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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 10:10:25 GMT -5
Adam - The Idol Era Page 15. Adam Lambert Bibliography Page 16. Articles #01 - 12 From The Adam Lambert BibliographyPage 17. Articles #13 - 24 From The Adam Lambert BibliographyPage 18. Articles #25 - 36 From The Adam Lambert BibliographyPage 19. Articles #37 - 48 From The Adam Lambert BibliographyPage 20. Articles #49 - 60 From The Adam Lambert Bibliography13. Harmon, Julie. "Adam Lambert in Wicked" Wicked Tour.net, 25 March 2009. wickedtour.net/adam-lambert-in-wickedAdam's history with the musicals 'Wicked' and 'The Ten Commandments'. 14. Harris, Chris. "What's Next For "American Idol" Finalist Adam Lambert?" Rock & Roll Daily (Rolling Stone), 22 May 2009. www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/05/21/whats-next-for-american-idol-finalist-adam-lambert/Various suggestions of future career paths for Adam Lambert. 15. Harris, Mark. "Adam Lambert: Shaking Up 'Idol'." Entertainment Weekly issue #1048, 15 May 2009: 24-27. www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20277643,00.html Cover story about Adam Lambert being the most exciting Idol contestant in years. 16. Heldenfels, Rich. "'Idol' Conversation: Adam Lambert." The HeldenFiles Online (Ohio.com) 25 August 2009. www.ohiomm.com/blogs/heldenfiles/2009/08/idol-conversation-adam-lambert/#more-7159 Backstage interview with Adam Lambert during the American Idol Tour stop in Cleveland, Ohio. 17. Hiatt, Brian. "'American Idol'’s Adam Lambert on Sexing Up Johnny Cash and Getting on His Soapbox." Rock & Roll Daily (Rolling Stone), 26 May 2009. www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/05/26/american-idol-s-adam-lambert-on-sexing-up-johnny-cash-and-getting-on-his-soapbox/Interview with Adam Lambert after the American Idol finale. 18A. Hicklin, Aaron. "Dear Adam" OUT Magazine: FEATURE STORIES 10 November 2009 www.out.com/detail.asp?id=26168Editor in Chief Aaron Hicklin's open letter to Adam Lambert, the Out 100 Breakout Honoree of the Year. 18B. Hicklin, Aaron. "Adam Revisited" OUT Magazine: FEATURE STORIES 7 November 2011 www.out.com/detail.asp?page=1&id=32382Adam Lambert tells editor in chief Aaron Hicklin what he's learned in the two years since he appeared on the cover of the 2009 Out100. 19. Holden, Stephen. "‘Idol’ Final Raises Extra Question." The New York Times 18 May 2009: C1. www.nytimes.com/2009/05/19/arts/television/19idol.html?_r=2&th&emc=thOn the eve of American Idol Season 8's final round, speculations abound regarding America's readiness to accept Adam Lambert's difference. 20. Huston, Allegra. "What Is It About Adam Lambert?" WOWOWOW 3 June 2009 www.wowowow.com/culture/what-is-it-about-adam-lambert/atop.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=idolpreformances&thread=23&page=17#90947The author of Love Child reflects on the panty-throwing days of yesteryear … and on the latest inspiration for the flinging of undergarments from ‘American Idol.’ 21A. Kaufman, Gil. "Will Adam Lambert Win 'American Idol'?" MTV News 14 April 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1609151/20090413/story.jhtmlReasons why Adam Lambert has a an advantage over other contestants on American Idol Season 8. Adam Lambert American Idol 2009 search: www.mtv.com/search/?q=adam+lambert%20american%20idol%20200921B. Kaufman, Gil. "Adam Lambert Got 'American Idol' Training At Wild 'Zodiac Show'" MTV News 21 April 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1609637/20090420/story.jhtmlLee Cherry and Scarlett, co-creators of the Zodiac Show, talk about Adam's debut as a glam rocker. 22A. Kaufman, Gil. "Adam Lambert's Early Theater Years Give Him 'American Idol' Edge." MTV News 23 April 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1609895/20090423/story.jhtmlVideo Link: www.mtv.com/videos/news/376040/adam-lamberts-theatrical-upbringing.jhtml#id=1609638Kathie Urban, executive producer of MET2, talks about Adam Lambert's apprenticeship at the Children's Theatre Network. 22B. Kaufman, Gil. "Adam Lambert Supporters Can See The 'American Idol' Finish Line." MTV News 14 May 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1611415/adam-lambert-fans-can-see-idol-finish-line.jhtmlAdam Lambert fans and friends hope that he will win American Idol Season 8. Video Link: www.mtv.com/videos/news/381496/the-people-react-to-danny-gokeys-elimination.jhtml#id=1611697Video Link: www.mtv.com/videos/news/393557/adam-lambert-talks-to-the-press.jhtml#id=161169723. Kaye, Kimberly. "They Knew Him When: Broadway Stars Cheer On American Idol Hopeful Adam Lambert." Broadway.com March 13 2009. www.broadway.com/shows/wicked/buzz/5988/they-knew-him-when-broadway-stars-cheer-on-american-idol-hopeful-adam-lambert/Interview with several of Adam's Broadway friends who worked with him in various musicals. 24. Keiper, Kristin. "1-on-1 with Adam Lambert." Out & About Newspaper 31 July 2009. www.outandaboutnewspaper.com/article/3604Interview with Adam Lambert where he talks about the importance of being a dreamer.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 10:11:57 GMT -5
13. Harmon, Julie. "Adam Lambert in Wicked" Wicked Tour.net, 25 March 2009. wickedtour.net/adam-lambert-in-wickedAdam's history with the musicals 'Wicked' and 'The Ten Commandments'. Although Adam Lambert is best known for American Idol, previously he was involved with Wicked as well as a musical version of The Ten Commandments.
What a lot of people don’t know is that the 27 year old, who was one of the American Idol finalists, had a professional background in musical theater long before singing in front of Paula, Simon, and the rest of the American Idol judges.
Lambert performed in two different productions of Wicked, the massive musical prequel of The Wizard of Oz. In March 2005 he joined the touring company and stayed with them for six months. In February 2007 he joined the Los Angeles production and stayed until October 2008. In both productions Lambert was an ensemble member and was also an understudy for Fieryo, the love interest in Wicked.
Bernard Telsey, who helped to cast Wicked and remembers auditioning Lambert for the musical, noted that Adam had an amazing voice and was a real theater guy. He stated that Lambert’s voice was more like an instrument due to his incredible range.
Telsey, who has cast Hairspray, Rent, and South Pacific, among other Broadway musicals, says he remembers Lambert as a guy with the highest range. He noted that he was always on the look out for ensemble cast members with vocal power and great vocal range. He said ensembles only have a small number of voices so having that kind of sound is important. It makes the show seem like it has more people in it. Telsey noted at that time that Lambert didn’t have the Bowie-esque look. He said he looked more like a regular kid than a rock star with long hair and wearing a t-shirt and jeans and his big voice.
Lisa Leguillou, associate director for Wicked, remembers Lambert for his fearlessness. She had the responsibility of keeping the musical true to the original vision of director Joe Mantello. She said she had sensed that Lambert knew exactly what he wanted to accomplish.
Leguillou talked about how Adam had spoke to her a lot about his music and what his plans were for the future. She said he was clear about wanting to do his own thing and that was rock. Now he is doing just that. She noted that what is shocking is how completely effortless his singing is and that you never have to worry whenever he’s on the stage.
