Last Tuesday (1-17-12) I was up in Los Angeles attending the taping of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, when Adam Lambert gave that incredible performance of Better Than I Know Myself. I am so grateful that my girlfriend Diana Juarez had extra spaces on her ticket, and offered them to Lila and me. A few days later, miraculously Lila also got tickets, and was able to invite more local fans to be with us in-studio. Through Twitter and email, we found that many more of our friends would also be there.
Wanting to continue the party with so many great friends, I arranged an after-taping dinner at Miceli’s Restaurant, a wonderful Italian restaurant that a few of us had eaten at before, when we were in Los Angeles for another Adam adventure. Both Miceli’s locations (Hollywood and Universal City) are known for being the only restaurant in the area where the serving staff sings while you’re eating. Our group of 8 grew to 12, then 16, then 19. In fact, many of you might know them via Twitter. Our group consisted of (twitter names) @lliillaa, @lisalisansd, @suz526, @glspence01, @CoralMermaid, @Sue_in_LA, @angelraj, @remavineyard, @Sherry12559, @adams-kitty, @ovationimpact, @heartnnsoul, @diedreinorbit, @adamfanann, @scmtnbert and me, @cmhagey. Also joining us were Mary Jane, Janis and Sandi. (Sorry, I don’t have all the Twitter names!)
From my several conversations with the restaurant updating our number, I learned that a few of the staff knew Adam, and they were thrilled we supported him. They were looking forward to a group of Glamberts coming in!
As we were finishing our delicious meal, server Shannon Warne, came up to the table and greeted us, telling us she’d been in plays with Adam ten years earlier. We were all so excited that she came to talk with us. This was someone who actually knew Adam! We started asking her about him, and she quickly told us “everyone knew how special Adam was.” They knew he was going to be a star! She was quick to point out that the Adam she knew didn’t look like the Adam of today. She said he had reddish-blond hair and his weight was different. I don’t think this was news to anyone, but those within his past circle may not realize how much his fans know about him!
Shannon was happy to share some stories from their friendship. This was during the time of American Idol’s first seasons. She told us she didn’t watch the show, but Adam was obsessed with Kelly Clarkson. After Season 1 was over, Adam would make Shannon sit in the car with him and listen to Kelly’s CD. He sang along and raved about how good she was! Then Season 2 came on, and every week he’d make Shannon watch it with him. We asked who he liked that year, and she said when it came to Ruben and Clay, that he liked Clay. They never talked about voting, but she told us she “was sure he was voting like crazy!” I feel so much better now about the hours I spent, voting for Adam! If he did spend time voting for Clay (or anyone for that matter!), then he truly understands the efforts his fans have made for him. I don’t remember if you could text vote during the early seasons, so if not, he was sitting on the phone hitting the redial, just like us!
Soon after Season 2 of American Idol, Shannon and Adam lost track of each other. This is until Shannon started seeing television commercials for Season 8 and she couldn’t believe it when she saw Adam on them! She called him and left a message asking “what are you doing on that show?!” He texted back something like “OMG! Everything is going so fast – it’s really crazy!” Unfortunately, that was their last contact. Maybe if he reads this, he’ll get back in touch with her!
To learn more about Shannon, you can visit her website here.
Shannon Warne
After Shannon left our table, we were so giddy, not believing our great luck in meeting her. Next, our waiter Christopher Carothers tells us he’d also been in plays with Adam! We’d already been delighted in listening to Christopher sing that night, and couldn’t believe he’d been keeping this secret! Hadn’t he heard the table talking about Adam and the stunning BTIKM we’d just heard?!! He went on to tell us about a night in 2002 when they were appearing together, whent Adam cleared the house! Adam and Christopher were in the Fullerton Civic Light Opera’s performance of My Fair Lady, at the Plummer Auditorium. When the second act started, Christopher was on-stage, and all of a sudden the fire alarms started going off. Backstage, Adam had knocked a soda can over onto the fire alarm, causing the audience to evacuate. Christopher said Adam got into trouble, but not as much as the person who left the can there!
Like Shannon, Christopher also says he knew Adam had talent like no other. It seems everyone knew Adam was a star among stars. You can learn more about Christopher here.
Jan and Christopher Carothers
Even though I couldn’t see Adam when he sang, I’m not complaining. I got to be there and hear it live! But most of all, I had a fantastic day spent with the most incredible group of ladies, and the bonus of hearing these amazing stories from Adam’s former peers. Glambs, we got our first exclusive! I’m happy to share this with you!
Hey Glambs –this is going to be a very special week for us. We’ll be celebrating the holiday with our families and friends remembering everything we have to be thankful for. And in this troubled economic time, we might have to dig a little deeper. At your Thanksgiving dinner table, does everyone join hands and say something special that they’re thankful for? At my table I’ll be including Adam, my new friends via Adam and this web site, even if it’s a silent remembrance so as to not further irk those who love me and put up with my obsession and devotion.
Tonight is the debut of E! True Hollywood Story featuring Adam Lambert. This will play several times through the end of the month, and longer probably. Don’t you think it’s ironic that the debut is opposite of this year’s American Music Awards?!? The one they’ve been hyping with reference to last year’s big surpise that they won’t name or show among their clips!
To start your Thanksgiving off, here’s a preview of tonight’s Adam Lambert’s E! True Hollywood Story!
The following story came from a local San Diego paper. It sounds like Adam will be completely open as usual, hopefully giving us some new surprises. I’m so excited to learn they’ll be showing film from the San Diego stop of his Glam Nation Tour and everyone who watches will get to see what we’ve been ogling about since June!
Love ya!
~ Carol ~
From the North County Times; story by Pam Kragen:
North County-bred pop star Adam Lambert is the subject of an “E! True Hollywood Story” profile that will premiere at 9 p.m. Sunday on the E! cable network.
The one-hour documentary features interviews with Lambert, his family, his drama and singing teachers at Mt. Carmel High School, music journalists, “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson, best friend Danielle Stori and many others, along with footage captured during Lambert’s sold-out concert last July in San Diego.
The special has been kept under tight wraps this month. Even Lambert’s mother, Leila, said last week that she hasn’t seen the program and will be forced to tape it when it airs, because she is flying this weekend to Paris, where she’ll spend Thanksgiving week with her sons (Adam is touring Europe this fall and his younger brother, Neil, is on his tour production crew).
“The producer, Michael Lynn, is very excited and passionate about the project and said the final production is wonderful,” Leila Lambert said. “I was able to share so many videos and photographs that have never been released before, so I think it will be refreshing. I have spoken with many people who were interviewed, and they said it was so enjoyable talking about Adam and his success story.”
For the complete story, click here.
Adam Lambert and crew have already started on their World Domination, and brother Neil, who is a Production Assistant on the Tour, is thankfully taking to the digital airwaves to give us some more hilarity. That is, if you can laugh at the tragedy that he’s able to make light of! Seems that their hotel is right in the middle of a racetrack, and the noise is deafening! I don’t even want to think of how it may have effected Adam’s and the bands’ performance. Catch the video and check out pictures from the concert!!
Also, if you haven’t seen any of Neil’s and Cheeks’ hilarious videos, you can see them on the side of this video. They leave me rolling!! And check out NegativeNeil’s blog while you’re at it. This boy’s got the talent to entertain you, too! **Warning: not PG at all. Please don’t complain about his use of colorful words - he wrote it, I didn’t!
Adam Lambert’s dad, Eber Lambert has a brilliant mind for comedy and telling it like it is. There’s no doubt where the brothers get their sense of humor from. If you follow him on Twitter, you’ll be rolling from many of his tweets (and educated by the rest). Just catch the latest, obviously speaking to the Kansas City protesters last week. milestougeaux
No, God hates figs. And most seafood as I recall. 10:18 AM Jul 16th via web
For those that doubt… http://www.flickr.com/photos/froboy/3343598218/sizes/l/in/set-72157614979271411/ 4:28 PM Jul 16th
Check this hilarious comment about Neil’s two-dimensional presence at a Denver signing. Did you all know that Neil is working as a production assistant (read gofer!) on Adam’s tour this summer? What a great brother to employ him. Now, where do the rest of us get in line?
@ravengirl57 http://twitpic.com/26ecwu - Tour merch folks are cutting edge: I’m sure the lifesize Neil mannequins will be a big seller about 21 hours ago (yesterday)
Just doing our best to give you some alternative pieces of Adam-tainment! Hope you enjoy!!
This may be really old, especially for today’s telegenic mindset, but I just came across these clips of Adam performing in “Wicked” and thought that they may be new for some of you too! We all know Adam was in different companies of Wicked as a member of the chorus, and was even the understudy for the male lead, Fiyero, in the Los Angeles cast, performed at The Pantages Theatre. But did you get to see Adam performing in that role? Some people were very lucky and got to see the glam star in the making. Wicked was Adam’s last professional job before entering American Idol. In fact, he gave up his part to proceed with Idol.
Thank you to my friend Ellen for passing the comparison video on to me. I must say all of the lead males in this piece are excellent singers! I also found a few more examples floating around the internet that allow us into his pre-Idol world. Curtain call!
~ Carol ~
Have a Few Fiyeros! Kristoffer Cusick, Adam Lambet, Norbet Leo Butz, Aaron Tveit, and Colin Donnell are featured in this video!
As Long As You’re Mine
This next video is from Wicked Wednesdays at Universal Studios Hollywood. For 4 Wednesdays over the summer of 2007, Wicked’s Los Angeles company and Universal Studios partnered to bring Wicked fans this special event which included cast performances, a special meet and greet as well as contests and more.
Here is Adam as Fiyero and Julie Reiber as Elphaba (she was the stand-by at the time) performing the song ‘As Long As You’re Mine’
It sounds like last nights video shoot was just one big love-fest, and would we want it any other way?
It is so wonderful to see that Adam has not lost sight of who his real friends are, and they know how special he is as well. From the tweets below, it is apparent that they are all honored to be a part of this video and they all love him to death.
I simply cannot wait to see this video…shot in the forest with fire and glittery faces. I think because of the talent, and the amount of respect they all have for each other, it will be absolutely amazing.
It makes such a huge difference when you have the opportunity to “work” with, or for, someone that you truly love. It really makes it not “work” at all.
I consider myself lucky that I get to do this everyday…
ENJOY:
@adamlambert~Gearing up for all night video shoot for “If I Had You”!!!
@adamlambert~Invited a bunch of my performer friends to cameo in the video. It’s gonna be one big happy family!!
@TommyJoeRatliff~and yes @HideUrFeathers is doin my make up tonight!
