American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert is featured on the cover of “Out” magazine, but according to the magazine’s editor and a reporter, the singer’s management is still very cautious in terms of the level of “gayness” Lambert is allowed to portray. While the publication awarded Lambert as Breakout Honoree of the Year, the award wasn’t without some scathing remarks in a letter from the editor, who apparently has a problem with Lambert’s management team.
American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert graces the cover of Out magazine this month which features him as the “Out 100” Breakout Honoree of the Year. However, the magazine also features a letter from editor-in-chief, Aaron Hicklin, in which he calls out Lambert, his record label and management. The singer recently took to his Twitter page with his own fighting words.
“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,” Hicklin wrote. “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.”
The journalist who interviewed Lambert, Shana Naomi Krockmal, also wrote an open letter to him. “I briefly met Adam, and then the publicist and I walked out to the balcony, at which point I was cautioned against making the interview ‘too gay,’ or, ‘you know, gay-gay.’”
Krockmal went on to point out that Adam is an openly gay man and “that in addition to being able to sing his face off (his words), he is defiantly, outrageously campy and queer—and that he seems to have such a sense of humor about it, and a willingness to shake things up.”
Apparently not. Lambert took to his Twitter page today to respond saying, “Dear Aaron, it’s def not that deep. Chill! Guess ya gotta get attention for the magazine. U too are at the mercy of the marketing machine… Until we have a meaningful conversation, perhaps you should refrain from projecting your publications’ agenda onto my career.”
I could be wrong, but there hasn’t been a whole lot of mystery surrounding Adam Lambert’s sexual orientation since his very first appearance on “American Idol.” It’s also no big secret that the 19 Entertainment management team has a reputation for being extremely controlling of its young talent – it’s the reason Kelly Clarkson sued them to get out of her contract years ago. But it’s strange that the editor of a gay publication would ask to feature Lambert on its cover, give him an award, and then lambaste him in a lengthy op-ed for not being “gay” enough. (Huffington Post’s Joe Vogel, a gay man, wrote a very sarcastic response to the editor today.) I’m trying to think of another openly gay male mainstream performer who has been as candid with the public about his sexuality as Adam, but no one comes to mind.
Adam Lambert is shown filming a video in LA on 11/15/09. The other people are featured in the video. Credit: Fame Pictures
So, exactly, what is “gay enough”? Either you are gay or you aren’t. There are no varying degrees of gay.
Is he supposed to be running around singing Judy Garland tunes and carrying a bottle of Evian & a picture of Joan Crawford (Thanks Heathers!) in order to be perceived as gay enough. FFS!
I didn’t interpret this at all as the editor lambasting Lambert for not being gay enough. I think he is lambasting him for playing down his gayness as if he or his management team are worried it will harm his career.
Besides which, Adam Lambert is gayer than a treeful of sheep on MDMA so it’s a bit silly to expect people NOT to focus on it.
I guess the magazine didn’t see Adam’s album cover, approved by his label. If that doesn’t scream “I’m gay” I don’t know what does.
Ancient Chinese proverb:
A picture tells a thousand words.
Unfortunate juxtaposition of Lambert’s picture with Johnny Depp’s.
Lambert reflects a kind of hollow superficiality that compares badly with Depp.
And I like Lambert, but don’t believe he’s on a winning career or personal trajectory.
So tired of him already.
Well, I thought he wasn’t allowed to be officially out while on Idol. Wasn’t that the story that went around when he did a magazine cover to say he was gay right after Idol wrapped? So if they were offering then, no duh the management wouldn’t allow it. I don’t think it’s fair to harp on the young man for what his publicist says, frankly.
I don’t think these gay magazines get it. It is not like he doesn’t want to be gay, otherwise he would have been in the closet but it is the whole gay thing taking over your career before your career even takes off. Lambert is right if he wants all the public to listen to his music first and think him gay second. It is absurd by in this day and age, gay artistes are still stigmatized especially outside America. Let the guy build his career. Many gay celebrities lose their identity and get known more for being gay than their artistry. This ruins their careers before they even take off.
I’m with Jenna, I am so over his act and he hasn’t even put an album out yet. He’s one of the most obviously out singers I’ve ever seen and this little Am I or Aren’t I act is just stupid and patronizing.
My take on it is that he doesn’t want to be known as “the gay singer” – that he (or his management team) want to focus on other aspects of his personality as well.
I think that’s fine. I hope we’re moving towards a day when being gay will be just an aspect of someone’s personality, not a defining characteristic.
That is so tacky of the Out editors. Why would they try to put him on blast like that over nothing really?
Is there some type of issue in the gay community where if a gay person isn’t portraying stereo types associated with being gay, that this in return makes them not gay enough or something? I just don’t get it. There are gay guys who aren’t flamboyant, is that looked down upon or something?