In 2004 Lambert was part of the pop-rock opera version of The Ten Commandments which starred Val Kilmer as Moses. The show had a short run in Los Angeles at the Kodak Theatre. The show did not receive good reviews, and in fact was panned by the New York Times who referred to the show as bland and overproduced. However Lambert, who played the slave Joshua, received favorable attention by both the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. The reviewer from the New York Times referred to Lambert as the opera’s “most consistent crowd wower.” For those who would like a glimpse of Lambert before his Idol days, “Is Anybody Listening,” his song from the show, is on YouTube and can also be purchased on DVD.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 11:05:36 GMT -5
14. Harris, Chris. "What's Next For "American Idol" Finalist Adam Lambert?"
Rock & Roll Daily (Rolling Stone), 22 May 2009. www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/05/21/whats-next-for-american-idol-finalist-adam-lambert/Various suggestions of future career paths for Adam Lambert.
On Wednesday night's Idol finale, after nearly 100 million votes and two hours of star-studded filler, the American Idol audience's collective jaw dropped as flamboyant front-runner Adam Lambert took home the silver, and low-key Kris Allen, considered a talented vocalist and arranger but a long shot for the win from the start, finished in first. But, as former Idol runner-ups Chris Daughtry and Jennifer Hudson have shown, oftentimes winning the crown isn't everything. In fact, sometimes it's better not to win.
Adam's unexpected loss begs the obvious question: What's Lambert's next move? (Check out photos of Lambert in his leather-and-spandex glory — and how American Idol's past stars have fared in their post-show careers.)
After the finale, Lambert spoke about his plans with MTV News. "My dream now is to make a really dope record, to do something new, push the boundaries a little bit, push people's buttons, open people's minds up a little bit," he said. "I know that we're gonna start working on some music right away, and that's what I can't wait to do — to collaborate, to write, to co-write and create visuals that go along with the music."
Here are some of Lambert's other options as he rides his Idol momentum to his next project:
• Fill the vacant frontman spot in Queen
Over the weekend, RollingStone.com's readers suggested Lambert would be the perfect candidate for Queen's suddenly open job. Lambert did just that on last night's finale, performing "We Are the Champions" with Brian May and Co. during what may have been a de facto audition. But Michael Slezak, Entertainment Weekly's Idol writer, points to Chris Daughtry, who was courted by Fuel following his Idol dismissal four seasons ago, and says Lambert should take his own path. "The powers that be at 19 Entertainment and the labels that get first dibs on him are going to want to see him establish himself as a current, relevant recording artist, not a replacement on a reunion tour," he says.
• Take on the task of reviving glitter rock
Lambert has already earned the title "glam-rock sex god" from our own Rob Sheffield, and Slezack thinks Adam is likely to embrace the sort of fist-pumping spandex-wrapped sound that grunge killed off in the early 1990s — the kind of music Constantine Maroulis currently sings in Broadway's Rock of Ages. "There's a lot of good vibes towards glam rock music from a certain segment of, say, 25- to 45-year-olds, who dig that sound and wouldn't mind hearing it return to the radio," Slezack says. "I think he has more in common with Cinderella and Winger and Mötley Crüe than Daughtry or Nickelback. He has more of a hair-metal vibe to his voice than he does with anything that's happening in current rock radio." MTV News Idol expert Jim Cantiello agrees: "I think the smartest thing for him to do is get into the studio and put out a crazy, funky glam rock album that we haven't heard in decades, and go all out with it," Cantiello says. "I think it would be cool if he put out a record that sounded like Brian Eno could have put it out."
• Go Gaga
MJ Santilli, founder of the popular Idol blog MJsBigBlog.com, says Adam could make a strong pure dance record, but Idol would more likely "want a record that's a big hit, something that can compete with the Lady Gagas and the Katy Perrys and the Pinks of the world." Cantiello thinks "Poker Face" should lead the way: "He needs to get on the Lady Gaga train, because he is the male Lady Gaga."
• Belt on Broadway
With a history in theater (he was now famously a star in Wicked), it would be easy for the smooth-moving Lambert to slip onto the Great White Way. "I hope he gets into a studio real quick and puts out an album. If that doesn't work out for him, I think he'll be on Broadway in no time, and his fans will flock to that," Cantiello says. "And I'm sure people on Broadway are going to tailor musicals around him." Plus, there's a fresh slate of rock-oriented musicals on the way with Bono and the Edge's Spider-Man project and Green Day's American Idiot show.
Tell us what you think — is Lambert Vegas-bound as the next Danny Gans, or will he capitalize on his moment with Slash during rock week and audition for Velvet Revolver? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 11:09:08 GMT -5
15. Harris, Mark. "Adam Lambert: Shaking Up 'Idol'." Entertainment Weekly issue #1048, 15 May 2009: 24-27. www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20277643,00.html Cover story about Adam Lambert being the most exciting Idol contestant in years. There is nothing more valuable to the health of an eight-year-old TV series than a surprise. And when it comes to American Idol, surprises are few and far between. We can depend on one winner per year, someone who will either proceed to a robust, award-laden career in music (like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood), or not (like what's-her-name and that other guy). And we can also depend, every couple of seasons, on a losing contestant dishing out sweet revenge on the charts (Chris Daughtry), at the Oscars (Jennifer Hudson), or on Broadway (Constantine Maroulis, who just became the show's first-ever Tony nominee).
But once in a very long while, someone arrives who doesn't just dominate American Idol, but challenges and even changes it. Idol has always positioned itself as a portal to what ''America'' (meaning, its particular viewers) desires in a newly anointed star. It's no accident that each episode's opening credits showcase faceless CGI humanoids striding toward their destinies. Idol stars are supposed to be blank slates, ''relatable'' folk with extraordinary talent whom we elect in an orderly fashion and elevate to success.
Meet Adam Lambert. Adam has messed all that up. Adam is nobody's idea of a blank slate. Adam is a surprise.
There was a time not too many seasons ago when, with his mop of glam-rock cobalt-blue-on-dyed-black hair, his earring, his sneering, and his unambiguously ambiguous sexuality, Adam would have been brushed off early on, chum thrown at the sharkish judges for a laugh during the audition rounds. And there was also a time, more recently, when Adam would have made it to Hollywood but been dismissed as ''too Broadway'' or ''too musical theater'' — phrases that are Idol's heterocentric way of weeding out male singers with a little too much throb in their voices and an attentive flair for the drama in lyrics.
Then in walked this 27-year-old from San Diego, a chameleon of a singer who was unashamedly everything that the Fox reality show thought ''we'' didn't want. And he flattened the competition. One week he'd surge priapically through ''(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction'' like someone who'd daydreamed a lot about Mick Jagger's body language. Another week he'd slow-torture the '70s disco hit ''If I Can't Have You'' down to 16 rpm and take us with him. He could morph from a quasi-punk whom the judges accused of being ''like something out of Rocky Horror'' (''I like Rocky Horror,'' he shrugged back, in a wonderfully understated middle finger of a reply) to a Rat Pack sharpie to a grown-up crooner. Other contestants who have tried this on Idol routinely get accused of lacking identity. But Adam may be the first to understand in his marrow that shape-shifting has become an essential element of our love for pop musicians.
There's always been a fracture between how you succeed on Idol (essentially, by playing the game) and how you succeed beyond Idol once you enter a world in which being the cookie-cutter product of a network series is a liability. But Adam has taken a (big, sequined) battering ram to that aesthetic. And he's doing so while playing out the big issue — the gay question — with a complicated mixture of caution and shrewdness. Though Adam is widely assumed to be gay (even his celebrity rooting section, which ranges from Kathy Griffin to Hairspray director Adam Shankman, thinks he's out), the most he would say to EW about the public scrutiny is ''I know who I am. I'm an honest guy, and I'm just going to keep singing.''
