is not making my breath smell nice. I cannot hardly hear her singing, thank goodness, but they have the background singers and music so loud to cover her, that it is the huge loud mess. Yuck. Trenyce was good, but what is with her Crystal Gayle hair extensions? Basically, I just get myself dolled up for Clay during the "opening acts." I did really enjoy Ricky and Kim Locke! Then, then, I start freaking.

I am jumping up and down like a crazy woman during the Clay's video montage. Then HE ascends from the depths and I am screaming, and screaming, everyone is screaming! He is singing, so people try to quiet down, they do for the most part, but not really. I am floating, above my body, I see him, yet I do not believe my eyes. Then he rips the mic out of the stand and starts doing knee bend after knee bend. I am knee bending with him. I am about to implode. I scream the whole time. I cannot help myself. I feel faint. Clay wore the dark purple tie tonight, perhaps the light purple one is being cleaned for it's appearance tomorrow.

I collect myself, the lights go out and I whip out my big a** LECHEROUS BROADS FOR CLAY AIKEN sign. He is talking, I cannot hear him, everyone is screaming so loud. Oh wait, is that me? For the life of me I don't remember what he said. I think it was something about being in Raleigh and Charlotte the past few nights and how he thought the crowd was outrageous there, but Atlanta was just as crazy. All I know is that he sounded weird. First I think, oh Clay is horse, but then it sounds like he is on helium. It was strange.

Now for the good part, he walks toward my side, I am holding my sign loud and proud, he points at me! Let me repeat that, HE POINTS AT ME! AND DOES A LITTLE WAVE! I'm thinking was that really for me? Am I imagining this? Apparently at about this time, a shot of me holding up my sign goes up on the big screens! I didn't witness this because I could not take my eyes off of him. But during intermission everyone told me that this happened and verified that yes, he was really pointing and waving at me!

Here's the sign!

(Ruben sings now... Yadda yadda yadda, I sit down, I must calm down, catch my breath, wipe the sweat off of me).

The lights come up for intermission and my family starts screaming, Clay saw you, he pointed at your sign! Then women from the floor seats start yelling at me to hold my sign up, they want to take my picture with it. They tell me that it was up on the screens! Yippee. Once again, I am beaming with pride and I am FAMOUS! I run over to find Amber and she and I try to communicate, which was basically each of us screaming at the other at the same time. Only a Broad could have interpreted this nonsense. Also during intermission, Shirl, a Claymate that lives here in Atlanta and occasionally lurks here, finds me and we scream at each other. For some reason the security lady wouldn't let her get close to me. Perhaps she had seen what a freak on wheels that I am.

So after that, I keep holding up my huge sign that says LECHEROUS BROADS FOR CLAY AIKEN! Soon after, another woman starts yelling from the floor, "hey lecherous broad, come down here!" So I take off down to the bottom row. This woman (I'm so sorry I think I never asked her name) tells me that she was the woman who threw the mac'n'cheese and Krispy Kreme donuts up on the stage in Richmond! Oh my God, I throw my arms around her! She told me that her friend lurks here and told her that we had mentioned this on our board. She thanked me profusely for doing this, of course I told her you're soooo welcome and looked like I was taking credit for it. However, please let me pass on a big ol' thank you to whomever posted about this! This woman loves you! After gushing over Clay and telling her all about the Broad Board, we part, because it looks like the concert is about to start.

Oh yeah, while I'm talking to the Richmond woman, Vanessa Oliverez is standing two feet away from me signing autographs. Did I get one? Did I want one? Umm, no, she made fun of my boy on the radio here in Atlanta. In fact she called him a DIVA and this was when AI2 was still on the air. So poo poo on her.

After saying goodbye to the Richmond lady, I head back to my seat and announce to my family and the people around us that I AM FAMOUS, yes it is I, LECHEROUS BROAD ERIN, and I'm loving it!

I think this is the order of events, honestly, I can't remember exactly who I met when, but I know I met them, I have witnesses. I wave to my little young girls that I met before the show! I just dance around my area (since all the seats next to me and behind me are still empty) with my sign during the rest of intermission, posed for a few pics, well actually my sign was the one that was posing. (I'm famous, didn't ya hear?)