@TommyJoeRatliff~k leaving now! :p ill tweet from the forest!
@katemthompson~@tommyjoeratliff what babes… You’re all invited to our wedding. Creatures of the night…
@LeoMoctezuma~Chillin in the dirt on a break between shots #IfIHadYou video w/ mamazun Alan Luis & I. So fun!
@LeoMoctezuma~Holding my bottle of Cafe Patron on the set of Adam Lambert’s “If I had You” Video shoot. Its 3:30am. Party time.
@LeoMoctezuma~Its 3am on adamlambert video set. We gettin sexy dancin our butts off. I love improving with my love alisanporter. So fun!
@alisanporterMy feeey were made for dancing. Bring it silver boots and forest floor.
@alisanporter~Thats a wrap
@LeoMoctezuma~Its a wrap on @adamlambert ’s friends dancers & our Cameo’s. Lol. But he’s still going. Gonna be a Hot video. Can’t wait till it comes out!
@monterrific~Monterrific It’s 4:30 am and we are in the forest getting ready to film the band part of the “If I Had You” video.
@monterrific~Monterrific Almost 6am. And it’s a wrap. So tired! Looks amazing from what we saw
@adamlambert~ That’s a wrap. Whew! Big thanks to the amazing cast and crew of the If I Had You music video!!
@leecherry~Just got home from the @ adamlambert video shoot. It was so lovely to see so much love and support. This video’s gonna be special. G’night!
@cassidyhaley ~i love u @ adamlambert & yur song, but i swear if it doesn’t stop rattling around my head soon .. lol .. “got my leather boots on …”
@LeoMoctezuma~Congratulations @ adamlambert on Ur # IfIHadYou Video.Thank you for inviting me to be a part of it. Im so proud of you. Its gonna B Amazing! <3
@Mamazun~It’s a beautiful wrap@adamlambert video shoot, love and light was shared tonight! What deliciousness! Shine Adam! we hear u! LOVE!
@ TommyJoeRatliff~Stopped at a burrito stand by me house. Construction workers don’t take too kindly to glitter at 630am! :0
@UhHuhHerMusic~Good morning and good night…Video shoot was gorgeous. I can’t wait to see it in all it’s glory. xo
Woman’s Day interviewed Adam’s mom, Leila. She’s always seemed like such a classy and sweet lady, and this interview only reinforces that impression! Articulate, well-spoken (just like both of her lovely sons), and sharing a bunch of childhood memories with us. (Link: here)
An American Idol Mom WD talks to Adam Lambert’s #1 fan—his mom, Leila
By Angela Ebron Posted December 29, 2009 from WomansDay.com
What was Adam like as a little boy?
He was very precocious. I took him to a lot of plays and concerts when he was small, and he always found a deeper meaning in them while I always took things literally. One time we went to see Les Miserables when Adam was 8. Afterward, he went into this elaborate discussion about how things were staged. He was so inquisitive, always asking questions. When he was about 5 years old he asked, “If God is in the sky, how does he see through the roof?” I had to tell him, “I’ll get back to you on that.”
What was your reaction the first time you realized Adam had such an incredible voice?
I remember he was in a children’s production of Fiddler on the Roof when he was about 10 years old. I’d never watched the rehearsals. So during the show when he got on top of a table and let out this note, I just looked at his dad and said, “Where’d that come from?”
Did you always believe that your son would make it in the music business one day? Adam has always said that you don’t get discovered, you have to work for it. I thought his hard work would be what would pay off for him—and it has.
How has life changed since American Idol? It’s very surreal. I have a hard time realizing that my son is now a household name to many people. The beauty is he’s still living in the same town he’s lived in for the last nine years and he still has the same friends. But the amount of work he’s doing has changed. Although he can’t always go places and he has to try to be more inconspicuous, he really appreciates the love and support of his fans. They have touched his life. Once when we were at a restaurant, a woman from another table came up and asked if he’d sing “Happy Birthday” to her daughter. I said, “No, we’re eating,” but Adam said, “It’s OK, Mom,” and told the woman that he’d stop by after we’d finished. He went over in a little bit and sang to her daughter. It was a wakeup call for me.
Many people thought Adam should have won American Idol. Do you think not winning may actually be better, given the success of other Idol alums like Jennifer Hudson and Chris Daughtry? I really don’t think it matters. Being first, second or third—one isn’t any better than the other. I think Adam would be in the same position if he’d won.
What was your favorite American Idol performance by Adam? I loved when he performed “Satisfaction.” And “Black or White.” And “One.” I can’t pick a favorite!
What do you think of Simon Cowell? I never really met him. Paula was the one who’d take the time after every show to come over and talk. She was so supportive. But Simon’s critiques were right a lot of the time. He knows what he’s talking about.
What’s one thing people would be surprised to know about Adam? A lot of people think he’s caught up in the business, but when I see him with his friends he doesn’t even talk about his career.
If you had to describe your son in one word, what would it be? Honest.
What was your favorite Mother’s Day present from Adam? A card he made for me when he was 15. There was a flower on the front and each petal was cut out from foil. Inside he’d written a poem about how much he loved and appreciated me. I still have that card.
What do you think of Adam’s For Your Entertainment album cover? It’s not my favorite. I don’t tend to go outside the box, but Adam is a free spirit. He was just being himself. He liked it and thought it was fun. It’s an expression of his creativity.
Did all the media speculation about Adam’s sexuality (before he confirmed that he is gay) bother you? It didn’t bother me at all because it’s who Adam is. He didn’t want his being gay to be the focus. He wanted to address it when the time was right.
You moved to Los Angeles from San Francisco to help Adam; what’s your role in his career now? I’m so happy and thrilled to be a part of what’s going on, but I don’t have a huge role. I’m not managing him. I’ll give you an example of what I do. He called me late one night from rehearsal while he was recording the album. He needed a shirt for an appearance the next morning and asked me to iron one for him. That’s my role. I’m here for him when he needs me. I’m just his mom.
What’s your hope for your son?
To be surrounded by people who love him. That’s what I want for him more than anything—to enjoy life and be surrounded by love.
Gossip websites Celebrity Gossip.com and JustJared.com caught Adam going to the Ole Henriksen Skin Care in Los Angeles last sunday. Accompanying him was his best friend, Danielle. They spent the day being pampered and just relaxing! Good thing Adam is keeping his pre-idol friends close and is finally relaxing after a hectic and crazy year.
A year, that he will close off headlining the LA Gridlock New Year’s Eve event, as reported before. However, after some gossip and rumors started by vague sources, Adam took Twitter to make it clear that this event is only for a live audience and will not be streamed or televised. So no 40-minutes set of Adam on television during New Years, sadly enough. Some Adam fans that are attending however are trying to re-live the tours Adamcast to provide streaming for the rest of us.
Back to Adam’s Spa visit. Some photos are copied below, for more (yeah, it was paparazzi; meaning 30ish photos per website) go to either CelebrityGossip.com or JustJared.com.
Adam and Danielle arriving
Walking out with some goodies. Love the sunglasses!
Up and close..
Shooing away the paps. Seriously Adam, what’s up with that funky keychain?
Since Jay Leno seems to be totally obsessed with Adam, maybe he remembers this too? He already met Adam before American Idol made him famous! A couple of years ago, the Los Angeles cast of Wicked performed on his show - and a youtube clip of this performance has surfaced (thankyou LibraLamb7 for the link!).
The song is ‘One Short Day’, and is the scene where the witches of Oz are going to see the Wizard in the Emerald city. Stephanie Block and Kendra Kassebaum are the main performers, and Adam is - in his own words - in the ensemble, in the back. He’s starting off on the far left, dancing with a girl, and wearing a green hat, a blue coat and purple-ish pants. Plus, he’s spotting the most adorable little moustache, glasses and a goatee. At 0:37 there’s a really good shot of him, and after that, he kind of gets lost in the group dance.
So funny to see him dancing and acting here! Would be interesting if Jay actually remembers somehow - but that’s not likely at all, since Adam wasn’t more than one of many dancers. How things have changed, Jay’s covering some Adam related material in nearly every show and now he is having him over as one of his main guests tomorrow night! Looking forward to a great show!
All this waiting…waiting…waiting has Adam fans all over (not just us!) frustrated and going absolutely nutzoid! We’re waiting for news of the single (title? drop date?), news of the CD (title? final playlist?), news of the Special Edition CD (drop date? special content?), and news of the “Time for Miracles” music video (premier date?) – not to mention just waiting for those few dates we *do* know to actually get here!!!
Adam sites everywhere are scrambling to find content to give their fans their daily fix during these long days. Many are taking looks back at Adam’s early career. So today’s fix…er, spotlight is on The Citizen Vein, Adam’s pre-Idol band. The band consisted of Adam, composer/guitarist Monte Pittman, bass player Tommy Victor, and drummer Steve Sidelnyk. Some of the band’s more well-known songs include Beyond the Sky, Rough Trade, Nocturnal By The Moon, The Circle, and Turning On.
Here is a short video of Turning On, from the Pitcher House in Hermosa Beach, CA. The audio isn’t real good, and the band sort of drowns out Adam, but I love Adam’s look in this video!!! Soooo beautiful and sexy I almost don’t mind not being able to hear him.
If you’re interested in downloading the Citizen Vein songs listed above or Adam’s other pre-Idol songs, here’s a great link for you.
Ironically, Dreamsound posted an article about The Citizen Vein way back on March 11th with another nice video. Unfortunately, this website didn’t have the amount of fans it has now, so sadly that article had no comments posted. I remember those early days very well - we couldn’t get a single soul to post comments on the articles! Haha, how things have changed. Anyway,if you’d like to view the video that Dreamsound posted way-back-when, check it out here.
So what do think of The Citizen Vein and their sound? Like it, love it, or not so much? Personally, not my favorite sound.
It’s time for Part Three of this four-part interview. Here, Adam talks about his time in “Wicked,” being in a long-distance romance, and his audition for American Idol.
