American Idol’s Adam Lambert is coming out in both senses of the phrase on the cover of the Rolling Stone.
Want to say I’m gay on the cover,
But first I got to come out to my mother
Want to see my gay gay face
On the cover of the Rolling Stone.
Wait a minute! Adam Lambert? Wow, I thought the ladies loved him! Never would have guessed!
I can’t wait - I keep imagining some really awesome outfits and/or poses on that cover.
I’m thinking a sequined g-string, feathered cape, surrounded by male models.
A girl can dream!
Heh. It annoyed me when his (and Clay Aiken’s) fans would get so defensive and HE’S NOT GAY!
Well, yeah, he obviously is. And why’s it matter?
I honestly wonder if these guys lose some of their screaming girl fans when they come out, and if so wtf were they thinking in the first place.
I think both of them were closeted by AI, really. Especially with Lambert, it’s obvious from the photos that are out there that he had no problem with being very publicly queer before he entered the Idol competition. I think Aiken was probably much more discreet prior to AI, either for religious or upbringing reasons (he’s always seemed very private offstage, not just about orientation), but I also think AI seriously pushed him further back in.
My first thought was, "isn’t that K. D. Lang? Then I thought, "nah, too much makeup and way too glam.
Not quite. Aiken has said that he was completely closeted before and during AI, and only came out to his family in 2004. So if AI had anything to do with his staying in the closet, it might have been simply that the media attention freaked him out.
I disagree that AI forced Adam into any closet. He’s simply never said “I’m gay” on-air or in the press since he has been on Idol. During this season Adam has been playfully coy about any direct questions (“I know who I am…I’m not shy about anything…it’s all about singing”). He has said many times that the AI production has never told him what not to say or do, and have been very supportive of him and how he presents himself.
If anything, I suspect that the decision not to say the words “I’m gay” on air (as opposed to, like, just being gay) was just as likely to be Adam’s decision as a suggestion by the producers. Not because it would reflect badly on the show, but that it would distract from the competition and the talent of both he and the other performers, which I’m sure it would have. It’s true that other contestants got to drone on and on about their marriages and kids while Adam’s personal life has been ignored, but I think Adam was savvy enough to understand that a certain amount of speculation and not-very-mysterious mystery would increase interest in him, and thus his profile. The guy is nothing if not a shrewd self-marketer.
Also it makes sense that he wouldn’t directly answer the question in the immediate post-finale aftermath either, since that would distract all attention from his friend Kris’s win, and from the AI in general, and he was still beholden to do the press rounds in support of the show and the upcoming tour. However, he’s continued to tease the issue in numerous ways - speaking of the “pink elephant” in the room, of being the object of “social projections,” and in a hilarious deadpan, declaring “I like the top” then bursting into laughter (“that was inappropriate”) after being asked what bunk he’d prefer on the tour bus. (video link)
So the Rolling Stone article isn’t really a “coming out,” since he was never really “in.” It’s just his first public declaration of his sexuality since AI ended. And, who knows, maybe RS approached him months ago with a deal that his first public “outing” would be through their story, and his current evasiveness has to do with that agreement.
And as a screaming girl–er, fortyish woman–fan myself, I have to say I only started paying attention to him after I found out he was gay, and still think he’s about the sexiest thing to happen to pop music in decades. So I really don’t think Adam has anything to worry about in terms of losing fans.
Screaming …er…girl here. From as long as I can remember, I have loved teh gays. My mom (another screaming girl) has a Clay Aiken CD I gave her for mother’s day and I will be buying whatever Adam will be selling. “Losing screaming girl fans after coming out” sounds so…dated. Maybe in the Bible thumping belt they like big, hairy macho knuckle-draggers just for the principle of the thing.
I don’t know much about this American Idol thing, but somehow yesterday I found myself reading the (pretty damned amusing) blog of Adam Lambert’s brother, Neil. From a recent entry:
*Let’s face it: Lambert’s a household name. Yes yes, I know that everyone has seen Highlander and thus Christopher Lambert is already a household name, but I don’t want to be related to an immortal. Besides, I am already related to a glittery alien from planet Fierce.
So millions of women across the globe would attack him with their vaginas if given the chance. The question is, how do I harness this power to satiate my carnal urges?! For starters, I could start by never saying “carnal urges” to any woman ever. How about these, then?
“Baby, this is as much Lambert as you’re gonna get. Care to settle?”
“…thing is, we both do incredible things with our mouths…”
“8pm, Fox. 11pm, Cock. See… because they’re both animals! No? You’re leaving aren’t you.”
“This was a really tough decision. Both of you are incredibly talented, but… Tiffany, you’re going onto the next round!”
