Adam Lambert is an American singer born on January 29, 1982, in Indianapolis, Indiana. His childhood stage experience positioned him well to compete in the eighth season of American Idol in 2009. His tremendous vocal range and theatrical flair made his performances memorable, and he finished second. His first post-Idol album, For Your Entertainment, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart.
QUOTES
"I have crushes on women all the time. I don't have intimate relationships with them, but I find women beautiful."
Early Life
Adam Lambert, born on January 29, 1982 in Indianapolis, Indiana, is the eldest of two siblings. He and his family moved to San Diego, California, soon after Lambert was born. Lambert dreamed of being an entertainer at the age of 10—around the time that he was cast in his first role, as Linus in the Lyceum Theater's production of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown in San Diego.
Thrilled by the stage, Lambert took private voice lessons and later appeared in more musicals at local theatres, including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Grease and Chess. His voice coach, Lynne Broyles, along with Alex Urban, artistic director of the Children's Theatre Network, were influential mentors for Lambert during this time.
Lambert attended San Diego's Mt. Carmel High School, where he participated in theater, choir and jazz band. After high school, he moved to Orange County to attend college. Shortly after enrolling, however, he had a change of heart, and decided that his real desire was to perform; he left school after only five weeks.
Early Career
The aspiring singer and performer moved to Los Angeles, California, where he cobbled together a living from odd jobs while trying to make it in the theatre. He also tried his hand at music, performing in a rock band and doing studio session work.
By 2004, Lambert was making a name for himself in the Los Angeles area. He played a small role in The Ten Commandments at the Kodak Theatre, alongside film actor Val Kilmer. He also began regular performances in The Zodiac Show, a touring revue of live music and talent that was co-created by Carmit Bachar of the band Pussycat Dolls. During his time with Zodiac, Lambert wowed fellow performers with his vocal range. He also began writing his own music with the revue; one particular original song, "Crawl Through Fire," was written in collaboration with Madonna's guitarist, Monte Pittman. In 2005, Lambert landed an understudy spot as Fiyero in the play Wicked, first with the touring cast and then with the Los Angeles cast of the production.
Amerian Idol
Lambert stepped into the national spotlight in 2009, when he became a finalist on the eighth season of the popular vocal competition show American Idol. His performance of Gary Jules's 2001 arrangement of "Mad World" earned a standing ovation from the show's harshest critic, Simon Cowell.
Lambert's vocal range, along with his jet-black hair and heavy mascara, earned him comparisons to glam rockers like Freddie Mercury and Gene Simmons.
Lambert and two other contestants, Danny Gokey and Kris Allen, were the only finalists of Season 8 who were never ranked in the bottom three. Lambert was considered a front-runner in the competition,
but was later beaten by dark horse candidate Kris Allen. Critics theorized that Lambert lost because of his openly gay lifestyle. Lambert denies this rumor, however, saying that Allen won because of his talent.
Recent Projects
Despite his American Idol loss, Lambert's debut album, For Your Entertainment (2009), was a huge success, debuting at No. 3 on theBillboard 200 chart. In 2010, Lambert was nominated for his first Grammy Award, for his hit "Whataya Want From Me."
In May 2012, Lambert released his second studio album,Trespassing, which met with wide acclaim; Trespassing landed at the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200, and more than 100,000 copies of the alnum were sold by June 2012. In a Billboard review of the album, Lambert is noted for demonstrating "the raw energy that would make him a great frontman for a band like, say, Queen."
Speaking of the famous glam-rock band, in early 2012, media reports began to circulate about Lambert teaming up with Queen to perform a summer concert series. The speculation soon proved to be true, and the pop star began performing with Queen—including guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor—in Europe in June, as part of a tour to honor the late FreddieMercury and raise money for organizations dedicated to AIDS awareness. Following shows in Ukraine and Moscow, Lambert sang with Queen in Wroclaw, Poland, and is slated to give several London performances with the band throughout July 2012.