~Carol~ So you left “Wicked” to become a rock star?I came back [to Los Angeles] and took some promo shots and started rehearsing. We had a handful of songs. I don’t know if any of them were great, but it was a start. At the time, we believed in them. We did a couple gigs here and there. The band was called the Citizen Vein. We performed at the Knitting Factory one night, the Cat Club on Sunset, and a club in Hermosa Beach. We did three gigs and that was it and we recorded a couple things, like rough recordings, and I don’t know, it didn’t quite click. We kept writing and doing things, but then I got into my first relationship and I fell in love and I was going out a lot. I was dressing up, just living my life and having a great time. Falling in love was major. It changed everything, because up until then, I was 25 and I hadn’t been in love. I felt like there was a part of me that was like, “I don’t understand something about life, like a big thing.” I listened to these songs on the radio or CDs or I’d see these musicals about people being in love with each other and what that feels like and what heartbreak feels like and the joy of what love is and I had sex but I’d never been in love and just didn’t get it. It was really interesting because during and after that relationship, everything changes. It’s like, “Oh, that’s what they were talking about.” I thought that was so corny before and now I am crying because I totally identify with what that feels like. So that was a big turning point for personal growth.
I went to Burning Man… which was another big eye opener. People living in this utopian society and how beautiful that idea is — and after Burning Man, I looked for social outlets here in L.A. that were part of that underground scene, not the typical bar scene but more of a neo-hippie movement. Adam is on the left and Cheeks is in the middle
You know, these underground clubs downtown. That was a really fun community to become a part of. Then I did a production of “Debbie Does Dallas” in Lake Tahoe. It was a topless revue at Harveys Casino. I was desperate. I could not find a job. It was going to pay me. They were going to put me up. It was with Anita Mann, the woman who did the cruise ship. I went up there and I was missing the person I was with and I was miserable because I was in a long-distance relationship and the show, when it was pitched to me, sounded like it was going to be a different situation and it tuned out to be not the most professional situation in the world. There was hardly an audience. They wanted to see boobs. They didn’t want to hear me sing, so they would talk. It was not a good gig.
I heard they were rehiring for the Los Angeles company of “Wicked,” and it had been about a year since I had been out of the touring company. They were going to form a new company and I thought, “I don’t know why I left. That was so stupid. I need to get that job.” And so I begged. They said, “Why did you leave? We don’t know if you’re just going to leave again. It’s a liability for us.” I told them, “No, no, no. I was stupid. I was lonely on tour. I wasn’t satisfied and had outside opportunities. I really want to be in a sit-down company and then I can work on all my outside stuff and still work on the show,” and they said fine. So I came back and I opened the L.A. company of “Wicked.”
As Fiyero again?
The understudy, yes. Exactly the same thing.
For the same actor?
This was a different guy. He was out a little more often, so I got to go on more, during the almost two years we were open here.
So you stayed for the entire Los Angeles run?
I stayed. I lived right down the street from the theater, and I really enjoyed being a part of it. It was a great job, and it was nice to have money again in the city and live my life. There was a producer I started working with. He was forming his own publishing company for placement in film and TV and advertising campaigns, so they hired me to be a songwriter. And so I would go down there a couple days a week during the day and lay stuff down and write and really started to build a nice collection of music and I felt like it was at a much better level. I’d learned more about writing, about pop hooks, how it all works. Through trial and error, we got some good stuff. I was doing some session work here and there, so I was really starting to move toward, “I really think I should go for this now.” I felt more confident and I started getting frustrated with “Wicked.” I felt they weren’t promoting me and it wasn’t satisfying. I started performing at clubs, just to get my name out there. I was going to release music. I really got into the idea of becoming a solo act. I think a couple years before, the idea of that really scared me because I was concerned about, “How are people going to think of me?” and “I’m never going to have a private life if I do that.”
I didn’t think I was ready for that. I didn’t think I could handle it and then I really got into the idea of it. I had turned 26 and felt, “I’m getting old and I still haven’t been to New York yet.” I knew there was work for me in the theater and I could move to New York and probably work there, but I’m particular and I never really considered myself the best actor in the world. I wanted to be myself, so I was less and less enchanted with the idea of musical theater. There weren’t a lot of shows that were interesting to me musically or conceptually. I wanted to do my own thing. So I started experimenting, doing club acts and the pop/dance thing.
I sang and I had two dancers and we were wearing really wild clothes and then I was doing stuff with Upright Cabaret. It was like the New York tradition of having all the show actors and people in town come together and sing, like Joe’s Pub [in New York]. I met a lot of great people through that and got a lot of attention. Where did you think this was all leading?
I put my faith in the producer that I was working with, Monte Pittman, that when all this music was finished, he was going to do all the work to get it out there, and he did do a lot of work. But he had just come from New Zealand. He was really established there, but he was new here, like an outside player. So I didn’t know how quickly that was going to happen, and I wondered, “What are my other options?” And last year when “Idol” was on, we were all watching it at “Wicked” and everybody would discuss their opinions of who did better and why, and then somebody said, “Adam, you should audition for that,” and I thought, “Yeah, maybe I should.”
This happened during Season 7?
Yes, but I watched a lot of the seasons. Not all of them, but a lot of them.
When did you first watch the show?
I watched the first season. I remember Kelly [Clarkson] was on and she was great. I was really excited, but I didn’t think they were going to like me. I thought I was too out there.
You are a little out there!
I am a little out there, but I’m kind of a strategist in that I knew what I could get away with and what I probably couldn’t get away with, so I tried to dumb myself down for the first couple auditions. You know, look a little more normal, dress a little bit more low key.
Where did you audition?
In San Francisco. I drove up with two of my best friends. The next morning I had gotten an hour’s sleep because I was really anxious, and right as I auditioned, I reached this epiphany where I thought, “You’re about to be 27. What do you have to show for yourself? You’ve done a couple shows. You’re working. You know you can pay your bills but do you want to do something great? Do you want to do something major and launch yourself? Yeah, I do,” and I knew that “Idol” was going to be, if I could get it, such a platform. I’d seen people that had been on “Idol” and were eliminated playing leads on Broadway, and I knew that’s the way New York is now. If you’re on TV and you’re a celebrity, you can get a lead in a Broadway show. I thought that’s what I should do because they don’t seem to want to promote me at “Wicked.” The worst-case scenario is that it would enhance my career in the theater and the best-case scenario is that I could do really well — and I didn’t know what it was going to be. You knew the odds were against you, but that was OK, right?
Yes. I walked into the first audition with the judges, and Simon and Kara said, “You’re theatrical.” I had a feeling it was going to go down like this. They’re going to be, “Oh, he’s too Broadway,” even though I don’t feel like I actually am when I sing. I’m theatrical, but I don’t think that it’s necessarily musical theater.
What did you sing at your first audition?
I sang “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley and then “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and they said, “Don’t sing ‘Crazy’ at the next audition because they can’t get the rights to it and everybody tries to sing it.” I sang [“Rock With You” by] Michael Jackson and they wanted to hear another one so I sang “Bohemian Rhapsody” and that’s the one they ended up showing on TV.
Were you a Queen fan?
I’m a huge Queen fan. Freddie’s the man. He’s the voice. Just the musicianship required to sing that kind of music is really high. It’s very melodic and rangy and dramatic and I appreciate all that.
Could you ever have imagined while auditioning with “Bohemian Rhapsody” that a few months later you’d be on stage singing lead vocals with Queen?
Weird. It’s weird full circle stuff all around. It’s thrilling, but it almost loses its impact in a funny way, like, “Oh, of course I’m onstage with Queen.” What the hell’s going on? “Of course, KISS.” I can’t believe it. This can sound very pretentious if taken the wrong way but I almost feel like I’ve been preparing for this my whole life. I do feel this is what I’m supposed to be doing and I have a fatalistic view on life that things happen for a reason. I feel like everything that’s led up to this point has prepared me for this. It’s the whole “Slumdog Millionaire” thing, where it’s like his whole life like leads up to that moment and the only way he gets through that moment is because of all of his experiences. I went to see “Slumdog” as this was all happening and I was just in tears because I was so touched by the concept of that movie. And I wouldn’t have done what I did on the show had it not been for what I’ve gone through and my experiences in my life and what age I’m at. I wouldn’t have been that confident. I would have been second guessing myself. I would have been really busy people-pleasing as opposed to just doing what I do. It was meant to be now.
Here is the second part of Adam Lambert: The Ultimate Interview. I love the way Adam candidly reveals his feelings about his career progression, the offstage experiences, and makes us privy to the ins and outs of how things run. We don’t often hear anything but what the top brass wants us to know, and in this interview Adam gives us the dirt.
~cmhagey~
In Part Two of this four-part interview with Adam Lambert, the “Idol” runner-up discusses his early experiences in show business and the experience of hanging out with Val Kilmer when they appeared in “The Ten Commandments” together.
Your first job was working on a cruise line when you were 19. Which cruise line?
Holland America. That was through Anita Mann Productions. Usually their leads were older guys, like leading men. And they had one guy they had to get rid of at the last minute. They needed somebody and I went in there and auditioned. I was so green. I had no idea what I was doing, but Anita really liked my voice. She said, “You can sing. You’re going to play the lead part.” Everybody else in the cast was looking at me like, “He’s going to be the lead? He’s 19.” So it was a tough situation. We were rehearsing and I didn’t know what was going on. It was totally over my head. She’s saying, “Just imagine that person will be there, that person will be there and that person will be there.” It was fast. It was overwhelming. It was the most information that I’d ever had to take in and I was not quite confident enough yet to own it. I felt a little intimidated by it. So I got out there on the ship and they weren’t very nice to me and they were really catty. Finally we did the first night’s performance and I kicked ass and they were like, “OK, we’ll leave you alone.” My career thus far has always been about proving myself in these weird moments, and then once I prove myself, people are like, “Oh, OK.” So that was my first job, and I went around the world. I was on the ship for 10 months.
What was it like being away for so long?
Incredible. I saw the world when I was 19 and 20. I was in Russia and Scandinavia and the Mediterranean and then we did the East Coast and we pulled into New York on Sept. 7, [2001], right before Sept. 11. We were doing the tourism thing and when [the attacks] happened, we were up near Nova Scotia and we had to stay out on the water for three days because of security. It was pretty wild, pretty scary. Did that, then did the Caribbean, then went across the Pacific. Hawaii, down into Australia and New Zealand. It was amazing.
You were working at night, so your days were free?
Yes, I got to do a lot of sightseeing and tourist type activities. I really wanted to go live the culture. I wanted the nightlife. I wanted to be able to go and meet young people and go drink.
After 10 months, did you leave the ship?
I came back home and started auditioning again. Did some Civic Light Opera shows in Orange County and here.
And home was Los Angeles at this point?
I came back to L.A. and I was just auditioning for things. A couple Broadway auditions came through. I signed with a manager and she hooked me up with some jobs and then I was cast in a European production of “Hair.” And so I was in Germany for six months, and that was a great experience because I was longing to go back to Europe and really live there. That was a huge turning point for me personally, because I finally got comfortable in my own skin – or started to.