“Oh, yea, my brother is Adam Lambert. It’s cool I guess… I dunno. I don’t really watch him. I’ve got my own shit going on, y’know? Like, it’s cool that he can sing and everything, but does he own a website? No. Does he sing and write lame shit on the internet? No. I hope he’s happy being half as successful as I am, I don’t know how I could live like that, y’know?”*
Heh.
Straight men don’t BS when asked “Are you gay,” they say “NO.”
Let’s see “George Michael,” “Elton John,” “Darren Hayes,” etc etc all hacked around the question.
Even Darryl Hall when asked by “Rolling Stone” in the early 80s said “Yeah I’ve been with guys, but I have a girlfriend now, and I prefer woman.” And then he said “No, John Oates isn’t gay and we’ve never had sex.”
A straight man isn’t going to hack around the question. There’s no reason for him not to.
But most of the AI contestants have only one shot to make money. That’s going to be the little girls and if they can’t fantasize about him, they won’t buy.
It’s a shame the lesson for gay youth has become, “hide and sell out till you’re on a pile of money, then the gay community will say it’s OK you were ashamed of what you are, as long as you have money.”
Wait, how is it the fault of the gay community that people are staying in closet?
Cover photo and quotes revealed today, the magazine apparently hitting stands in major markets tomorrow:
Hotness!
Save a tree and five bucks (or whatever) and read it all from here. Someone pointed out that some of the most interesting stuff wasn’t about his sexuality at all, but how a club kid from L.A. manages to fit into the Idol machine and remain true to himself.
And although it’s hardly mentioned, you can just tell that he and Gokey despised each other - I’m looking forward to the post-tour tell-all. Let us note who of the top four hasn’t been signed to a label yet. Hint: it’s not Allison.
Just curious, am I the only one left here who still cares about the Season 8 Idols? Yeah? OK. I thought so.
Adam admits to having a crush on Kris:
NO, he did not. A “crush” indicates desire for a romantic or physical relationship, even if such a relationship is unlikely (or as Merriam-Webster sez: “an intense and usually passing infatuation”). Adam never said or implied any such infatuation in this article or anywhere else. Adam said he thought Kris was cute. Distractingly cute, even, but so what? Yeah, Kris IS cute, and exactly Adam’s type. This is a statement of fact. I imagine this would be distracting. But a “crush,” an infatuation? This conjures images of Adam mooning over Kris in rehearsals and weeping silently into his pillow with longing each night as Kris slumbers across the room. And that’s really disrespectful of the genuine and cool friendship they do have.
Because, you know, teh Gays can’t possibly spend time with someone they find attractive without wanting to fuck him, am I right?
I’m not saying I know for sure that Adam didn’t have a crush on Kris at some point, maybe he did, he just never said as much, and that is what is pissing me off, because the leap from “found attractive” to “crushed on” is completely lazy and exploitative, not to mention a cheap callback to stereotypical “oh gosh the homos can’t resist me!!!” moronic thinking that even relatively liberal hetero (men) seem to fall into way too easily. What is particularly lovely, and dare I say revolutionary, about Kris and Adam’s relationship is that it seems to have transcended all that idiocy to become an unapologetically loving, platonic friendship. It was sweet to spend a season watching that that happen, and to imply that Adam wanted to jump Kris’s bones undermines what is, if you think about it, a pretty radical subversion of dangerous and persistent stereotypes that too often plague male relationships across the board (friends, brothers, fathers/sons) - all in the course of a karaoke talent show!
I’m not blaming you, SaharaTea, because I saw this everywhere today in response to the article, so apologies for dumping a full day’s worth of righteous indignation on your innocent comment.
This isn’t to say I don’t get a huge laugh out of KRADAM goofs, doctored photos and whatnot, but that people read that article and just automatically went to the “crush” place is just really disappointing.
I find him a great role model (not for me, for young guys), and not sure how it would’ve affected the votes if he had publicly declared.
Also, why would he lose female fans? He is hot (love the cover photo)
Hell, I’ve already had two dreams about him.
Let me give you an insight into male psychology, whether heterosexual or homosexual: YES. Men DO usually want to fuck someone they find attractive and spend time with. Whether they ever say or do anything about it is another matter.
Girls too. We’re all such horny, horny beasts.
Geez. Apologies for the wrong wording there. In no way did I mean to imply that Adam is weeping into his pillow every night. I just thought it was amusing that Adam found Kris to be the only attractive guy on the show, and it’s great that they had such a good friendship.
Am I the only one in America that does not find GothBoy attractive in the least? Gay…straight… I don’t care. He creeps me out. And I only watched the last couple episodes of Idol this year…but I was not all that impressed with his screaming…er, I mean singing.
Quavery volumn does not equal talent.