That nonanswer is a window into the fact that neither we nor the show has come as far as we'd like to pretend. Can an openly gay contestant win American Idol? The question is being considered everywhere from fan blogs to The New York Times — but we're still one openly gay contestant short of a test case. While the Internet has provided gay Idol fans like me with ample photographic evidence that Adam seems to enjoy performing dental exams on other guys using his tongue, Adam hasn't said ''I'm gay.'' American Idol hasn't said ''He's gay'' (the closest the judges have come is to compliment Adam for being ''brave'' enough to be ''himself''). And teenage girls in the audience are still waving hand-lettered signs saying ''MARRY ME ADAM!!!'' (That feels...unlikely.)
So we're just guessing about Adam. Simon Cowell told TV Guide that Idol has ''never had an issue'' with its star contestant's sexuality, which is ''a huge step forward.'' Actually, it's a huge step sideways. While Adam's competitors come packaged with humanizing backstories — Kris Allen is married, and Danny Gokey, as you may have heard seven or eight hundred times, is a widower — Adam's personal life remains shielded. He was apparently made by the hand of God and left in a basket backstage at Wicked, where he was discovered, bestowed with a lifetime supply of black nail polish, and raised by musical-theater queens.
Adam's sexuality offers a fascinating challenge to the show's status quo. Is Idol ready for a gay winner? Possibly. After all, its British forebear Pop Idol crowned a contestant, Will Young, who came out shortly after he won. And Idol itself came close when Clay Aiken, then closeted but somebody who even houseplants surmised was gay, finished second. But is Idol ready for this gay(ish) winner? Perhaps not. Clay, after all, never sang ''I'm gonna give you every inch of my love'' while wearing skintight pants and green-glitter guyliner. In general, Idol voters have demonstrated a strong preference for contestants who are a little abashed, nervous, demonstratively relieved when they survive. And Adam doesn't do humble. Preeningly elongating his bombastic falsetto and shimmying in his shiny suits, he strutted through the early rounds oozing confidence. On Idol, it's good to be the best, but dangerous to act like you know it. Ask Chris Daughtry.
As a culture, we like gay underdogs, but on reality-competition shows, we haven't seen many Adams before — someone who enjoys selling his sexuality, who looks you in the eye, flirts, and dares you not to flirt back. We're fine with gay men as vulnerable lost souls singing suicide-hotline emo ballads like ''Mad World.'' But what's exciting about Adam is that, despite that superb performance, he really isn't that guy. He's out, loud, and proud. Well, two out of three.
Many readers will say ''Why are we even discussing this? Why does it matter whether he's gay or not?'' It doesn't. Or rather, it shouldn't. Except that unlike his counterparts, who commodify their lives on their sleeves, Adam isn't talking about it. He's handled inquiries with disarming jokiness. Ambushed recently by a TMZ reporter who said, awkwardly, ''So, you could be the first...,'' Adam replied, smiling, ''The first what?'' daring the reporter to finish the thought. He didn't. But neither did Adam. Maybe it's still too costly to say who you are. It's certainly costly not to. Does he feel he can't? Does the show feel he shouldn't? Is his choice personal or strategic? Will it pay off? And does any of this represent progress?
I can, at least, tackle that last one. Progress is when all those other questions no longer need to be asked. But since, win or lose, Adam Lambert is going to be the most exciting new star American Idol has found in quite some time, I can't wait to hear his answers.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 11:39:12 GMT -5
16. Heldenfels, Rich. "'Idol' Conversation: Adam Lambert." The HeldenFiles Online (Ohio.com) 25 August 2009. bit.ly/ncP17Mwww.ohiomm.com/blogs/heldenfiles/2009/08/idol-conversation-adam-lambert/#more-7159 Backstage interview with Adam Lambert during the American Idol Tour stop in Cleveland, Ohio. Fourth of the 5 chats I had with "American Idol" performers when the tour came to Cleveland on Sunday.
I noticed green highlights in Adam's jet black hair and wondered if they were new. They were actually there on the show. It was just some of the lighting, you couldn't really see them.
How is it at this point? It's crazy. Crazy.
Crazy how? Well, it runs the gamut from being overwhelming to being complete and 100 percent beautifully satisfying, to being a little stressful and nerve-wracking. I kind of bounce back and forth between all those emotions.
Is it better now than, say, those last weeks of the show? … I wouldn't say better. It's just different.
You were the guy there, with the cover of Entertainment Weekly … I know, it was wild, wasn't it? … It's not better or worse, it's just different. It's evolved into something else. That was a television show, and, you know, the thing that's so beautiful about that show is that it creates a platform for possible future artists. And I'm so grateful for that experience, because I think that's what it's done [for Adam]. I'm working on an album that's out in November, and I wouldn't have gotten that opportunity had it not been for "American Idol."
What's the album going to be like? Good. (laughs) I really like it. I think it's great. I'm working with great producers. I'm co-writing a lot of the material. I, uh — it's great. It's catchy. It blends — it's definitely pop-rock with electronic production. … It has a lot of good beats. It'll get you dancing. It'll get you singing along. It'll get in your head.
If people only know you from seeing you on "American Idol," are they going to be ready for this album — or are you going somewhere different? It's a hard thing to say, because a lot of the music I did on the show was music from the past. It was cover music. I think I got most of my credibility doing a lot of the classic rock stuff. And then "Mad World," like an '80s, New Wave song.
So I kind of think that all that matters [on the album] is that I'm singing on it. You know? Hopefully, people will be into it. I think that it's a hard thing to judge — original music versus songs that you know work. Very different pieces. So I hope people like it.
You have always seemed focused on making something Adam Lambert's, that you find your way into that. Yeah. So I guess it's kind of the same strategy. … I think that it's also kind of funny because I'vd gotten asked what genre it's going to be. At this point I don't know if it's really necessary to place one label on it or not.
Isn't one of the risks — talking to Michael, for instance, about people assuming he's a country artist — that people assume from "American Idol" that they've got what you are when maybe they don't? Yeah, I can see that being a risk. Luckily, my experience on "Idol" was colored with a lot of different styles. Like, I took songs from different genres and did them. So hopefully, people will be ready for an album that is eclectic, and a collection of different sounds.
On that last night of the show, did you think you had it won? I had no idea. In all honesty, I mean, people may think "Oh, yeah, you did." But really, I knew it was a toss-up. Especially when it was down to just two of us. Kris and I are like on the opposite ends of the spectrum as far as the type of artists we are, and I knew that it was going to a very dividing type of vote. Either people are going to go for THAT, or they're going to go for me. You know, it's one or the other. So I didn't have any idea. And I remember, right as we were getting down to that point [when the winner was announced], I was thinking, "Oh, it could go to Kris." … He did a great job on that finale show, he's an incredibly talented guy. He's very likable.
[Then we talked about what's in his iPod. See the earlier overview post for those notes.] Is IAMX the kind of music you would like to do yourself? It's a little darker than the stuff I'm doing. But I just like it. I like it sonically. I think it's really interesting. I'm a fan of the production. I don't listen to a lot of music that's acoustic. I like the art of creating new sounds, using technology.
Going back to a John Cage [Adam looked blank. Old guy reference, I guess] or more recent people? More recent. Like the trends in sound. … Like I love all the synths and beats and drums and samples. I love that process.
When the tour is over, what's your next move? Well, I jump right into finishing my album and promoting it, so there's really no time to rest. My album comes out in November, so (laughs) there's a lot of work to do.
Do you think you've gone from this TV bubble to a tour bubble? Do you see a point where you can get out of that? Yeah. I think toward the end of the year, after the album's come out, and the first single's come out, and we've done a lot of the initial promo, I'll have a little down time to let it all soak in. Which I'm looking forward to.
