EJay Day facts for kids

Quick facts for kids EJay Day
Day singing on the MS Veendam cruise liner in 2012.
Background information
Birth name	Earl Day Jr.
Born	(1981-09-13) September 13, 1981 (age 43)
Origin	Lawrenceville, Georgia, United States
Genres	R&B, pop
Occupation(s)	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1999–present

Earl "EJay" Day Jr. (born September 13, 1981) is an American singer and songwriter. He became well-known after appearing on the first season of American Idol. EJay Day finished tenth in the competition.

He wasn't originally chosen to move forward in American Idol. However, he got a second chance when another contestant was disqualified for lying about their age. After making it to the top ten, EJay Day was the first person eliminated from the final rounds of American Idol history.

Before American Idol, EJay helped write a song called "Pure Love" for Raven-Symoné's album Undeniable. He also placed in the top 20 on another TV show called Popstars: USA.

After American Idol, EJay Day joined the 2002 American Idols LIVE! tour. He also performed at many charity events. In 2003, he toured again as part of a special Coca-Cola promotion. This tour featured different American Idol finalists performing in shopping malls. A recording of EJay singing "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain is on the album American Idol: Greatest Moments. This album came out in 2002 and reached number 4 on the Billboard 200 music chart.

EJay Day has not released a full album of his own. But he did work with another American Idol finalist, AJ Gil, on a song in 2003. The song, "Calling All Angels", was made for a charity called Give Kids the World. EJay and AJ first sang this song at the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California. Later that year, EJay released his own song, "Come Into My World". This song was played a little bit on the radio in Atlanta, Georgia. A full album with the same name was planned for around 2006, but it was never released.

Throughout his career, EJay Day has performed on cruise ships. He has worked with companies like Royal Caribbean and Holland America. EJay has also acted in several stage plays. He shares some of his original songs on his social media, which have not been officially released.

EJay Day's Early Life and Career

Earl Day Jr., known as EJay Day, grew up in Lawrenceville, Georgia. He was the youngest of four children. EJay started singing in church when he was very young. He said this helped him learn how to sing different parts and harmonies. Soon, he began performing in bigger places.

He signed with a talent agency in Atlanta. This agency also worked with other future American Idol finalists, Tamyra Gray and Diana DeGarmo. When he was twelve, EJay sang the National Anthem before an Atlanta Braves baseball game. By the age of fifteen, EJay was performing for many important people. These included President George Bush, U.S. Ambassador Andrew Young, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Hank Aaron, Andre Agassi, and Muhammad Ali. EJay reportedly sang for Muhammad Ali many times at his book signings and other events.

In 1999, EJay graduated from Central Gwinnett High School. In the same year, he helped write the song "Pure Love" for Raven-Symoné's album Undeniable. Before his American Idol audition, EJay worked as a singer and dancer at Six Flags Over Georgia. He also sang on a cruise liner and acted in musicals. He also competed on the second season of Popstars: USA, making it into the Top 20.

EJay Day on American Idol

EJay Day auditioned for American Idol in Atlanta, Georgia. He was twenty years old. He sang "Get Here" by Oleta Adams. EJay was initially cut from the competition. But he was brought back to the semi-finals. This happened because another contestant, Delano Cagnolatti, was disqualified. Delano was twenty-nine, but contestants had to be twenty-four or younger that season.

EJay was placed in Group 3 for the Top 30 semi-finals. He performed "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain. Even though he had less time to get ready, the judges liked his performance. He was voted into the top ten. For the first round of the finals, each contestant had to sing a Motown song. EJay chose "My Girl" by The Temptations. All three judges praised him, and Randy Jackson even said he was the best that night. However, EJay received the fewest votes and was the first finalist to be eliminated from American Idol.

Music critics have had different opinions about EJay Day's performances on American Idol. After he was eliminated, Jessica Shaw from Entertainment Weekly agreed with his low placement. She didn't like his fashion or his song choice that week. However, EJay's recorded version of "I'll Be" on the American Idol: Greatest Moments album received better reviews. Jon Caramanica, also from Entertainment Weekly, even said EJay "got robbed." Dave Wedge of The Boston Herald also highlighted "I'll Be" on the album. He wrote that EJay "show[s] personality along with some polish."