I guess I’m just trying to see why an editor would go at him like this, as if he did something wrong. He could have just addressed his issues with Adam during the interview if he felt as if they were trying to censor his questions for the interview.
Well, he did this interview where he talks about having oral sex with a woman who “wasn’t as clean” as she could have been.
It’s just my opinion, but what I think the editor was trying to point out was just when he does things like this Out cover and interview, he has to throw in some reference about how he likes kissing women or how he had oral sex with a woman. Half-gay himself or come across as bi.
I do believe that his handlers want to underplay his more effeminate tendencies (really, they should have started with that album cover) in interviews. Like they went too far with the in your face sexuality and now are trying to back off of it so it doesn’t “hurt” his album sales. And I put hurt in quotations, because I think they’re trying to pander to the Gaikens.
Which is stupid – he is what he is – and he is extremely flambouyant. Ever since Idol finished up, it’s like he’s been let out of a cage and ran straight up to the Macy’s makeup counters.
snowball, if you read that entire interview, you know that he was responding to a direct question, “Have you ever had sex with a woman?” It wasn’t like he was purposely offering that up to add ambiguity to anything. He was asked.
I have a hard time believing he was “playing down his sexuality” at any time. I mean, just look at the above photos from his video shoot!
His publicist really isn’t doing that great of a job of trying not to make him “too gay”…I mean look at those eyebrows.
Does he need a sextape or something to be considered gay enough?
God, I hate it when people bitch and moan over stupid shit. There are other parts of your personality than your sexual orientation.
Ugh I agree with most of these comments. There’s a difference between politicizing your sexual orientation and purposely serving as the public face of the LGBT movement and being a singer who happens to also be gay. Adam has never wanted the spotlight to be right on his sexual orientation because he ISN’T politicizing it. He’s comfortable with who he is, and wants to focus on his career, which is singing. It’s not gay singing, it’s singing. I think out was trying to portray Adam as some kind of champion for the gay rights movement who uses his songs as a vehicle for an agenda. That is clearly NOT what Adam has in mind, and that’s where they’re butting heads. It’s Adam’s choice (well, ok, and his management team’s choice) to do what he wants with his own career. Out will just need to get over it and butt out. They don’t get to tell him what to do just because they have “gayness” in common.
That being said, I think his management team worded the whole “don’t make the interview too gay” think very poorly. Obviously they didn’t get their point across and offended the magazine. So part of the fault does lie with them for not being more clear.
No one sent Adam Lambert the memo that states that once you come out as a gay celebrity that you have to give your life and career over to the gay agenda? That you can only do and say what pleases the gay mafia? Poor Adam. He’s screwed.
@Gatsby Gal– those eyebrows are Fierce!
Of course he wants the spotlight on his sexuality, it’s his ticket to notoriety/publicity and hopefully for him ticket/album sales. The way he chooses to do that is to let his publicist take the flack for trying to “hide” his sexuality, while he lets it ooze out of every pore. It highlights it while allowing him to say ” I wasn’t hiding anything, I’m not ashamed of it. It’s the music industry keeping me down”, while he uses his sexuality as much as possible, to cover for a lack of unique talent
@wow, some of my gay male friends get kinda frustrated by the not-so-campy gay guys, cause it can mess up their gaydar, but apart from that, no, there’s no issue.
unfair of OUT to put this kind of pressure on such a young up-and-coming performer. very unfair. Ian McKean didn’t come out until he was geriatric. why don’t they pick on him?
la chica, when Ian McKellan was young, being gay was no where near as acceptable as it is today. Hell, gay sex was still illegal in a lot of Western countries back then, it’s not a fair comparison.
I don’t understand the too gay thing. Anyone looking at him can see he’s not just gay, he’s a total flamer. The kid from Glee got raked over the coals for some imagined slight ie sitting down after acknowledging he was gay instead of remaining standing and in everyone’s face – something like that anyway ie not being gay enough. The gays of today can’t win… can’t be in the closet, and being out isn’t out enough.
agreed Emily. but Sir Ian is a fairer target AT THIS TIME than poor Adam that is still firming up his identity.
la chica, true. I’m not sure why the editor was going after him, if he wants to go after anyone, it should be Adam’s management.
First off, I love Adam! Secondly, ask to yourself: what you want to be known more for your sexual orientation than for your work? I sure wouldn’t. So I fully support Adam. Meanwhile, I’m tired of hearing people from the LGBT community chastising who isn’t “gay enough”. Being gay does definitely NOT equal to be left leaning, so he might very well want not to take up battles that aren’t his as far as his political beliefs go. Why is it so hard to understand, I don’t know. Sexual orientation doesn’t mean you espouse a given political agenda, in either direction.