You were also at the right age to become your own person.
Yes, I was about 21, 22, and it was a big eye opener for me. I think anyone who does “Hair” gets really invested in the meaning and the message and the whole community feel of it. I was really close with everybody and there was a lot of discovery and a lot of free-love mentality. I was discovering a lot about myself. Sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll, a lot of it.
How long were you in Germany?
Six months, and it was Berlin, mostly, but then Hamburg and Munich. We went to Italy for a week and performed there. I went to Amsterdam for a week.
Were you performing “Hair” in English?
Most of the time, and then midway through the production, the producer decided that he wanted us to do all the dialogue in German. No one spoke German, so they had a dialogue coach come in and teach us phonetically. No one knew what they were saying and so if someone dropped a line, we’d have to switch to English. It was an absolute disaster, but again, what an experience. I look back on it now and think, “That was crazy.”
Did you have to re-establish yourself every time you came back to California?
I did. I was out of the loop, but it was good for me. I really liked traveling and I don’t like routines. I’m not into the same-old. I like novelty, so I think it was really good for me and it helped me grow.
So up to this point, you hadn’t sung rock, just theatrical songs?
It was mostly theater music at this point. There was one little thing — there was a girl involved with the theater company and I knew her family. Her parents and my parents got along really well. They had similar views. They were really liberal and just wanted to have a good time. They would have parties and we would hang out and everybody would jam and it was all like our parents’ music. That’s how I got into the ’60s and ’70s stuff. Her dad was a classical guitarist and my dad plays the keyboard a little bit. So we would sing the Stones and Dylan and Joni Mitchell and Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix and all that stuff. They really loved the Doors. So I was exposed to all that music. And then, it wasn’t anything serious but we decided to form a band. It was like a little garage band with her dad and her and me and my dad and we wrote some original stuff together and recorded it on a six-track tape deck. We were called the Gutter Rats. Or Vicarious Lives.
How far did you take it?
We never performed. We just did it for ourselves, but it was cool because it was definitely not musical theater. It was definitely very ’70s feeling because of our parents and they were showing us what to do. We had fun.
What other work did you do before you were cast in “Wicked”?
I auditioned for more TV and film projects. I was never fond of the auditioning process. I’d never really considered myself the strongest actor, so I never really went for it. I did a couple more theater things. Did something at Reprise over at UCLA.
What was the Reprise production?
“On the Twentieth Century” with David Lee as the director. He was great. I did a production of “Brigadoon” in Texas at Theatre Under the Stars, so I had my Equity card finally, which felt like I had arrived. I was a professional now. I was getting paid enough money to live on, to really pay my bills, and it was going to lead to more work. I did a production of “110 in the Shade” at the Pasadena Playhouse and then I got cast in “The Ten Commandments” at the Kodak Theatre with Val Kilmer and that was a big turning point for me professionally because I had my own song and I was a character.
Who did you play in “The Ten Commandments”?
Joshua. Everything was copacetic by the end, but in the beginning, I was doing all this promotion for them to get interest built for the show and singing the song everywhere. I was on the Chabad Telethon and I was in love with being a rock star and I was going to rehearsal with nail polish on and eyeliner from the night before, and the director came up to me and said, “Could you take all that off?” and I asked, “Why?” He told me, “The producers are a little uncomfortable with it. They don’t really get it,” and I said, “But we’re not in costume yet. Why does it matter?” He said, “They feel like you’re supposed to be the leader of the Hebrew army by the end of this and they’re really uncomfortable with the way it looks.” And I told him, “This is theater. This is a pop musical. What … is your problem?”
So I faced more opposition, like I did on the cruise ship. It was that same type of thing repeating itself where I felt like they just didn’t believe in me, which was really hard for me. I found out later they had been seeing other people trying to replace me. When the show opened, I was one of the only people that got good reviews, so it was the best victory ever. You were worried about my nail polish and I’m getting better reviews than [others], so that was a big moment for me.
It was interesting hanging out with Val Kilmer because he took a liking to me and a couple other people and we would always go and eat together and we would go hang out at his house and he just really wanted to have a group of friends during this experience. I’ve lost touch with him, but he’s very cool. Eccentric but cool, and it was interesting being in the shadows with him in public. It was my first taste of what it must be like to be a celebrity and have people want your autograph and having people take pictures of you. It was a good eye opener for me, what it must be like to be a celebrity and to be famous.
Fame has its positives and its negatives.
It taught me a lot. I realized Val had to really watch what he said. Then I was kicking around Hollywood … and going to clubs like Hyde and seeing famous people and getting photographed here and there. Right after “Ten Commandments,” I did the Zodiac show, the first one at the Music Box, and I sang “A Change Is Gonna Come” in a full glam-feathered outfit.
The same Sam Cooke song that Simon Fuller chose for you to sing on “American Idol.” Did Simon know that you had performed the song earlier in your career?
I don’t know. We never talked about that, but what was interesting about that was I changed a lyric in it. Instead of “I’m afraid to die,” I sang, “I don’t see what’s wrong with a little glitter around my eyes,” because I wanted the song to be about what I was dealing with on “The Ten Commandments,” this weird, ignorant, “Why are you wearing nail polish?” Like this weird discrimination because I was expressing myself and having people feel uncomfortable with that and then everything tying into my sexuality and just being alternative in any way and wanting the song to be about that. It’s interesting that that came full circle with “Idol.” Really weird and the same issues. Maybe more far-reaching this time and less personal.
And then “Wicked” happened right after the Zodiac show. Toward the end of our run on “Ten Commandments,’ there was an audition for the first national company and the casting director had heard of me because of the reviews for “Ten Commandments.” That really set me up for that. I don’t think I would have gotten hired if it hadn’t been for that. I was hired as an understudy for Fiyero on the national tour and we rehearsed in New York and that was a blast. It was a great moment for me because I felt like I’d finally arrived. Even though it was the tour, it was a Broadway production. It was the highest caliber thing that I had been a part of. “Ten Commandments” wanted to be that and had all this money behind it, but it was a disaster. So this was a successful hit show that I was now a part of and it felt validating to get that job.
You were in the ensemble, so you were on stage every night, even if you didn’t go on as Fiyero.
Oh, yeah. I was an onstage cover. And we rehearsed it in Toronto for about a month before we opened and we ran there for about 2½ months. So I spent time in Toronto and then we went to Chicago. Spent a couple of months there and then here in L.A. a couple months and then San Francisco. And at that point, it was about six months into it and I felt, “I think I’m done,” and I got to this point where I thought, “This is what I’ve been working toward my whole high school career and my early 20s. This has been the goal, Broadway,” and I knew that I could probably go into the New York production the minute a track opened up but I wasn’t satisfied. Probably because I was in the ensemble. I’m not going to lie. It was probably a step down from “The Ten Commandments” situation. Bigger show but not as featured, not as much attention. Not doing what I felt I was supposed to be doing.
How often did you get to play Fiyero?
I went on as Fiyero a couple times and it was really fun. I thought I did well, but it was only a couple times. The guy hardly ever missed. So I dropped out. I thought, “I want to be a rock star.” During “Ten Commandments,” I had a friend who encouraged me to play around with Garage Band and come up with my own stuff, so it all happened at once. I started messing around with the idea of recording. I got really interested in that while I was on the road with “Wicked.”
American Idol’s Adam Lambert’s ties to figure skating
The Inside Edge with Sarah and Drew
American Idol’s Adam Lambert (left) with friend Terrance Spencer (middle) and skater Nicholas LaRoche (right) in L.A. recently. (courtesy of Nicholas Laroche)
By Sarah S. Brannen and Drew Meekins, special to icenetwork.com
(05/27/2009) - icenetwork.com’s intrepid reporters Sarah S. Brannen and Drew Meekins spend some time talking about American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert’s ties to the figure skating universe, gelato and a Skating Club of Boston outing to Milan.
Wicked Adam
We were glued to the finale of American Idol, along with the rest of the country and most of the skating world. As it happens, Drew met runner-up Adam Lambert in Los Angeles last year; Adam and Drew are both friends with retired skater Nicholas LaRoche. We got the whole story from Nick this week.
“I met Adam when he was performing in Wicked with my partner Eric,” Nick told us. “He was in the ensemble, and he was also the understudy for Fiyero [the prince]. Eric was also in the ensemble.”
Wicked ran at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood for two years, and Nick, Eric and Adam became good friends. In the 2007-08 season, Nick was looking for music for a new exhibition program.
“I heard the song ‘I Just Love You’ by Five for Fighting on the radio, but didn’t necessarily like the arrangement of it,” he said. “I teamed up with Adam and the music conductor from Wicked, Brian Perry, who played the piano. We went into a private studio and recorded it. They only did the song three full times; it was amazing. Adam was thrilled when I asked him to record the song and it was so much fun to stand in the recording studio with the headphones on and listen to his wide range. I heard the ‘belts and screams’ first-hand. It was incredible!”
Nick has performed the program twice, and Adam came to one of the shows to see it.
“After seeing the performance, he couldn’t thank me enough for giving him the opportunity to do this,” said Nick.
So what is the glam rocker like in person?
“He is great — very humble,” said Nick. “I watched him do endless performances here in L.A., all for charities and benefits.”
Nick watched every episode of American Idol, of course.
“It was odd to see him without his fun makeup on and the glam look he carries,” said Nick. “When he would come out each week and be so conservative, it was weird. I’m used to seeing him in the glam stage like he was in the finale, when he had the crystals around his eyes, extravagant clothing, and belting those high notes that you would never think would come out of his mouth.”
Because Nick is in Los Angeles, he couldn’t wait until the show aired to find out what happened. He had a cousin on the East Coast text him the final result.
“When my cousin told me Kris has won, my initial reaction was ‘I will NEVER watch Idol again!’ Then I headed off to the gym,” joked Nick.
“I don’t know how this whole Idol thing works but I know Adam will be huge, and probably more so now than if he had won. I’m honored to have gotten to not only work with him on this exhibition piece, but to have seen him perform so many times.”
Apart from the Idol excitement, Nick is busy coaching at the Toyota Sports Center in L.A., and getting ready to skate in a Los Angeles Ice Theater benefit show on June 12 in Burbank, Calif. Yes, he’ll be performing to his exclusive, Adam Lambert version of “I Just Love You.”
Nick is also working hard on the new foundation he and his sister Tricia have started, the U.S. Athletic Foundation. They are putting together a skating benefit show, An Evening on Ice, which will take place on September 19 in Ontario, Calif. There is more information on the foundation Web site, and we’ll be reporting further about the show this summer. All proceeds from the show will go to the foundation on behalf of Nick and Tricia’s mother, Bunny, who was murdered in July 2008.