And what do you want to do with that down time? I want to go on vacation or somethin'. Somewhere tropical. South Pacific, somewhere. … I think that would be relaxing. I think I've earned it (laughs).
I know you didn't get to go to the rock hall … I know. We don't have any time to do anything.
… Is there anything you thought about that you wanted to see? I'm not really that versed in it. I think it would be cool to look at anything Queen. I'm a big Queen fan. Led Zeppelin would be interesting to look at. I do a Zeppelin song in the show tonight. It's my opening song. It's "Whole Lotta Love."
That's not exactly a low-key place to start. No! I've kind of learned that, too! I'm like, wow, maybe I should have made this the finale.
What's your favorite part of the show? It's hard to say. I still love all the songs after doing them this many times. But "Whole Lotta Love" — it's fun. It's just a fun song to sing. The groove is cool. And I have fun doing "Fame" during the Bowie medley. It's very — there's costume alteration, and I do a little dancing, and it gets quite a reaction from the crowd. So I like that.
17. Hiatt, Brian. "'American Idol'’s Adam Lambert on Sexing Up Johnny Cash and Getting on His Soapbox." Rock & Roll Daily (Rolling Stone), 26 May 2009. www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/05/26/american-idol-s-adam-lambert-on-sexing-up-johnny-cash-and-getting-on-his-soapbox/Interview with Adam Lambert after the American Idol finale. Adam Lambert didn't win American Idol, but he's the first real rock star the show has produced in its eight-year run (apologies to Chris Daughtry and David Cook). Brian Hiatt talked with the man Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield dubbed a glam-rock sex god about his controversial "Ring of Fire" cover, conversations with Brian May and the culture war surrounding the finale. (Check out photos from Lambert's Idol run.) [/url] What is your goal? What do you want for your career?I want to make records. I want to be an entertainer, you know. I want to help people escape and just dance and have a great time and party and love each other, and I want to be able to raise awareness on a couple of things. You know, soapbox about it. Maybe pushing peoples buttons for a little bit. Always with a little wink at the audience with a little camp. With a little seriousness in it, but I don't want to take myself too seriously. I want to upset people, I want to make people think, I want to keep people interested. A lot of people are trying to figure out what happened when you lost. Do you have a theory?Danny had a very strong following and when Danny was out of the competition I had a feeling that his fans were probably quicker to default to Kris than to me, you know just because of the kind of artist that he is. So I think that also might have had something to do with it. Like a red state blue state thing?I can see why people would see it as a red state blue state kind of thing. Conservative versus liberal kind of thing but I just want to believe, I may just be being an idealist, but I want to believe that its more about the music which is not always the case. I think that it shouldn't matter what your religious beliefs are for instance, or your gender or anything else should come into play. But it's a reality show and that's what it does. I wish it didn't but it kind of does. You sang with Queen last week. (Don't miss photos from the Idol finale.)I know! I couldn't believe it. Like Brian May was brushing my shoulder, it was so surreal and not only was it a personal victory for me but also with Kris up there, I mean Kris and I became really good friends on this. We were roommates and looking at him across the way singing the lyric "We are the Champions" I felt very connected to him at that moment and it was the perfect symbolic ending to this whole journey and it really felt like it put the period at the end of the sentence. And for me at that point, whoever won at that point it didn't matter after that, that was the winning moment for me I don't know, you know what I mean, I didn't feel like I was competing with him at all. Brian May seemed pretty impressed with you. Did you get a chance to talk to him?Yeah. He was just such a gentleman. He has such a warm, positive philosophy on life. I liked his outlook a lot. He said, "I just flew on a plane overnight and I woke up this morning and I looked out my window and I just realized how lucky I was to be alive." I don't know, it was just so inspiring to hear that come from his mouth. That's kind of something that I've been focusing on personally, the past year of my life, is just positive thought. And there's a reason Idol came along for me this year and I decided to audition and it worked out cause it came at a time in my life when I really started to try to change my perception you know what I mean. Rock is a much bigger part of Idol now, why do you think that is?I think maybe early on it had to do with the judge's opinion. I think the judges tended to favor the R&B singers 'cause they felt like that was showing more vocal prowess. I feel like early on they dismissed some of the rock singers. And even Kelly Clarkson who was first year's winner sang her soul and R&B stuff and now she's a pop/rock singer. I think they felt that the Whitney Houston route was more of a competitive type of vocal maybe. The finale was mostly a rock night, with Kiss and Queen.That was so much fun, I was just so excited to be able to play dress up. That's a really big part of me as a performer, it always has been and I hadn't really gotten to show myself doing my underground club kid thing on Idol cause the songs that I was singing never really felt appropriate to do that. But when I found out that Kiss was on the show I was like, 'OK, this is my chance to kind of do that other thing that I do' so I don't know I had a blast putting on that costume and rocking out with them. I think probably your most out-there performance was "Ring Of Fire." What are your thoughts on that one now? I loved it. I was a big fan of Middle Eastern elements of music and experimental electronic and tribal sounds. I heard the version by a woman named Dilana, who was on Rock Star: Supernova, I found it hypnotic and really cool. It was country week and I don't really like country music, I'm going to be honest. The first song that came to mind was a country song was the Johnny Cash song "Ring of Fire." It's a cool song. It's sexy. So I was like I'll do something sexy. So I figured why not. Is any part of you disappointed with America?I have to say it was a little bit of social pressure projected on me by just trying to be the quote un quote "different one" — all the supposed insights into my sexuality and my alternativeness and all my what have you, I think there were some people who were kind of like, "Well, he's changing your Idol' and all this hype and pressure to make a change for America. It kind of got overhyped a little bit. [/blockquote] Adam Lambert: "American Idol" 's Glam-Rock Sex God The Season Eight singer who single-handedly saved "American Idol" Photo Gallery www.rollingstone.com/music/photos/adam-lambert-american-idol-s-glam-rock-sex-god-20090608
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 16:46:33 GMT -5
18A. Hicklin, Aaron. "Dear Adam"OUT Magazine: FEATURE STORIES 10 November 2009 www.out.com/entertainment/2009/11/11/dear-adamatop.proboards.com/post/90076/threadEditor in Chief Aaron Hicklin's controversial open letter to Adam Lambert, the Out 100 Breakout Honoree of the Year. Dear Adam,
I like you, I really do. Although I’d never watched American Idol, I became a fan this year thanks to your unapologetic flamboyance and sexual swagger. It was refreshing to see someone playing by his own rules among so many cookie-cutters. And although you narrowly lost to Kris Allen, you were the real winner for those of us who saw your success as a test of America’s growing tolerance. That’s why we’re proud to have you in this year’s Out 100, along with all the other men and women who don’t believe their sexuality should be a barrier to success. It’s unfortunate, therefore, that your record label and management don’t share the same view.
We’re curious whether you know that we made cover offers for you before American Idol was even halfway through its run. Apparently, Out was too gay, even for you. There was the issue of what it would do to your record sales, we were told. Imagine! A gay musician on the cover of a gay magazine. What might the parents think! It’s only because this cover is a group shot that includes a straight woman that your team would allow you to be photographed at all -- albeit with the caveat that we must avoid making you look “too gay.” (Is that a medical term? Just curious). Luckily, you seemed unaware that a similar caution was issued to our interviewer.
Perhaps we should have had you and Cyndi in a tongue lock. That would be radical. It’s odd, because this magazine has done covers with Pete Wentz and Lady Gaga -- getting straight men and women to do Out is easy these days. It gives them cred. Getting gay stars like yourself is another matter. Much easier to stick you in Details, where your homosexuality can be neutralized by having you awkwardly grabbing a woman’s breast and saying, “Women are pretty.” So are kittens, Adam, but it doesn’t mean you have to make out with them. Imagine how much more radical it would have been to go down on a guy instead of that six-foot Barbie. We don’t think you would have a problem with that -- why should you? -- but your record label would, and letting them dictate the terms is the very opposite of rock ’n’ roll. And did you read the article? You would think your entire fan base was made up of women and heterosexual men, or “straight dudes” as the writer describes them, just so we can all be clear. No mention of your gay fans, which is kind of disappointing, don’t you think, given what your success represents?