The lights go down and here we go again. As the boys come out to sing "The Lady is a Tramp" here come the six people who have the seats next to me. They sit down, I'm screaming for Clay, they are in my freaking way! I cannot hold my sign up now. I must move!

So during his singing, I hated to take my eyes off of him, but I had to act fast. There were still two empty rows a few rows behind me, so my sign and I take off running. There are my two little girls, they have moved over from their section. They are standing up, shaking their booties, and screaming their heads off! Obviously, this is where I belong. They are glad to see me, I am glad to see them, we are thrilled to see Clay. So I missed most of the Lady is a Tramp part, but I am happy that I moved.

Then Ruben and Clay start doing their "The Girl is Mine" build up. Me and my little girls are standing up, screaming, I am waving my sign. This jerkoff two rows behind us yells at us to "SIT DOWN AND GO BACK TO YOUR REAL SEATS!" We sit down. We sit for a minute, then I remember what Joe (my boyfriend) said, "Don't let anyone poop on your party." So I say girls, let's stand! And we did.

Panties start flying up on stage, one after the other. Clay walks around picking them up or kicking them over into a little pile. Someone threw a Clay baseball cap up on stage and Clay puts this on top of Ruben's head. I cheer! Ruben says his thing about this being a family show and I yell, wrong, this is not a family show. They sing.

Oh Clay is just wonderful. His hair looked fantastic. I love his cut. It's shorter than it has been for a while. Ohhhhh, I just remembered Dean was there. (You know Dean Bannowitz, the guy who cut/styled Clay's hair on the show) Someone, maybe K-Lo, pointed him out. Like I said before Clay just looked gorgeous.

I didn't think it was possible, but I fell in love with him more tonight. Seeing him in person enhanced everything about him. I don't know how you can look at that man in person and not see this light that radiates out of him. The fans were rabid. The whole first five rows were almost solid red or Clay shirts and red glowsticks! I loved seeing all of these people because I knew that they were part of the Claynations and I felt this instant bond with all of them.

I liked Kim Caldwell's Pink song. Perhaps because I think Pink rocks and Kim came across as a "bad girl," which I so identify with! I kept looking at that motorcycle and thinking, hmmm, you know I think I would ride that thing if Clay were behind the wheel. Then I start daydreaming about Clay and I riding down the freeway with our hair blowing in the wind, my arms wrapped around him tight, thinking lecherous thoughts, of course!

I loved Ricky doing "Let's Get Crazy." I did get crazy. I was shaking my butt all over the place and having a ball. I was very surprised at how well Julia sounded, even though I had read all of y'all's BEVR's, she sounded tons better. In fact, most everybody sounded so much better at the concert than on the show, except for Carmen and Kim C. They were the same...

The entire time I am still having my out-of-body experience and occasionally something will pull me back down. Like I the smell of hot dogs. Who the hell is eating a hot dog right now! Don't you realize what is going on? How can you eat a hot dog at a time like this? Then I think about Wendy! Wendy could eat a hot a dog right about now, huh girl! I start to laugh (out loud) at myself, oh that Wendy, she is going to freak tomorrow night!

Clay sings "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" and boy can we. He can feel it too. He has this huge grin on his face. He wears his black shirt, jeans, and black/white Diesel Vegas. He is stunning. We scream through almost the whole thing. Hanging out with the 11 and 13 year old girls didn't help my 12 year old persona!

Oh I know that I am forgetting so much. I know all of you are thinking, ummm, will you shut up now?

Okay, so they sing "I've Had the Time of my Life" which I have, by the way. They introduce the band, Clay is adorable, I just watch him. I try to take it all in. The lights go down and my little girls start getting their stuff to head back to their mothers, but I stop them, "No, wait, it's not over! Clay is coming back out to sing!" They ask me how do I know this...geez girls, get with it. I tell them to trust me, I know what the heck I'm talking about. I tell them, "This is the best part!"

And it is. Clay comes out wearing a Thrashers jersey tucked in to his jeans. He tells us about recording his album...and starts to introduce his song, to which Amber and I both scream "INVISIBLE!" We are da bomb. At this point I lose all self control and I start singing Invisible at the top of my lungs. I wish that Robin could have seen me, she would have died laughing. I am dancing, I am doing the deep knee bends with Clay, I am clutching my shirt! I basically do his whole routine at the top of my lungs for everyone to see. He did do several tugs, but most of them were on the other side of the stage. I would occasionally try to stare up at the screen to get a good shot of one of his clutches, but the cameraman keeps the camera up above the hips. At the end of the song I can barely scream for him because I am starting to lose my voice after MY Invisible performance.