Gelato
It seemed like half the skating world was in Italy in May, and a lovely time of year it was to visit Bella Italia. On May 15 and 16, the ISU Ice Dance Technical Committee held a test event in Milan for proposed new competition formats. The plan is for the compulsory dance to be dropped in the 2010-11 season and for the original dance to be replaced by one of three possibilities: a pattern dance, a rhythm dance or a combination of the compulsory and original dance.
Several teams made the trip to Milan, including Jane Summersett and Todd Gilles, Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein, Kristina Gorshkova and Vitali Butikov, Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer, Andrea Chong and Guillaume Gfeller, Tanja Kolbe and Sascha Rabe, and Terra Findlay and Benoit Richaud.
“It was a lot of fun to be involved in,” Madison wrote to us afterward. “I like feeling that we were a part of the future. But I’m sure it will take a while to decide what will happen since all the skaters did their job very well presenting great material. Personally, I think the two front-runners were the combination dance and the rhythm Waltz. It was fun to create our program because we got to see how it would work to have compulsories mixed with a normal original dance.”
All the teams we heard from said they had time to tour beautiful Milano, and of course to get in some shopping on the Via Montenapoleone.
“We saw the Duomo and the Castello Sforzesco,” said Madison, “And the Galleria and all the shops! We ate at a small restaurant by the castle and it was amazingly delicious! There was also a gelato place directly across the street from our hotel at which we made a stop at least twice a day. Jane and I had tons of cappuccinos and other coffee drinks.”
Raphael
Meanwhile, some of our friends from the Skating Club of Boston also made a trip to Milan in early May. Coaches Mark Mitchell and Peter Johansson taught a seminar there and invited their students Stephen Carriere, Ross Miner, Katrina Hacker and Dana Zhalko-Tytarenko to go with them.
“Italy was fabulous,” said Katrina, who recently announced that she will take next season off to attend Princeton. “Even though I’m not training for any competitions, I still am skating and want to keep up my jumps. We had group stroking and edge lessons [I think it was the first time I actually enjoyed having a stroking lesson] and helped each other out on new spin positions, etc.”
The Boston skaters got a warm welcome from the Italians at the Forum rink, who included Francesca Rio, Fabio Mascarello, Paolo Bacchini, Alice Garlisi, Deborah Sacchi, coach Cristina Mauri and choreographer Raffaela Cazzaniga.
“The skaters and coaches were so welcoming!” said Katrina. “I can’t even tell you how nice everyone was. The rink is beautiful — it had a gym, a bowling alley, pool, squash courts, ‘jorky ball’ [some kind of two-person indoor soccer] courts, a dance studio and more.”
Katrina, befitting her Ivy League future, took in a lot of Italian culture instead of shopping.
“I loved the Pinacoteca di Brera, the art museum — with Caravaggio, Tintoretto, Raphael [one can watch paintings being restored inside a glass cube in the exhibition space!] — walking to the top of the Duomo and of course, the shopping!”
Well, of course she went shopping. Be serious. It was Milan!
“On Friday night we went to Venice,” added Katrina. “I absolutely love the Peggy Guggenheim collection!” That’s an art collection, by the way. Good girl.
I think many of us would agree that Adam will redefine the current music scene – to what extent, we will have to wait and see.I believe Adam is having a more immediate impact on how we, as individuals in a society, view our fellow man.Adam’s “don’t be ashamed to be who you are” message is not just touching his fans superficially, but striking deep chords in many of us.But is Adam redefining what is sexy in a man as well?
It’s expected that Adam will address his sexuality in the upcoming Rolling Stone issue.I’m not going to talk in length about the gay issue here because firstly, the media has harped on this and hounded Adam relentlessly, and I’m sick of it. Secondly, if Adam wasn’t gay, he wouldn’t be the Adam we love.Lastly, it’s nobody’s business but Adam’s.The only thing I want to add is that it’s been the policy on adam-lambert.org since day one that we don’t discuss Adam’s sexuality.Simply put, it doesn’t play into how we feel about Adam, except maybe to love him more for his fearlessness in living his own life.
Now that the pink elephant has left the building, we can move on.Okay, Adam is a good-looking guy.He’s tall, has a body that wears clothes *extremely* well, and has striking features, not the least of which are the most beautiful blue-grey eyes this side of heaven.With these characteristics alone, many would think him sexy.But ‘sexy’ involves more than looks.In Adam’s case it means makeup, eyeliner, nail polish, more makeup, enough jewelry to make Mr. T envious, and clothes that few of us would dare to wear.These are hardly defining attributes for male sexiness in America, where the standard, according to TV, magazines, and everything else we as consumers get shoved in front of our face — seems to be cookie-cutter washboard abs.And more washboard abs.
So why do we all find Adam so sexy?Is it attraction to his good looks in spite of the eyeliner and jewelry or because of these things?Is it because he’s a “Rock God,” as Kara dubbed him?Is it traits other than his looks – like his smile and sense of humor?Or is it just our undeniable reaction to those tight leather pants and striped spandex?
I think that as women, we react to all these things.If this is true, are we ushering in a whole new perception of what we find sexy in a man?
Tell us what it is that you find sexy in Adam (keep it clean!), and do you think our attraction to Adam’s looks is a once-only phenomenon, for Adam only, or is just the beginning of a shift in our perception of what it is to be sexy?
The Regis and Kelly Show interview last week revealed Adam’s first gig as a child performer — Linus in “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” This took me back, years ago, to my own childhood because Peanuts, by Charles Shulz, was my favorite comic strip. I can just envision how Adam was transformed into the cutest Linus as a little boy!
Linus was an unusually smart character for his age, and was considered to be a philosopher…always behaving in a rational and calm manner, especially under trying circumstances. Linus invented the “Great Pumpkin” and was the only character in the comic strip who believed that presents would be delivered on Halloween. Though he occasionally convinced other characters the “Great Pumpkin” was real, they always lost faith, while Linus kept his.
I can’t help but think how these same characteristics parallel Adam’s qualities. Unusually smart, rational, calm, able to deal with trying circumstances, never losing faith…
Then, the very same day as Adam’s interview with Regis and Kelly, I ran across this quote from Charles Shulz:
“The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are simply the ones who care the most.”
As fans, I think this is who we are for Adam and his new, musical journey. We aren’t powerful producers or music industry magnates…but we care the most. And this fansite will make a difference.
Now you know what Adam, Linus, Charles Schulz, and WE have in common!
If you ever wanted to get more ‘ADAM’ throughout his audition in San Francisco here is some exlusive footage and interview right before and after he makes it to Hollywood. Did you know he works out?
Towards the end the guy who interviewed him said he has this ‘prescence’ in real life, I thought that was cool for him to talk about that.
In what’s been called one of the biggest TV upsets ever, front-runner Adam Lambert lost out on the “Idol” crown. Momlogic spoke with Adam’s mom, Leila, about her son’s loss, his talent, and the advice she has for moms of aspiring singers.
Fox/American Idol
momlogic: As Adam’s mother, what was going through your mind before and during the finale?
Leila Lambert: It was probably the night I was most nervous, excited, and emotional. I knew if he were to win it would be an amazing opportunity, and I knew if Kris won, it would be the same for him. Our families have become very good friends. Kris’s mom, Kim, and I looked to each other for support and I knew either way, either of the kids would be okay. Kim and I had a lot of talks and we knew they were both strong kids and they’d both be given wonderful opportunities, whatever the outcome. I was nervous, felt a lot of anticipation, but I was also excited because it was all good.
ml: What was going through your mind when they announced Kris Allen as the winner?
Leila: I think everyone wants to be a winner, no matter what you’re doing. Whether you’re playing cards or in this competition, whatever you’re doing in life, you want to win. Adam is a winner. He’s still a winner even though his name wasn’t called — as much as it’s wonderful to say, “I did win ‘American Idol.’” I felt great because I knew Adam was still a winner. I didn’t know how I was going to react but when it happened, the pressure was gone and I was very happy for Adam.
ml: At what age did you know there was something special or unique about your son? When did you discover his talent?
Leila: I would say as early as 3 years old, when I realized Adam could recite books verbatim and could make character voices even before he could read. He loved Halloween and taking on different characters. Then, I started putting him in theater groups. He thrived and loved the interaction with the other kids. At age 10, Adam sang for the first time. We knew there was something very unique for such a young boy to sing the notes he was reaching, so he began taking lessons.
ml: When he first told you he wanted to audition for “American Idol,” what was your reaction?
Leila: His friends from “Wicked” encouraged him to audition. He called me and said, “I know it’s a long shot…” Adam was down in Los Angeles and the audition was up by me in San Francisco, where I live. I said he should go. He’s always successful when he does something, so I thought he should go for it. It sounded great. Everything in life is an adventure and it’s a new journey, so why not?
ml: When he first auditioned, did you ever think he’d make it this far?
Leila: Never! You know what the odds are, and to me, you have to be in the right place at the right time. You have to be there at that moment when someone is actually listening really closely. I never thought it would go this far. Not that I didn’t believe he was talented, but there is such a process, with so many people trying to get there as well. When he got home, I remember him telling me he was standing in line for hours. He and two friends left the house so early in the morning and didn’t get home until so late at night. They just stood there in line — and then they were heard after such a tiring day — I remember Adam was just hoping he sounded okay because he hardly got any sleep the night before. He was in the right place at the right time and it worked.
ml: As a mother, how has your life changed? And how has your son Adam’s life changed?
Leila: I would always say to people when he was younger, “I have a son who’s very talented … he’s a singer.” A parent is always proud of their child and I knew Adam was unique. But this opportunity has changed both of our lives. I came to Los Angeles every single week because I didn’t want to miss any of the competition. I liked being there. I took a backseat and watched. It’s the most amazing gift. It wasn’t easy working 50 hours a week and then traveling to Los Angeles on my days off, but it changed my life. Now I see what the opportunities are for Adam and it’s like a whole new life. A new life for him and me. I am just so excited to be part of this. My life is very different now, in fact I am going to be moving to Los Angeles from San Francisco. I am doing it because it’s a new life for all of us. I am very excited about it. His life is different because he was struggling to get by. Adam had a job in “Wicked,” but it was a paycheck and paid bills. He was working hard, but it wasn’t what he always wanted. Again, he was in the right place at the right time. But now, this is what he always wanted. His life will never be the same and it’s great because it’s his dream. To perform like this and be creative — it’s an amazing opportunity.
ml: Have you spent time with the other “Idol” moms? Was there ever a sense of competition or rivalry?