We don’t want to sound ungrateful -- you agreed to do our cover, and your interview is gracious and frank -- but if the Out 100 has a purpose it’s to challenge the kind of apartheid that lays down one rule for gay mags and one for all others. We think you probably feel the same way -- you even say as much -- so we don’t mean to diminish your achievements this year. That’s why you’re in this issue. You’re a pioneer, an out gay pop idol at the start of his career. Someone has to be first, and we’re all counting on you not to mess this up. You have to find your own path and then others can follow. We just hope it’s a path that’s honest and true and that you choose to surround yourself with people who celebrate your individuality. The irony is that right now it would be easier to get Kris Allen to do a solo cover shoot for us. But only because he’s straight.
Aaron Hicklin, Editor in Chief
P.S. It would be remiss of me not to thank the amazing dedication, perseverance, and grace under fire of the Out editorial team that put this -- the largest original portfolio of its kind in any magazine -- together in challenging circumstances. In particular, I must acknowledge deputy editor Bill Keith, who oversaw the project, photo director Annie Chia, who has made this most daunting of issues as painless as it’s ever been, and photographer Jason Bell, who took on this time-consuming assignment with a relish and passion that was simply awe-inspiring.
For more details on what happened when journalist Shana Naomi Krochmal met with Lambert and his team, and in part inspired this letter, head here.
To read Part One of our interview with Lambert, head here. To read Part Two, head here. To see the full 2009 Out 100 portfolio, head here.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 7, 2011 16:52:20 GMT -5
18B. Hicklin, Aaron. "Adam Revisited"OUT Magazine: FEATURE STORIES 7 November 2011 www.out.com/detail.asp?page=1&id=32382atop.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=idolpreformances&action=display&thread=23&page=17#90076Adam Lambert tells editor in chief Aaron Hicklin what he's learned in the two years since he appeared on the cover of the 2009 Out100. Two years ago, in the 2009 Out100, we anointed Adam Lambert “Breakout Star of the Year,” and shot him for the cover, alongside Dan Choi, Wanda Sykes, Cyndi Lauper, and Rob Marshall. In the accompanying editor’s letter I took the entertainment industry to task for the way they control and limit access to the gay press, using our experience with Adam’s publicist at the time as my example. In hindsight, I was mistaken to address the letter directly to Adam: Although the massive response from his loyal fan base started a valuable debate, my letter was received as a personal attack that muddied the message. Lambert rightly sought to defend himself, in part by demonstrating his independence at the American Music Awards, when he simulated oral sex and kissed one of his band members. A lot of time has passed, and we can look back on that firestorm with cooler heads—so cool, in fact, that we were able to chat together, something we should have done first time around. This year we are honoring Adam for the way in which he has held true to his identity as a gay man while managing a successful musical career, a balancing act that is no mean feat. As he told The Advocate recently, “No one teaches you how to be a gay celebrity.” In a very real way he is leading the way.
Adam Lambert: I heard your name and thought, Oh, here we go!
Aaron Hicklin: You know, I was putting this together, and I realized that it was two years since we put you on the cover of the 2009 Out100. It struck me as important that this time we actually speak to each other. I agree. I have no hard feelings. That was then, and I’ve learned a lot.
I have too. And I learned a lot from the experience of using my editor letter [as a critique of the entertainment industry]—good and bad, frankly. For a start, I realized you have a gazillion passionate fans and every single one was determined to make sure I knew they existed [laughs]. Yes, they’re very verbal.
They certainly are, and some of them still communicate with me, and I’ve made an effort to respond to as many as I can. It’s an interesting dynamic, because I think the thing that’s ironic about it is that the photo session for Details [in which Lambert posed, controversially, with a nude female model], the one that we were talking about, was kind of done to play out the fantasy of many of my female fans. They have deep imaginations, and there’s a lot of fantasy fiction that’s written on the Internet. I try not to read it because it can be a little creepy, but I know it’s something they really get into. So, for me, it was like, OK, I’ve lived my entire life as a gay man; I’m very comfortable with that. And all of a sudden, I have the opportunity to do this photo shoot, to play the opposite stereotype of the straight, butch guy. I found it really interesting, creatively, and didn’t think for one minute that I was toning anything down or trying to change who I was, so much as playing into a fantasy that I knew was really, really present, having been on tour all summer, having women throw their bras at me, and all that crazy shit. I will say that, on the flip side, timing is everything. That’s one thing that I’ve learned a lot about this year. I was still introducing myself to the masses then and, to me, on my own personal journey, it seemed like an interesting thing to do.
Sometimes I’m not as objective as I could be, and I don’t look at things from the perspective of a first-time audience. That definitely was somewhat the case with the American Music Awards performance [when Adam simulated oral sex and kissed his keyboard player]. I didn’t quite put myself in the position of the viewer at home that had watched me on American Idol and, the next time they see me on TV, it’s that performance. The AMA thing was maybe a little too much, too soon, and the photo shoot for Details, although very beautiful, maybe it wasn’t the right timing.
But two years on, I’m curious about what you’ve learned about yourself in this process since you’ve, very transparently, gone from a contestant on a show whose success represented a radical breakthrough to becoming a superstar. It must have been pretty exhausting and demanding and emotionally draining in many ways. Yeah, it was definitely a lot to take on. But whenever I would feel overwhelmed or stressed out, the thing that kept me balanced is that I really do appreciate the opportunity I have. If I was a little younger, I wouldn’t have dealt with it so well. I’m 29, and having been in the entertainment industry throughout my entire twenties in Los Angeles, I grew almost, like, a Teflon coating, rather than being a kid from Ohio just jumping into it.
So you were prepared to some extent? No one can really prepare you fully. There were things I was very surprised by [laughs] and had to learn quickly, and had to learn the hard way.
And you probably weren’t prepared to have me pouncing on you… No, but all’s fair in that game. I think it’s been character building, which is great, and it’s definitely put me where I’m at now. I think the hardest thing about being a gay celebrity is that we’re in the middle of a social rights movement and it’s a very hot topic, so we’re at a very pivotal time. Coming out was great, but there are certain issues that always surprise me and I think, Why is this an issue? I live and I’ve grown up in a space that is very accepting and open-minded; I surround myself socially with people that are artists and very bohemian and I forget sometimes that, OK, we’re dealing with mainstream culture now, which does not have the same mentality as I do. I think, too, that by nature I’m very contrary. If you tell me I can’t do something then I’m gonna push back harder and do it. I’m kind of rebellious, but I try to do it with a smile. I’m not a jerk about it.
Do you fear that there is a trade-off in success and sales when you’re as true to yourself as you have been? There’s definitely a bit of a conflict. I think I spent a lot of energy trying to find my footing and expressing my sexuality one way or the other. And I think now that I have established who I am and I’ve gotten it out of my system, what’s really important—without denying or downplaying my pride as a gay man—is the music. Looking back, I think the other things HeWhoCannot ameded the music a little bit. With my new album, what’s exciting is that I’m definitely in the driver’s seat. I’m working with producers and my label directly. I’m not being puppeted around in any way, shape, or form. It’s about the music now.