Rodney Ho of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ranked EJay Day twelfth among notable Georgians on American Idol. He noted that EJay's live performance of "I'll Be" had "some tonal issues" but was mostly in tune. In 2013, Cristin Maher from PopCrush wrote that EJay showed "sweet" and "smooth" vocals on the show. Simon Cowell later said that EJay "could outsing Justin Guarini any day of the week."

EJay Day's performances on the 2002 American Idols LIVE! tour also received mixed reviews. Rodney Ho thought EJay performed better than some higher-ranked contestants. He called EJay's voice "the best of guys'." Amy Amatangelo found EJay's performance "energetic." However, other critics like Kevin C. Johnson and Jim Derogatis were less positive. Johnson criticized EJay's appearance, and Derogatis called his performance "completely forgettable."

EJay Day's American Idol Performances

• EJay was initially cut during Hollywood Week. He was brought back to the Top 30 semi-finals to replace a disqualified contestant.

EJay Day's Career After American Idol

Day performing on the cruise ship MS Veendam in 2012 (with an unidentified guitar player on his left)

Less than a month after the first American Idol finale, EJay Day reunited with the top thirty contestants. They performed in a TV special called American Idol in Las Vegas. EJay then joined the 2002 American Idols LIVE! tour from October to November. He opened each of the thirty shows by singing "Black Cat" by Janet Jackson.

To welcome 2003, EJay performed in Pasadena, California's New Year's Day Rose Parade. He was on a float for Give Kids the World with AJ Gil. They sang "Calling All Angels," a song written especially for the charity. The band OTown also participated on this float. EJay and AJ later performed "Calling All Angels" at a fundraising event in Orlando, Florida, and released it as a single for Give Kids the World.

Later that year, EJay took part in more fundraising events. He performed at the Hollywood Knights Season Wrap Party and NSYNC's Challenge for the Children event. In the spring, EJay joined Coca-Cola's "Behind the Scenes With American Idol" tour. He and other finalists from the first two seasons of American Idol performed in shopping malls. Around this time, EJay also sang the National Anthem for Georgia sports teams like the Atlanta Hawks and the Atlanta Thrashers. In November, EJay performed with Edwin McCain and American Idol finalist Vanessa Olivarez at a tree lighting ceremony.

The MS Veendam, a cruise ship where EJay Day has often performed

Soon after American Idol, EJay Day went back to performing on cruise ships. Between 2005 and 2008, he performed on two different ships for Royal Caribbean. By 2011, EJay had a musical act on Holland America's MS Veendam. EJay has also been in several theater productions.

The American Idol: Greatest Moments album, released on October 1, 2002, includes EJay Day singing "I'll Be." The album reached number 4 on the Billboard 200 chart. EJay has not released his own full album. However, he mentioned during his American Idol time that he might title an album Fire or Eye Candy. After the show, he told Billboard that he dreamed of working with The Neptunes on music similar to Britney Spears.

Five months later, People magazine reported that EJay was recording "demo tapes." In April of the next year, EJay told Orlando Weekly that he had finished a song called "Come Into My World." In July 2003, "Come Into My World" was released as a single. According to EJay's official website, the song was played on two radio stations in Atlanta. Today, "Come Into My World" can be heard on EJay's StarNow account, along with another song, "My Lovin's Too Good Too Wait."

In September 2006, the Gwinnett Daily Post reported that EJay Day had recorded a full album. This album was to be called Come into My World, like his single from three years earlier. Although it was never released, the album was said to have original songs that mixed R&B with pop music. EJay told the publication that "many of the songs were inspired by his experiences performing on cruise ships." His official website noted that EJay, Charlie Morgan, and Georgi Ivanov wrote the songs.

In 2008, USA Today reported that EJay was "beginning to record a dance album with producers the Perry Twins." In 2012, Baltimore OUTloud reported that the Perry Twins were writing and producing new music for EJay. Two years later, on September 4, 2014, EJay uploaded a song called "Need You in My Life" to his YouTube channel. He wrote that this was the first song where he truly understood "the meaning [of] songwriting." He also noted that it was inspired by a relationship where he and the other person had to separate, even though they cared deeply for each other.

EJay Day's Music

Singles

Songs on Compilation Albums

See also

In Spanish: EJay Day para niños