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19 Entertainment’s Orchestrated Reveal of Adam Lambert’s Sexuality

People Adam Lambert

In every interview and TMZ ambush, Adam Lambert has played semi-coy about his sexuality. The American Idol runner up has never denied being gay, and everyone at the show knew his orientation, and the media all but confirmed where he stood after Queerty was blogging about it for the entire season. But Adam has never come out and said those two words: “I’m gay.” In the next issue of Rolling Stone, however, he’ll do just that. Why’d it take so long to acknowledge the obvious? Perhaps it’s because American Idol‘s producers legally required him to stay mum.

It’s no secret that Idol production company 19 Entertainment owns most every aspect of a contestant’s life. That’s the trade-off for competing on the show: Simon Fuller holds the deed to your soul in exchange for the chance at worldwide celebrity and riches. It also means 19 Entertainment gets to tell you what you’re allowed to speak to the press about, and that includes your personal life.

Lambert’s mother Leila reveals that not only has Lambert signed away his right to free speech, but so has she. “We signed a contract with Idol and unless it has been set up by them, I’m not allowed to answer,” says Leila, acknowledging the deal Team Lambert struck with producers. Her statement also confirms the Rolling Stone interview where Lambert will “officially” come out is part of a packaged Idol press onslaught (because you didn’t know before how music marketing worked).

Most significantly, however, is that because Lambert is instructed by 19 Entertainment on what to speak about publicly, this means Idol producers are on board not just with Lambert being openly gay, but with pushing that storyline as part of his artist profile.

Of course, they only permitted Lambert to speak about it after the show wrapped, but Rolling Stone will hit before Lambert’s first album and tour does, which means they must be confident they can market a gay singer. And that, friends, is pretty remarkable.

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