And is that in contrast to earlier on in your career? Well, I mean, we were trying to focus on the music, but there were so many other things being thrown at me and it was so fast. You don’t have time to think. We put the last album together in a month and a half—while I was on a nationwide tour with American Idol. I didn’t have time to think, to sleep. I was just doing what I could. And that’s hard when you don’t have perspective. Things get lost and you kind of forget the basics a little bit. And during this writing process for the past six or seven months, I’ve been living in a house in Los Angeles, I’m in a great relationship, I have some time to spend with my friends, I’ve had what has been the closest to a normal life since the whole American Idol thing. It felt really good.
The next album is that dreaded sophomore album, dreaded for a lot of people because an artist typically puts so much into their first album because it's been percolating in their head for years and the second, they’re under pressure to produce quickly. I feel like it’s almost the opposite in my case. The process of making the first album was so fast. This is definitely the album that I want to make. I’m getting time with it, I’m able to say, ‘I want to re-record that vocal,’ or ‘Lets bring this song to another producer or a different beat put on it’. So I’m getting to immerse myself in the process. I feel like I’m getting to take the necessary time.
For you, when you’re writing a song, does it come from personal experience? Well, the majority of the music on this second album I have written. There are a couple songs written by other writers, but for me to sing a song that I didn’t write, it has to be something that I can relate to personally, 100%. So when I get in the booth and I sing it, it’s coming from the most real place possible. It’s funny, when I started the writing process I felt totally exhausted. It’s like a decompression that happens after you’re on the road for so long. Real life feels so foreign and bizarre, and I was actually a little bit depressed when I first came back because I just didn’t know what to do with myself. I felt a little bit lonely and I was trying to get back into my friendships, but it felt like I had been gone for so long, it was strange. And I was trying to get over a couple of failed dating situations that didn’t go so well.
I’m sorry. So my writing, in the beginning, gravitated towards something darker and moodier and angstier. And slowly over the course of this writing process, my relationship solidified, this was someone that I had met while I was on tour who had come to visit a couple of times at the beginning of this process and is now here permanently. I just got really, really happy and satisfied with life. I wanted my music to reflect where I’m at, and I can tell you that one of the first people I worked with on the album that was a physical turning point was Pharrell Williams.
In what way? We had a really long conversation and it was interesting to get his perspective on where I was as a person and as an artist, because he’s someone that doesn’t know me—our lifestyles are very different—but he’s an incredible artist and a very intelligent guy and deep and spiritual as well. So we talked about life and everything that goes with it—about being an artist, about being a person overcoming adversity. And we wrote a song together that I think people are going to be really impressed by. After my session with Pharrell, I started working with some other writers and going in that direction. Going along with the trend of dance music was something I really wanted to go with on the album. I love my fans, and I want to give my fans the songs that they really eat up, but I also want to expand my audience if I can. And I want to make some music for my gay brothers and sisters. You know what I mean? I want to make the kind of music I would listen to if I were out in a club.
Which is what kind of music? Dance music! My challenge was, how do I make dance music authentic to what I’m capable of vocally and what I do. That’s when I started getting into the funk arena. I mean, it’s still electronic, but it’s funky and it has a swing, and I was listening to a lot of Michael Jackson and Prince and we just started going in that direction.
What music inspired you as a kid? My two biggies were Madonna and Michael Jackson. They were king and queen. And they both wore just as much makeup and were fabulous in their outfits and had music videos that were theatrical and cinematic, and that’s kind of the type of artist I see myself as—one that wants to create from the ground up, not only an amazing song, but on with a beat and a story and a look and a theme. I’m really hoping this album allows me those opportunities and that I can take my audience on that kind of a journey.
Behind the Scenes Video of Out100: Icons & Iconoclasts11.15.2011 BY OUT.COM EDITORS www.out.com/out-exclusives/out100/2011/11/15/adam-lambert-video-sandra-bernhard-ken-mehlman-justin-bond-stephinAdam Lambert, Dustin Lance Black, Sandra Bernhard, Stephin Merritt, Ken Mehlman and more. In the first behind the scenes video from this year's Out100 photo shoots has jut been released. It includes outtakes and interviews with Adam Lambert, Sandra Bernhard, Justin Vivian Bond, JD Samson, Stephin Merritt, and Dustin Lance Black (pictured above). If you had questions regarding the inclusion of political strategist Ken Mehlman, check out the segment where Mehlman explains his successes from 2011. Video at link above or here: player.theplatform.com/ps/player/pds/PvTSPbANg1?pid=dm4twp5Kbwz6xYKHtCPIRDNkiZXcdphvAdam Lambert, Pop IdolThough Adam Lambert admits he felt "a little uncomfortable” with his role model status early on, the flamboyant singer has since taken a major stand for gay rights, lending star power to causes like Equality California, PFLAG, and The Trevor Project. Lambert's second album, which he is executive producing, is due out next year, and he promises it will be "even more personal than the last." Slideshow: www.out.com/out100/2011-Out-100/?slideshow_title=2011-Out-100&theID=2#Top
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 10, 2011 11:11:15 GMT -5
19. Holden, Stephen. "‘Idol’ Final Raises Extra Question." The New York Times 18 May 2009: C1. www.nytimes.com/2009/05/19/arts/television/19idol.html?_r=2&th&emc=thOn the eve of American Idol Season 8's final round, speculations abound regarding America's readiness to accept Adam Lambert's difference. As tens of millions of “American Idol” fans tune in to watch Adam Lambert and Kris Allen face off Tuesday evening in the program’s final round of competition, at 8 on Fox, the overhyped media question of the moment is whether the country is ready to hand the crown to an androgynous, seemingly gay 27-year-old fireball from San Diego. Or will his sexual ambiguity (“I know who I am,” Mr. Lambert has replied to questions about his orientation) be an impediment? If Mr. Lambert eventually comes out, the way has been paved by the former contestant Clay Aiken, whose career hasn’t suffered for it.
In many ways the contest is a rerun of Elvis Presley versus Pat Boone — of blue suede shoes versus white bucks — more than 50 years ago. In the mythic scheme of things Mr. Lambert with his sultry cat eyes, jet-black hair and theatrical make-up is Elvis, who some may recall was initially perceived as effeminate. Mr. Allen, a polite, self-contained, unfailingly earnest 23-year-old married Arkansan, is Mr. Boone.
The sexuality angle is a godsend for an aging show that is in desperate need of controversy (whether or not manufactured) as well as flash. Neither of the two Davids (Archuleta and Cook) last year, who were ridiculously posed as prizefighters for their final round, had it. Mr. Lambert does, and his androgyny has a lot to do with it.
When not performing, Mr. Lambert is as mild-mannered and courteous as the young Elvis. A glimpse of him singing the national anthem at the Miramar air base near San Diego reinforced the impression that at heart he is an agreeable cream puff who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Mr. Allen, for all his abilities, has no flash. Listening to him strain to put some clout into the Beatles’ “Come Together” in the show’s rock evening conjured memories of Mr. Boone’s anemic versions of Little Richard hits half a century ago, though to be fair, Mr. Allen is far more talented and musically sophisticated than his forerunner. He has spun Donna Summer’s “She Works Hard for the Money” and Kanye West’s “Heartless” into plaintively appealing soft-rock ballads.
Mr. Lambert has vocal stamina and flexibility to spare, along with the theatrical flair of Queen’s Freddie Mercury. His glam-rock poses and banshee shrieks this season have lent a frisson of hipness to “American Idol,” a deeply conservative show that pretended to be on the cultural cutting edge by bringing in coaches like Quentin Tarantino, Jamie Foxx and Slash. In reality “American Idol” is a monument of recycled pop culture and a fixture in the center-right wing of the pop spectrum.