Leila: I didn’t get to know many of the “Idol” moms except for Kris’s mom. I can’t even remember when we started becoming friends, but we both knew our kids were very talented and very different in their styles. Even though it was a competition, they were so different. The ability to have someone who’s going through the exact same thing you’re going through (and it goes for Kris and Adam, as well as the Allens and us) was so great. We just kept saying, “Whatever happens, it’s all going to be great and right for them.” Having that bond and bouncing off each other like that really helped us all. We took a limo to the show together Tuesday. We all had dinner together last night. The Allens, myself, my son. It was my birthday yesterday and we wanted the Allens to be there. We told stories of our sons from when they were little and we have so much in common, it’s mind-boggling. We will be friends for a very long time. You do want your kid to win, but just like in the theater, your kid is a shining star, but you can’t make that happen without everyone else around them. I feel this connection with everyone else and never felt a competitive edge. It sounds crazy, but it’s because we have a friendship. Maybe if we were different — if we were more to ourselves and standoffish, maybe we would have had that competitive feeling. But we are open as people and it’s refreshing. I was so genuinely happy for the Allens when Kris won. We went right over and I gave Kim the biggest hug. We stood there hugging and looking onstage at our kids. It changes competition when you have that kind of support.
ml: What advice would you give to moms whose children want to audition for AI or who have a gift and aspire to be famous?
Leila: That’s easy … What I did as a mom and what I would tell other people is that if your child wants to take guitar lessons, ballet, singing lessons, or play a sport, you should do whatever it takes to get them there and help nurture it. Whether or not they become a soccer player or ballerina, they will take that confidence with them. They will learn they can do it, and they can do anything. Allow your kids to dream and provide them with whatever they need to fulfill their dream. If it’s a sacrifice and you have to drive them two hours away to a competition, you just do it. That’s what it takes to build confident children who then become confident adults.
When “American Idol” judges Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson announced on “The Tonight Show” that former San Diegan Adam Lambert was likely to be one of this season’s top two finalists, they were getting a little ahead of themselves. After all, that was in March and the “Idol” finale wouldn’t air until May 20.
But for theater producer Kathie Urban, the judges’ predictions of greatness were about 18 years late. Urban has known Adam Lambert would be big news since he was a little boy.
“Adam was one of those kids who just had it,” said Urban, executive producer for the Metropolitan Educational Theatre network, also known as MET2. “He had the vocal ability and the acting ability. He was the whole package.”
With his love of death-defying high notes, vampy theatrics and material that ranges from classy (“Tracks of My Tears”) to trashy (“Play That Funky Music”), Lambert, 27, is still the whole package. And he has arrived on the “Idol” stage just in time to save the most popular show on television from becoming the most predictable show on television.
“I think Adam has definitely kept this season from flat-lining,” said Entertainment Weekly senior writer Michael Slezak, who blogs about the show for EW.com. “It has been a little bit serious this season. Tons of ballads, tons of sad songs. Then Adam will come out and sort of explode onto the stage in this fireball of energy. And the fact that he does it without ever missing a note is what makes it work.”
In a season devoid of controversies – even dizzy judge Paula Abdul has been relatively coherent – and unsuitable train-wreck contestants, Lambert is the weekly wild card.
From his glitter-rock romp through the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” to his mournful take on “If I Can’t Have You” from the “Saturday Night Fever” soundtrack, Lambert never forgets that Fox TV’s singing competition is also a show – a really big show with an influential audience that isn’t likely to forget about him.
“He has a reputation for experimentation that most Idols don’t have,” said Sean Ross, vice president of music and programming at Edison Research, a New Jersey-based media company that consults with radio stations. “He comes to the table with people wanting to see what he does next and wanting it to be something a little bit different.”
Now one of four remaining finalists vying for the “Idol” title and record deal, Lambert got much of his artistic education through local children’s theater groups, where the skills he learned playing Peter Pan and Huck Finn helped him turn the “Idol” stage into his own playground.
“Adam was always a mover; he was someone who wanted to make people feel things,” said Lynne Broyles, Lambert’s former vocal coach. “The stage is home to him. It’s like he’s always been there.”
At the age of 9, Lambert began performing with the Children’s Theatre Network – now MET2 – the company founded by Urban’s late husband, Alex. A few years later, Lambert also started taking voice lessons from Broyles, who later formed the Broadway Bound Youth Theatre Foundation.
Lambert performed with both groups until he graduated from Mt. Carmel High School in 2000 and headed to Los Angeles, where he still lives. In San Diego, he started in the ensemble of “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” and ended up playing lead roles in “Big River,” “The Secret Garden” and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”
“He was given the opportunity to play so many different parts, and it helped him learn to be a real chameleon,” Urban said of Lambert’s time with MET2, where students play multiple roles throughout the run of a play.
While the Urbans were teaching Lambert to be a quick-change artist, Broyles was helping him push the boundaries of his voice, allowing him to follow in the platformed footsteps of Queen’s Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson, childhood favorites he still admires.
Vocal exercises and singing techniques helped Lambert hang on to his boyish falsetto as he got older, and acting classes taught him how to turn raw emotion into stagecraft.
“In our classes, we got into some real intense acting techniques that helped the students focus their emotional energy,” Broyles said. “You have to know enough about yourself to know what you can bring to an audience, and even as a young child, Adam was very in tune with his soul.”
Knowing how to put himself into a song has paid “Idol” dividends for Lambert, whether he was turning Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” into a slinky seduction number, or singing a vulnerable rendition of Smokey Robinson’s “The Tracks of My Tears,” which earned the singer a standing ovation from Robinson himself.
Lambert’s ability to put on a vocally dazzling show has made him a favorite with “Idol” fans, who have cast enough phone and text votes to keep him in the competition through nine elimination rounds. His crowd-pleasing talent also has helped him shrug off baggage that has weighed heavily on previous contestants.
His résumé includes a European tour of “Hair” and a stint in the Los Angeles production of “Wicked,” but he hasn’t been criticized for being too theatrical, as Constantine Maroulis was in season four, or too professional, as San Diego’s Carly Smithson was last year after it was discovered she had recorded an album as a teenager.
Photos of Lambert in drag and kissing other men surfaced early in the competition, leading to a rash of news stories speculating that he could be the first gay or bisexual “American Idol” winner. Fox TV keeps “Idol” contestants away from the press, so Lambert hasn’t commented on the brouhaha. Racy photos have derailed past contestants, but they haven’t been a problem for Lambert or his fans.
“No one really cares what pictures Adam has floating around on the Internet,” Slezak said. “If people enjoy what you’re doing as an entertainer, they don’t focus on the things that don’t matter that much.”
Wednesday, a surprise drop in viewer votes put Lambert in danger of elimination for the first time this season. But early elimination from “American Idol” wasn’t a problem for Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson or for Chris Daughtry, who went on to sell more than 4 million copies of his debut album.
“Regardless of where Adam Lambert finishes, everyone (in radio) is going to want to hear his first record,” Ross said.
Lambert will be part of the “American Idol” tour, which comes to San Diego July 18. After that, there is no telling how far he’ll go. But the woman who helped Lambert find his voice is pretty sure he won’t be losing himself along the way.
“Adam never thought that he had a free ride. He was always wanting to grow and always wanting to find that next great vocal,” Broyles said. “Whenever he did something new or special, he would never say, ‘Wasn’t I great?’ He would say, ‘Wasn’t that fun?’ ”
Many responses have hit my e-mail inbox about my recent musings on Adam Lambert. Some readers appreciate my explorations of the musical scenes that inform his approach; others find them irrelevant, even disgusting. A few e-mail writers seem to think my mentioning Lambert’s ties to gay culture is an attempt to discredit or demean him — as if being gay equals being corrupt or “less than.” I find this disturbing. More justified, I think, is the question some others ask: Ann, what about his singing? Isn’ t that what makes Lambert so special, after all?
Yes, of course! Lambert’s voice is a rare instrument. Without it, his performances would merely be glitzy entertainment. To put it another way, he’d be Normund Gentle. Confrontational style attracts controversy, but it can’t raise deeper emotions. For that you need real talent, the kind that can move even those who never meant to pay attention.
Lambert sings in a certain way partly because he learned that method doing musicals and cabaret as well as glammy rock; he’s been working onstage since childhood and is well-trained. But a very particular gift allows him to go beyond the average show tune belter — or the average heavy-metal squawker. I think this gift puts him in a league with some of the best singers of the rock era. It has to do with the passaggio — his ability to transition from the lower register to that killer falsetto.
A friend who is a singer pointed this out to me (thank you, Erika Gunn!). She noted that many of the vocalists we find most unearthly and stirring can go from their earthy chest voice to the more piercing head voice without stumbling into the weak, constricted zone that often plagues singers as they make the leap. One blogger described it this way: The voice is like a stick-shift car, and the passaggio is the area of shifting, that risky spot where you’d better be both flexible and totally in command.
There’s a lot of interesting technical stuff written about the passaggio. I’m no expert on vocal technique, so let me leave my thoughts within the territory I know: the effect of a certain voice on listeners. Lambert’s natural range is fairly high — he’s a tenor emerging at a time when most rock-oriented singers are baritones, like those kings of the “Idol” jungle, Chris Daughtry and David Cook. (R&B singers are a different matter altogether; the lingering influence of Michael Jackson means that soft, high voices still do well in the field.)
What’s most striking about Lambert, though, is way he can linger in between registers without cracking, wavering or producing a “tight” sound. That’s why his rendition of “Mad World” struck many as his best performance of the season. It lived in that space. The way Lambert’s voice moves gives definition to grace, the way an Olympic skater does when executing a triple toe loop.
I was first convinced that Lambert’s talent goes beyond that of the average “Idol” striver when I saw the Youtube clip of him singing “Dust in the Wind” at the Upright Cabaret in Hollywood. Oh, my God, I thought. Idol is going to have its own Antony! Except he’s younger, more conventionally handsome and not wearing a dress.
Lambert had put me in mind of Antony Hegarty, the hugely gifted art star who uses his near-castrato vocal tone to convey his thoughts on the androgynous nature of love and life’s transitory flow. I wondered how such a delicate creature could survive the harsh grooming that “Idol” demands. (And I’m not the only “Idol” watcher to note the Antony connection.)