The crowd was amazing, we did not stop screaming. It went on and on, Clay tried to talk three times, but he had to keep stopping because we would not shut up! Finally he said his little thing about Ruben... During "Imagine" and "God Bless the USA" I just stood there holding up my sign swaying back in forth, relishing every last moment I had with him. It was beautiful. Clay did not cry nor did he seem emotional. At the beginning Kim C. was standing up there shaking her hips and "raising the roof" with her hands. To God Bless the USA? Ok, she is not a "bad girl" she's just trashy! During the song, Clay motioned down to Vanessa (they had mentioned that she was there earlier in the show and the cameras were put on her down in the floor seats). Clay does this come hither with his finger and I see Jerome walk over to the center, they pull her over the barricade and she gets up on stage to sign with them. They are all standing side by side, holding on to each other, and Vanessa stands next to Clay and he gives her his microphone! Why couldn't someone else do this??? Because he is the nicest guy, that's why. She wouldn't have even been up there if it hadn't been for Clay telling Jerome to get her up there, and then she takes his microphone! Ugh. Clay is too nice.

The concert ends, the lights come up, I head back down to join my family. They loved the concert. They said Clay was great, had the biggest cheers and loved Invisible. Theresa comes over again. I run down to her, this time her daughter Ashley is with her. I scream, "I know you, you're Ashley!" This girl thinks I have lost my mind. Theresa and I gush over how fantastic he is and I tell her to keep posting that we love her so much. Finally, a security guard makes us break it up and start moving. Amber runs over, we scream! We are out of breath, I am totally parched, but we run our mouths a mile a minute, comparing notes, etc.

We walk up the steps, get to the top and I take out my big LBFCA sign again. I proceed to walk around half of the arena holding my sign out and yelling at everyone to check it out! Several people yell, "We saw your sign on the big screens!" and "I saw your sign from the floor, I love you guys!" Yay LBFCA! I am pumped and am not ready to stop acting like an idiot! Amber realizes that I am truly one crazy broad. We are walking back to CNN to meet back with Robin. I could see Robin every time they turned the lights on during the concert and we would constantly wave at one another, but we were never able to talk and I couldn't wait to see her and tell her about all the cool people I met!

I see Robin! I start screaming, I'm running with my sign held up in the air, and finally I just wrap my arms around her and we are screaming together! We ended up standing in the CNN Center talking and talking! I kept holding up my sign to all the people walking by and screaming! Several women walked up and took my picture (with my sign) and I even had to pose with the back of my shirt. Shout out to Renee and Erin, who took our pictures with our signs and the back of my shirt! We told them about our website and they said they would check us out! Several other women did not know who we were, so we explained all about LBFCA. One woman even wrote down our website address so that she could come check us out! Several other people walked by my sign and yelled, hey we love you guys! We met some women who post at ClayAiken.com. I told them not to be hating on us, that we love him and respect him, and they laughed and said that they understood what we are all about. I met a woman who posts at the That's The Clay board, also. I met so many wonderful people and Broads! It was truly an amazing unforgettable night.

Erin

On August 13, 2003, a photo of Erin holding her LECHEROUS BROADS FOR CLAY AIKEN appeared on Rollingstone.com. See it here!

-Note from Nelle: You, too, can participate in the LBFCA Summer Series, and have your Broad's Eye View Report, or, for any other Brude's out there, your Summary of Clay, about Clay's Summer Concert Tour on the LBFCA Main Page. Just send it to Nelle via email, and she'll post it ASAP. (If you are a lurker, or otherwise wish to remain anonymous, just let me know that in your email). Don't worry about your BEVR not being the same size or looking the same as anyone elses. Here at LBFCA we celebrate diversity. Every BEVR is unique. This is your personal experience of witnessing what Katynka so gloriously described as "a little hockey-jersey-clutchin', white-leather-wearin', DTTR revealin', mic-flickin', thigh-strokin', eye-f***in', smokin', jokin', singin', hunk-o-burnin' libido."