Mr. Lambert’s presence helped this year’s “American Idol” validate an idea of rock ’n’ roll that goes all the way back to the heyday of Little Richard: that it originated as a hormonal noisemaking outlet for rowdy boys to preen, cut up and role-play. The concept found mass-market traction in the pseudogrand guignol of Alice Cooper and Kiss, who brought rock into the realm of cartoons and horror movies, and made it comedic.
Mr. Lambert is a product of all that. To watch him sing “Born to Be Wild” (which Simon Cowell criticized as a “Rocky Horror Picture Show” performance) or “Whole Lotta Love” was to find yesterday’s putatively subversive culture neutralized by television and turned into YouTube-ready theatrical karaoke. Mr. Lambert’s bemused response to Mr. Cowell was that he liked “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” His hilariously overblown “Ring of Fire” in the country music evening may have offended Johnny Cash purists. But his squealing performance with an arrangement that suggested the imminent insurgence of a belly-dancing troupe, was a cheekily irreverent comic coup.
I was impressed more than ever this season by the efficiency of the “American Idol” star-making process, as week by week the contestants gained in confidence and poise, stretching their talents into alien genres and homogenizing their voices in group ensembles. Before our eyes, in record time, amateurs metamorphosed into pros.
But the kind of talent “American Idol” promotes is a known quantity. The show would never introduce, nor could it ever create, the next Bob Dylan, whose nasal voice, to use a favorite “American Idol” word, is too pitchy. As often as not, the dictum to put a new spin to an old song results in the kind of confusion that made the renditions by Danny Gokey (this year’s No. 3) of Aerosmith and Joe Cocker hits unfocused travesties.
It’s all about togetherness. The much-touted “American Idol” family is a direct descendant of the Motown family, which still gathers for ceremonial reunions in homage to its founding patriarch Berry Gordy, who instituted a talent development program much like that of “Idol.” Once you’re branded by “American Idol,” you’re in it for life, or for as long as the show lasts.
The family concept, in which we visit the contestants’ hometowns, is a major marketing tool that touches every aspect of “American Idol.” This year the addition of a fourth judge, Kara DioGuardi, added a surrogate older sister in a panel whose idiosyncrasies are as familiar to today’s television audience as those of Archie Bunker’s 1970s television family.
Mr. Cowell is the cranky, opinionated paterfamilias and teller of hard truths who usually gets the last word, and Paula Abdul the neurotic, dithering mother with the crocodile smile, who is fiercely protective of her brood. Randy Jackson, the good-hearted uncle, is the family’s unofficial peacemaker, and Ryan Seacrest, the host, its fiercely ambitious oldest son, a golden boy engaged in an Oedipal battle with dad. Clive Davis, the chief creative officer of Sony BMG Records who supervises many of the recordings of “American Idol” finalists, is the benign great uncle and senior accountant who drops by occasionally to dispense statistics about chart positions and sales figures.
The rest of us — the millions at home vicariously competing, and our surrogates who actually try out for “American Idol” — are the family’s stagestruck little children in a cozy show-business dream world. I wonder if the contestants, whose lives are transformed by the magic words that are the modern American equivalent of happily ever after — you are going to Hollywood — have any idea of the reality that awaits them.
A version of this article appeared in print on May 19, 2009, on page C1 of the New York edition.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 10, 2011 11:11:42 GMT -5
20. Huston, Allegra. "What Is It About Adam Lambert?"WOWOWOW 3 June 2009 www.wowowow.com/culture/what-is-it-about-adam-lambert/atop.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=idolpreformances&thread=23&page=17#90947The author of Love Child reflects on the panty-throwing days of yesteryear … and on the latest inspiration for the flinging of undergarments from ‘American Idol.’ Editor’s Note: Allegra Huston’s new book, Love Child: A Memoir of Family Lost and Found, hit bookstores in April and has received rave reviews from Melik Kaylan at Forbes, the Daily Telegraph and wOw’s own Liz Smith, among others. Allegra is the youngest daughter of film director John Huston and sister of Oscar-winning actress Anjelica Huston. She was born in London, raised in Ireland and Los Angeles, and now lives in Taos, NM. She was a publisher in London for nine years and has been a freelance writer and editor since 1994.
In the early ’80s, I moved to London and discovered that housewives were throwing their panties at Freddie Mercury. I found it baffling. Tom Jones I could understand, though I didn’t buy into it; but Freddie Mercury was so obviously gay. These 40-something women in polyester dresses and perma-set hair were making idiots of themselves on the BBC, as if they didn’t understand what gay was.
Could they really not know? I was only 16, but I knew perfectly well – maybe it was because I came from Los Angeles. I’d gone to Frederick’s of Hollywood with my stepmother to buy pink ostrich-feather mules in a size 13 for her friend Philip, to assist in his transformation into Marcia Hardridge.
And now I’m in my 40s, and, if I were the panty-throwing type, I’d want to throw mine at Adam Lambert. What has happened to me?
I’ve never liked the front-combed hair-in-the-face look. I don’t know that I’d actually vote for the black nail polish. And I’m a bit worried that he’s got some ghastly secret piercings. To be honest, I’m not really sure I want to find out. But there’s something about him that keeps me — and half the women I know — replaying old “American Idol” episodes on DVR and gazing at photographs of his blue-penciled eyes. (Let’s not forget that Brando did eyeliner too.) Bravery, maybe — he hooked me with “Ring of Fire.” The damn-the-torpedoes flamboyance, the oh-my-god-what-did-I-just-do look when he finished. The intense self-discipline obvious behind the recklessness. And the sweetness. And the smile.
Frankly, I don’t mind whether he’s kissing a guy or a girl in that photo with the overcoat and scarf and purple hair held back by sunglasses; it’s a very sexy photograph. I wouldn’t want to print it out if he was kissing a girl. I’d be jealous of her. A guy, I can’t compete with.
I’m thinking it may be better to have a crush on a gay man. I haven’t had a crush on a famous person since my yearning, aged 14, for John Travolta to rescue me from the mountaintop house that, behind my grandmother’s back, we called Gloom Castle. I felt like an idiot then, and I’d feel like one now if I was mooning around over photos of Johnny Depp or Denzel Washington and wondering whether, if we were stuck in an elevator together, they just might be up for it. Of course, they’re more my age. I was at university listening to the original “Mad World” when Adam Lambert was born.
He’s utterly unattainable. So what am I thinking? This way, I can really laugh at myself. I’m not like those Freddie Mercury housewives; I know the score. This is not a sad obsession. I’m hoping it might be chic.
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Post by 4Ms on Sept 10, 2011 11:12:07 GMT -5
21A. Kaufman, Gil. "Will Adam Lambert Win 'American Idol'?" MTV News 14 April 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1609151/20090413/story.jhtmlReasons why Adam Lambert has a an advantage over other contestants on American Idol Season 8. Nothing is for sure in the world of "American Idol." Most years, there are a handful of strong contenders and the final vote is a real nail biter. Other years, such as season two when Ruben Studdard won, or last year's battle of the Davids, it was pretty clear who was going to take the crown for quite a while before the final reveal.
It's starting to feel that way this year as well. To be sure, there is strong competition among the remaining top seven. Teenager Allison Iraheta is proving week after week that she's a force to be reckoned with, and Danny Gokey continues to be one of the strongest contenders for the crown. There are also consistent dark horses Kris Allen and Matt Giraud, who could leap to the top of the pile with a breakout performance.
But at this point, none of them hold a candle to Adam Lambert, the 28-year-old Los Angeles musical-theater actor who seems to be getting stronger by the week as he dazzles the audience and judges with his original style and risk-taking. The game is his to lose at this point, so we present you with a handful of reasons why Adam Lambert will probably be your next "American Idol."