Since then, though, Lambert has shown more than that one side. He’s put his scariest Axl face forward for a metal-hard version of “Born to Be Wild” and regularly reached for notes that Janis Joplin might have dared. He’s earned comparison to Freddie Mercury and a standing ovation from Smokey Robinson. Lambert shares two things with all of those great singers: an urge to scale the wall of any melody and the knack for unsettling expectations that come with such a talent.
All of the greats I’ve mentioned pushed through the personae that might have otherwise held them in check. W. Axl Rose, in his prime, was not just the premier heavy-metal singer but the man who took metal into totally new territory. Joplin remains one of the only women to have fully commanded the male-run clubhouse of hard rock. As Queen’s frontman, Mercury made glam rock at once more androgynous and, paradoxically, more manly. And Robinson: His moonglow voice defied racial and gender stereotypes.
Lambert is hardly as formed as these greats. He has a long way to go and much to prove before he stands at the door of the pantheon. But his singing ability, at least, gives him the right to try. And that’s why we just can’t stop talking about him.
Audrina Patridge On Friendship With ‘American Idol’ Star Adam Lambert
‘He’s the nicest guy!’ the ‘Hills’ star gushes.
Who knew that “Hills” star Audrina Patridge and “American Idol” contestant Adam Lambert were such good friends? We were unaware until Patridge blogged about her friendship with him, posting a photo of the pair at the “Idol” hopeful’s birthday party.
“Adam Lambert is a close friend of mine and he’s one of the most talented and sincere people I know. He definitely has my vote,” Patridge wrote.
“[We met] through mutual friends a few years ago,” Patridge told MTV News. “He’s the nicest guy!”
Patridge also gushed about his singing talents. “He has an amazing voice,” she said. “He’s very talented and I really, really think he’s going to win.”
And to increase her buddy’s chances of winning, she’s getting everyone she knows to vote for Lambert week after week. “I have all my friends voting,” she said. “My family’s voting. Everyone’s in love with him.”
Audrina is hoping that her fans will also jump on the Adam Lambert bandwagon and she’s putting out a plea that if you haven’t voted for Lambert yet, now’s as good a time as any. “Everybody should vote for Adam Lambert,” she pleaded to the MTV cameras. “He’s amazing, so talented, has a great voice and I think he’s the next big thing.”
Below is a classic. Every girl here feels like that blonde girl x 1000. I’m dying for not going to see Wicked a second time when I was offered a 50% discount.
Once again, I REALLY feel bad for the other contestants. I’m glad that I didn’t try out for Idol this season
Notice some of Adam’s moves he also did during Disco night on American Idol.
Adam is no stranger to dancing choreography, singing… and acting. What would he do next?!
WARNING: Most people have seen the three or four pictures of Adam Lambert kissing a guy but there are many more. Some people like them and wanted to see more while some people don’t like them at all.
Everything related to Adam Lambert’s brother Neil is going to be posted here so keep checking back for more pictures and ’stuff.’ Before I get a million e-mails asking this question let me just give you the answer: YES, HE IS STRAIGHT.
Go get him ladies.
He is a very good writer and I’m really digging his humour. I can definitely relate. Reminds me of Maynard from ‘Tool.’ Pictures and posts from his blog below:
Lately I’ve been getting comments from people on here, via email, and real life and they all say the same thing: “Your life has forever changed because of American Idol. Take it all in, Neil! It’s gonna be a wild ride!”
My first reaction is to roll my eyes. I don’t feel any different, it’s just that my only sibling is a nationwide sensation at the moment. Also, why must I “take it all in”? If my life is changed forever, won’t there be taking-in time later on? Can’t I just take it in gradually instead of all at once? Why spoil it, you know?
Lately, though, I’ve begun to wonder. Perhaps my life has changed. Maybe I just don’t realize it which is why I don’t feel any different. So, today I decided to put this whole “your life has changed” premise to the test:
This morning I woke up for work just like normal. Besides a bit of extra drowsiness, I felt no different. Pulling on my clothes and brushing my teeth felt the same, my slightly disproportionate gut didn’t look any smaller, and my new haircut from last weekend still looked dorky. “It’s all in how you carry yourself, Neil,” I told myself. Nodding my head in agreement, I hopped in the car.
And that’s when it began. Cars seemed to part for me. Pedestrians scrambled over themselves to allow me the right of way. They shook their fists in praise of my awesome lineage. Other cars joined them, honking in agreement: Adam is talented, everyone loves him! You are related to Adam, everyone loves you! It’s simple logic, really, and I was suddenly a bit ashamed of having never though this way before. I eased onto the freeway, admiring all the Normal People going about their mundane lives. They will surely never get the opportunity to sit in the 5th row at a taping of the nation’s most popular television program simply because they followed one of the contestants out of the womb three years later! I could scarcely remember what it was like to live that way. So…. ordinary.
Cop car. Shit. I guess nothing’s changed. OR HAS IT?! I repeated my mantra for the day, that fame and glory are a state of mind. I stopped and the police officer followed suit. He approached my passenger side.
“License and registration, please.”
“Of course, officer,” I said while I shot him a cool and collected smile. He has no idea, of course, that I’ve been taking it all in for the whole morning and I am, naturally, a changed man. I continue to smile. The officer shoots me a quizzical stare while double checking the name on my I.D.
“Are you…?”
I didn’t want him to have to embarass himself. We both knew how that sentence was going to end: “…related to Adam Lambert?” Why not save him the trouble?
“Yes. Yes I am. Is there a problem, officer?” I beamed at him. So this is what it’s like, being indirectly famous. Life is good! Soon this cop would be stumbling over himself in apology. He had no idea who the fuck I was. I decided this time I would be merciful.
After a lengthy and frankly uncomfortable Field Sobriety Test, I realized my mistake. Do not finish police officer’s sentences for them. I can guarantee you that the end of their sentence, 99 times out of 100, is “…drunk?” and not “…Adam Lambert’s brother?”
Lesson learned: you are not cool. If complete strangers on the internet assume that your life is radically changing but you aren’t seeing the effects, that’s because your life is not radically changing. It’s not because you somehow managed to be unobservant over the course of the last few months, it’s because you are still lame. It’s a tough pill to swallow, but I’m glad it happened sooner rather than later.
This morning I woke up and everything was gorgeous. After half a week of miserable, rainy weather, I was pleased to see sunlight glinting off of the assorted glass containers strewn across my desk.
It wasn’t just nice weather though, it was incredible weather. Two birds were fucking on my windowsill extolling this particularly glorious Friday. There was a hint of pine in the air.
God himself appeared to me in a sunbeam and said, “Stop masturbating, Neil, and listen to me. I exist, and I want you to walk with me along the beaches of Santa Cruz while I explain the intricacies of the universe to you.”
“Sorry God,” I said. “My boss pays the bills around here, not you, and I unfortunately have to work. Besides, I’m sure the weather will be beautiful over in San Jose.”
30 minutes later I’m half way over the mountains encased in fog. The entire day was a miserable, rainy mess.
My brother Adam is going to be on American Idol Season 8. Perhaps I’m biased, but I think he should win.
It’s already a done deal, really. The rest of them should just go home. A-M-E-R-I-C-A-N I-D-O-L contains the word ‘Adam’ first of all, and unless there’s a guy competing this year named Ericn Iol, I really think that he’s got this thing locked up. Plus, the world greets Obama and Adam on the same day. Coincidence? Not a chance.
I encourage all of you (5 people who read this) to watch at 8pm PST on Fox. It’s gonna to be grand. Feel free to add your comments about his performance to this post so I can ride his coattails to e-fame. I’m a social network climber, big deal.
I can’t recall exactly when the end of my LA trip begins. Adam and I sit around on Saturday brainstorming potential songs he could sing.
It’s funny: when we were kids, Adam annoyed the hell out of me when he sang along to songs on the radio. A song will play and he’ll sing along, oftentimes wildly improvising on what the artist recorded. I guess I always thought of it as a way to show off or compete with the singer to prove he is better than whoever is on the recording. He usually is. But in his apartment, I realize that Adam does this whether anyone is watching or not. Improvising helps him decide how he will sing it when someone is watching. Now I listen to him wail and I smile instead of cringe. I see in that private space the same side of him that I see in myself when I put on my favorite tracks and pluck out some notes along to it on my keyboard, alone in my room. It is for no one’s sake but my own.
We talk about unrequited love and his thoughts on the subject. He says things about his current situation that I said in that very same apartment two years previous.
Sunday is spent waiting for my ride back to Santa Cruz to arrive. I’m supposed to have breakfast with my friend Maggie but we mutually flake on each other. We speak on the phone instead, catching up on the last few months. I’m reminded why we became friends in the first place.
When I was 13, I had a friend who was 24. I did not find this strange. In fact, at the time, she was the only friend I had any genuine fun with. I don’t know if it was because I was an old soul or because she was young at heart, it must be a mixture of both. We drifted apart when I became an angsty teen, though I am happy to say we are friends once more even if it is currently peripheral.
Now she is 34, a mother. I’m 24, some guy. We speak on the phone as if nothing has changed except that my brother may or may not be imminently famous and I may or may not be moving to another country. It is a rare thing to have a friend purely because the two of you have compatible personalities and not because you both work together, or because you are both in college or in the same city.
Sometimes the most important friends are friends with seemingly nothing in common. Sometimes the best brothers are brothers that have nothing in common until you spend a weekend with them.
I get a ride to Adam’s apartment to find out that we have completely miscommunicated. He is waiting for me at another location. No problem, I think, I’m in an adventurous mood. I’ll just kinda…. walk around Hollywood and wait for him to show up. Adam informs me that there is a public library somewhere in the East. Perfect. So I set out, imagining myself an explorer with walking stick in hand.
During my trek in search of the library I pass a house with a sign out front: “Psychic Readings: Tarot Cards of the Past, Present, and Future”
First off, that’s some poor presentation, Miss Chloe. By your wording I’m thinking you own a Tarot card museum. You should have been able to predict that many of your fellow citizens would be similarly confused. That you didn’t is the first indication that you are a bad psychic. Moreover, the entire house has bars on the windows and doors. Sooo, I’m going to pay you to read my fortune when you can’t even sense premonitions of impending breaking and entry at your home? No, not convinced.
I think of going in, but ultimately choose to save the $15 it will cost to make this post more interesting. I walk on, plodding my way through the urban wilderness in search of my true destination. Along the way I see a Scientology Library across the street. Christ, I hope this isn’t the library Adam had in mind. Again, I briefly entertain the notion of entering the library: “I’m here to research the study of science? I’m pretty sure I’m in the right place.” They’ve probably heard that one before. Maybe I’d say, “My engrams are, like, totally disrupting my destiny. I… I had a very loud birth,” while stifling some unexpected tears. Again, probably been done. Once again I move on in search of my true destination.
I finally find the library and silently rejoice. Of course I go straight for the Science Fiction section. Fahrenheit 451 instantly catches my eye. Hell yes! I’m ashamed to admit to not having read this book until now. Well, dear readers, that will quickly be remedied. I manage to get through one chapter before Adam arrives. It was good. It was really good, in fact, and every time I read something that exudes that level of quality right off the bat I think, “I should write. Not with the intent of contributing anything to the literary world, but because this author so obviously receives such pleasure from arranging words in the way that he does. I’m sure there are untold pleasures that await me if I put a pen to paper, too.”
But then Adam, or anyone else really, appears and my train of thought breaks. Suddenly I find myself riding around in his friend’s car petting her dog, Attila, and the inspiration evaporates. This happens to me quite frequently in many facets of my life: music, writing, pretty much anything creative. I always find myself content to observe, analyze, comment. It’s… hollow. What’s the point of living if you don’t create anything.
And then through some sheer luck or perhaps something more, I recall the quote at the beginning of Fahrenheit:
Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things. - Ray Bradbury
I know it sounds fleeting, but I think there’s a lot to learn from that. I’m going to attempt to live in this fashion more often.
I slept in a tent last night. In LA. It turns out that upon leaving Santa Cruz, that nagging feeling I kept having that I had forgotten something was not for nothing. About an hour into the drive I slapped my forehead, gripped by the realization that my sleeping bag and pillow were sitting safely at home. So I slept in a tent at a friend’s house in her backyard. I should be clear: “tent” connotes some sort of squalor but I would venture to call this a luxury tent. It had electical outlets. Laptop, desk lamp, music, and my favorite: tons of blankets that her cat had seemingly lounged upon all day. So obviously my allergic response was potent. I made it through the night.
Now I’m on my way, to meet Adam at his house. I have no idea where I’ll be sleeping tonight. Maybe I won’t sleep? I don’t know. I think at some point I’m just going to give in and get a hotel room to make my life a lot easier.
Last night the Embassy of Japan’s website was updated with information about who is scheduled for an interview for the JET program. I am not on the list. Yes, I checked it twice (three times in fact. Once this morning just in case I was dreaming). The myriad of reasons my application was not selected aren’t worth ruminating upon. I’ll never know why I was rejected because they don’t send a letter explaining the decision.
Well, Japan? You think all your applicants know what “ruminate” means? Fuck you.
It’s like Japan broke up with me last night. We were going strong, so I thought. I mean, sure, I hadn’t heard from her in a while but I didn’t sense any tension last time we spoke on the phone. We were going to move in together in August, but I guess that’s what you get for planning too far ahead.
She called last night to say, “Neil. Look, it’s you not me. I’m actually seeing 2,478 other guys right now. I don’t really care that they know how to properly use ‘ruminate’ in a sentence. I don’t even know how to use it in a sentence. Don’t call me, I’ll call you. Actually I won’t. Bye.”
So I shed some tears after realizing the full weight of our breakup. Particularly vexing is the embarassment I’ll have to endure when my friends ask, “How’s Japan doing? When are you moving in with her?” I’ll have to reply that, despite my talking about her all the time, we actually weren’t in a relationship. We went on a date once, that’s it, and I didn’t even get a kiss goodnight. But this whole time I’d been bragging to them about how we slept together.
Surprisingly, the bitterness hasn’t kicked in yet, just the disappointment. I guess I’m still in denial. When it does, though, you’ll know. Now this website has no future purpose which I guess is fitting considering I don’t either.
Now I’m just some college kid (not so) fresh from graduation with no plan, no short-term goal. Don’t worry, dear readers, I’m going to attempt to find a silver lining to all this. Perhaps now I’m better equipped for some serious fraternal coattail riding? I can ride those babies all the way through August, hopefully. I’m free to find a better job now, knowing I won’t be leaving in July.
Whatever that near future happens to be, Japan now has nothing to do with it. What should I do instead? I’m pretty open to suggestions at this point.
Talkin’ about L.A. there, but I wanted to be all cryptic and well read. I’m going to visit my brother there. On Thanksgiving we had this spectacular blowout of an argument.
You know those arguments you get into which start off innocently enough:
“Could you pay attention to the directions so we don’t get lost?”
“I don’t know. COULD YOU EVER MANAGE TO INTERACT WITH HUMAN BEINGS ON A BASE LEVEL THAT DOESN’T MAKE YOU LOOK LIKE A FUCKING SHITHEEL?”
Surprisingly enough, I was the one with the mild shot across the bow and he was the one reducing me to splinters. So it turned into us trading blows for the sole purpose of cutting the deepest. He totally won, which sucked. Since then we’ve made amends and this will be our first test run of our not being dicks in each other’s presence since Thanksgiving. I’m anxious to see how it goes, though I’m pretty sure it’ll be fine.
This is the finale performance of the Zodiac Show at Avalon Hollywood. Dedicated to Gabriel Paige. Featuring Adam Lambert, Carmit Bachar, Allan Louis, Scarlett, Alisan Porter, Ty Taylor
Staging by Carmit Bachar and Leo Moctezuma
Latin section choreographed by Willie Watana
Latin section arranged by Ameenah Kaplan
The Zodiac Show Directed by Lee Cherry
Executive Producers: Carmit Bachar and Lee Cherry
Remember that huge show before they announced David Cook as the american idol season 7 winner? Well, I THINK, this year is going to be JUST A BIT more GLAMOROUS. Even Simon is going to get up on stage and start dancing:
While Adam might have a preference for men, there are a lot of rumors here in Hollywood that he also likes girls. The picture below kissing two girls was taken after a gig at the Cat Club. Nothing is official yet and won’t be for a while, but there is continous talk here of previous girlfriends.
We all have our personal opinions and beliefs about how being gay/bi is affecting Adam’s lead on this competition. Feel free to express your own on the comments below but don’t be insulting to others who do not share your belief/opinion. You comment will be deleted if you are in any way disrespectful/insulting.
Part of the reason why this post is in the first page is because I want to stop people from talking about Adam being gay/bi all over this site and narrow it to this one post. Note, this is not trying to ‘judge’ Adam in any way but the reality is that there are lots of fans who want to know or discuss his sexual orientation. Again, since his music and talent is our first priority, this will be the only post were we will talk about this.
Please do not discuss this subject anywhere else.
“I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Adam isn’t gay, straight, or bi… I think he just is and believes love comes in all forms, gender doesn’t matter.” - DarkShadowsAbove
I’ve received many e-mails asking me what was my opinion about Adam being gay and how that affected the competition. I feel like I’m starting to sound like a broken record so here is my personal view on being gay/bi and how is this affecting Adam (I’m a straight male by the way). I use to think being gay was a psychological disorder that needed to be treated. In time and after years of researching on the subject I feel I have come to understand it. All of us are borned with a percentage of male and female traits. This is both embedded in our brains and our hormones. It has a lot to do with genetics but mostly with the multiple random possiblities that create who we are. Some of us are more masculine than others while some of us are more femenine regardless of your gender. I’m not going to keep going about how I believe we all evolve as a society, how extreme cases can be beneficial and how if Adam wasn’t bi/gay, Adam would not be Adam. In other words, I believe there is nothing wrong about being gay/bi.
Now, how is this affecting Adam?
There are many people that will not vote for Adam because he is gay/bi, mainly because that is against their religion or their beliefs. For those reasons we have to triple our efforts in voting for him to make up the deficit.
At least we can officially agree on one thing… Adam loves kissing people!
I personally like it (and I’m a straight male) but I only wear it for Halloween (ok, picture of me wearing guyliner below… oh man…). I think it looks good in some guys yet the connotation that goes along with can be pretty annoying. Maybe us guys shouldn’t care. It’s all about style and fashion, I don’t think it should go beyond that.
With people like Johnny Depp and now Adam Lambert, guyliner is becoming more popular. Adam wears eyeliner on occassion and I haven’t seen too many complaints. I was wondering what do you guys think: Do you like it or does it annoy you?
As described on his older MySpace profile (which is currently in hiatus), his father, a former DJ, exposed Adam to the best music of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. With over 15 years experience and training in professional musical theatre, he consistently delivers commanding, high-energy live performances. His creative turning point was being cast in a six-month European tour of the ”Musical Hair ”. Adam dove into hippie era history and paralleled with his very own summer of love which completed him with a major spiritual expansion. Adam returned to Hollywood inspired to make his mark as a contemporary musical artist. He began to make appearances as a glam rock soul alter ego in The Zodiac Show at The Henry Fonda Music Box and Club Makeup at the Key Club. He has even performed for audiences at the Burning Man art festival the past two years. After gaining credibility on the club circuit, he landed his breakout theatre role. Opposite Val Kilmer’s Moses, he was cast as Joshua in
The Ten Commandments at the Kodak Theatre in 2004. His tour de force performance became a press and crowd favorite with the New York Times calling him the most consistent crowd-wowering and the LA Times stating that his personal sound and style (was) the best. After ‘The Ten Commandments,’ Adam was cast to understudy in the 1st National Broadway Tour of Wicked. While on tour for six months, he began collaborating with Composer/Guitarist Monte Pittman (Madonna, Prong). Today they have written over 20 songs as the alt/pop/rock band THE CITIZEN VEIN. They are currently working with Producer Malcolm Welsford and A&R Worldwide recording a series of songs. Right before American Idol, Adam was appearing at the Pantages Theatre in the LA Company of Wicked, and working with his unsigned band. In possession of a high tenor power voice, Adam possibilities are endless. A musical chameleon, he seamlessly maneuvers in and out of pop, rock, R&B, soul, electronic, and adult contemporary genres. Influences include, Freddy Mercury, Robert Plant, Donny Hathaway, Steve Perry. Moreover, Adam has also SELF-produced a growing number of original electro-pop tracks. Lambert looks forward to collaborations leading to a unique new fusion of his personal style and impressive talent.
Now, Adam Lambert is on his way to become the NEXT American Idol!!
Below is Adam Lambert’s Demo Reel:
Also, below is a full version of his audition in San Francisco. The same day I saw this, I decided to building his fansite:
His homecoming date (for two years), talks about how he dyed his hair black and embraced his rock persona. Their music director says he was one of the best students she has ever taught and Mt. Carmel High School is very proud of Adam Lambert. He was known as the ‘musical guy,’ watch the video below:
milestougeaux
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Adam Lambert on “American Idol.” (FOX) -