Experience Lambert: When we first saw him step into the audition room to sing Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" in San Diego in January, there was something about Lambert that marked him as different. That may have had to do with his 17 years of experience in front of audiences, performing everything from musical theater to outrageous 1970s-style glam funk at L.A.'s long-running live avant-garde performance showcase, the Zodiac Show.
Lambert has put in his time on many stages, beginning at age 10, playing Linus in "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown" at the Lyceum Theater in his hometown of San Diego. He's gone on to impress as Joshua in a lavish 2004 musical production of "The Ten Commandments" at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles alongside Val Kilmer and had a recent gig as an understudy in a production of "Wicked."
The others: Both Kris Allen and Danny Gokey have gained valuable experience learning songs on the fly and playing in front of a crowd as worship leaders in their respective churches and 16-year-old Allison Iraheta has been singing in front of audiences most of her life, in addition to taking the top prize on the 2006 Telemundo reality show "Quinceañera," which landed her $50,000 and a recording contract. Matt Giraud has released a pair of independent albums and has put in time as a dueling piano player in Michigan clubs. Lil Rounds began singing when she was 3-years-old but lacks the performance experience of the other contenders, and Anoop Desai appeared on a children's television show as a youngster and performed in an acclaimed a cappella group in college, but has not developed a unique identity as a performer yet.
Advantage: Lambert
Confidence Lambert: The confident way he carries himself, looks the judges in the eyes when speaking to them and makes sure to humbly thank them for their compliments is likely a product of Lambert's extensive audition experience. Even when telling Paula Abdul that her concert was the first one he ever attended, Lambert didn't seem nervous or jittery making small talk with the judges during auditions. Only someone who was sure of himself would dare take a legendary song by Johnny Cash and perform it as a Middle Eastern call to prayer as Lambert did with "Ring of Fire" during country week.
The others: Gokey has a cool, calm demeanor that marks him as Lambert's equal in the confidence department, but the others have shown signs of insecurity when judged harshly by the panel. Giraud also seems at ease with himself, though his struggle to develop a clear identity as a performer on the show has hamstrung him a bit. Iraheta, even when faced with criticism, has shown a preternaturally mature attitude. The judges have frequently counseled Allen to work on his confidence, and both Allen and Rounds were visibly shaken when given harsh notes on last week's show. Desai has also seemed nervous when faced with criticism.
Advantage: Tie between Lambert and Gokey
Style Lambert: This is hands-down Lambert's biggest advantage. His constantly morphing, David Bowie-esque glam-rock-meets-emo sartorial taste — which involves doing something different with his shock of raven hair almost every week — has made Lambert stand out amid a group of less fashion-forward singers.
The others: When the judges have noticed the other singers' clothes, it's typically been to mock them.
Advantage: Lambert
Musicality Lambert: From his snake-charming "Ring of Fire" to a glam-metal cover of the Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and his standing-ovation-demanding remake of Tears for Fears' "Mad World," Lambert has shown a range than encompasses everything from musical theater to rock, pop, R&B, soul and emo. Judges have repeatedly praised his musical versatility and commercial prospects.
The others: None of the remaining half dozen have been able to bring as many different looks as Lambert, though Gokey has consistently been a solid performer and has not had any major off nights. Iraheta is a close second to Lambert in range, proving she can sing pop, country, blues, R&B and rock equally well.
Advantage: Lambert Adam Lambert American Idol 2009 search: www.mtv.com/search/?q=adam+lambert%20american%20idol%20200921B. Kaufman, Gil. "Adam Lambert Got 'American Idol' Training At Wild 'Zodiac Show'" MTV News 21 April 2009. www.mtv.com/news/articles/1609637/20090420/story.jhtmlLee Cherry and Scarlett, co-creators of the Zodiac Show, talk about Adam's debut as a glam rocker. Adam Lambert's 'Zodiac Show' Roots
For most "American Idol" fans, Adam Lambert is the wildest, most unusual contestant they've ever seen on the show. But to his friends and castmates in Los Angeles' long-running variety extravaganza "The Zodiac Show," the Adam you see on the "Idol" stage every week is nothing compared to what they've witnessed back home.Lee Cherry, "Zodiac" co-creator and director, first met Lambert in Europe in 2003, when the singer was touring with the musical "Hair," and he directed Lambert in his "Zodiac" stage debut in 2004. "He did [Sam Cooke's] 'A Change Is Gonna Come' and as Randy would say, he blew it out the box, dog," Cherry said. "That was pretty much the first time in L.A. anyone saw him being Adam in all his full fabulousness, and everybody lost their minds."
Several years later, at the most recent "Zodiac" show in December, Cherry said Lambert wrote some songs with Madonna collaborator Monte Pittman, and he got a real sense of how far the 28-year-old singer could go. "That was a big collaboration and a big production number, where he had the whole outfit and the dancers and the whole thing. ... We love seeing Adam do his thing how he loves to do it, and you've only seen the half of it on 'American Idol,' " Cherry said.
The six-year-old "Zodiac Show" started as an underground, after-hours monthly party hosted by Los Angeles' dance and glam-rock communities that grew into an irregular series of big, one-off productions at the city's Avalon Theatre. The events revolve around a sign of the Zodiac, and they include every kind of performer imaginable, from singers, dancers and actors to comedians, jugglers, fire-eaters and high-wire acts. It's been described as a "rock 'n' roll Cirque du Soleil."
Part of the reason Cherry thinks Lambert is doing so well on "Idol" is because of the experience he's had onstage at the "Zodiac," performing his own outrageous glam-rock songs, as well as creative covers of other songs and learning how to be part of an ensemble. "Before 'American Idol,' [he] didn't really have an outlet for his talent, to do it the way he wanted to do it," Cherry said. "Every time he was working, he had to fit into some kind of box. He was doing it because he had to do it, he had to live. But on our stage is where he got to ... bring the black nail polish, bring as much glitter as you can bring, what's the craziest outfit you can. It's never too much, except for when it is. Because sometimes, sometimes we ... "
Scarlett, the show's other co-creator and co-lead singer, interrupted Cherry: "We have to tone him down," she laughed.
Like, for instance, the time he wanted to perform a song with a flaming headdress, and they had to convince him it was too dangerous.
Cherry, Scarlett and co-creative director and former Pussycat Dolls member Carmit Bachar said they are all immensely proud of Lambert's success on "Idol," but they're not surprised he's doing so well on such a mainstream national stage.
"I think that it's really been beautiful on the show to see him grow and take in all the comments and the constructive criticism and really add it to his performances, and he's so humble and so beautiful, and he means it and he's real," Scarlett said.
That doesn't mean they weren't a bit worried that America wouldn't know what to do with a eyeliner-wearing, banshee-wailing, glam-rock, emo theater kid who didn't exactly fit the more traditional style of an "Idol" front runner. "He's really cut out for this on every level," Cherry said. "[But] we ... honestly didn't know how he was going to be received. We thought he was either going to get kicked off right away or he was going to win. We figured it was going to be one or the other. We knew he was going to be the best singer of the bunch by far."
After conferring with Lambert early on, Cherry posted a number of the singer's "Zodiac" performances on YouTube, including the very David Bowie-esque glam-rock original "Crawl Thru Fire" from last September, which has garnered more than 400,000 views to date. While each "Zodiac" revue is full of performances from a variety of Hollywood artists at the top of their respective games (choreography, dancing, songwriting, makeup, singing), he said Lambert has that indescribable "it" factor that sets him apart even on a stage with other super-talented performers.
Scarlett said despite Lambert's unusual background and flamboyant (for "Idol") style, she's not surprised America is embracing him. "They heard somebody breaking through," she said of the early embrace of Lambert. "When you're witnessing something like that, it's undeniable, even if you're from, like, Arkansas. You're like, 'Oh, my god, I'm watching a star. This is incredible!' "
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