There were no wardrobe malfunctions for Janet Jackson last night. Which is a shame, because throughout her entire seven-minute performance, we yearned for her to lose the boxy brown pantsuit-from-the-future. It didn’t happen, but the medley of “If,” “Miss You Much,” “Make Me,” and “Together Again” were in there. But how did Ms. Whitney Houston — and the rest of this season’s rotating cast of pop talent, including Adam Lambert and Lady Gaga — do?
Interestingly, Whitney was introduced by Samuel L. Jackson, the same man who introduced her performance at Michael Jackson’s 30th Anniversary Celebration at Madison Square Garden on Sept. 10, 2001.
It was a little shaky at times, but we’re assuming that’s par for the course in her live performances moving forward. But damn, she looks good.
But that wasn’t all the diva-dom in store last night. ‘Cause Glambert was there!
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
We’ve seen this Adam Lambert look before. But somehow his first public performance was, uh, worse than anything we ever saw on Idol. And while we must admit we liked the “guys on leashes” thing, we can’t help but wonder, How did this go so badly? (And no, it wasn’t his decision to kiss a male keyboardist, nor “give head” to a male dancer.)
Meanwhile, Jennifer Lopez made a lackluster attempt to return to pop culture. Her new song “Louboutins,” and her boxing ring motif, will all be forgotten for this: she fell on her ass. Ouch. We miss old J. Lo. The one from the block.
Rather than deliver the more popular “She Wolf,” Shakira hot-stepped her way through “Give It Up to Me,” which felt more “Rhythm Nation” than anything Janet did. Too bad, because there goes a missed opportunity to gyrate inside a cage in front of millions of viewers.
And don’t forget, the Black Eyed Peas want the gay fans! Which explains, uh, all the sharp objects?
And last but not least, Lady Gaga in a nude body suit gave “Bad Romance” a try on a live audience. We liked it! And while her second song, the “Speechless” ballad number, was pretty blah, what’s lovely about Ms. Gaga is that it’s hard to remember each of her individual performances — not because they’re all forgettable, but because they’re all so unique, that it’s hard to pick out just one that stands apart. (Well, that bloody MTV one does, but for all the wrong reasons.) The only thing we remember for all of The Gaga’s performances? The way her legs seem to move independently of her body. And her joints.
Daniel
Lambert is trying too hard.
He isn’t in the same calibre of the international superstars that he shared that stage with and should respect that.
If a singer needs to make out mid-performance, especially with a prop, kind’ve indicates a poor performance.
He’s not Madonna, Britney or Christina and never will be.
Valorie
I didn’t think Adam was terrible. Yeah, the vocal was not his best, but it was live and happens to everyone. At least he sang live. Before the show I thought for sure he’d play it safe and only do “shocking” things with the female dancers. Couldn’t have been mor wrong. From the simulated oral sex with a guy, to the men on leashes, to kissing his straight male keyboardist, he was gay. GAY. Sure he did stuff with his female dancers too, but you could tell his focus was the men. I think his main goal was to get people talking, and it worked. He’s been a trending topic on Twitter since the show ended on the east coast. People are comparing him to Madonna and Britney at the VMAs. I loved every minute of it.
I also loved Gaga and J-lo. Whitney was good too. Didn’t care much for Shakira or any of the rap. And was shocked when Taylor beat out MJ for the nights biggest award, he won his previous two and I just expected him to get that one as well.
Jay
I loved Adam’s performance. Wasn’t his best vocals, but I think the sounds system and mixing also sucked for most of the show. His CD is incredible. Love you Adam.
POPEYE
I’ve been a huge Adam fan since his rehearsal on AI, but gotta say I was a little disappointed with his performance tonight. The simulated oral sex & crotch grabbing didn’t offend me at all, it was the fact that for the first time ever the guy sounded like shit!!
AN
Gaga- yeah should have left out speechless.
Adam- kissed a guy! Hope they don’t cut it off on the west coast.
Taylor- wow at her beating michael jackson in the end.
Adam Addict
I am a devout Adam fan but was disappointed tonight. I saw Adam perform live from sixth row on tour this summer and he was AMAZING. No dancers, no elaborate sets, no fancy choreography, and Adam was terrific. This is what we want Adam! Just you, singing, and being yourself. You should fire your AMA choreographer, because she made it too complicated, took away from your singing which is what makes you great. Focus on your voice next time and not the extraneous stuff that we really don’t care about. The racy stuff didn’t bother me but it was a distraction from YOU, the lack of focus on your true talent (your vocals) was lost in the process. Don’t lose sight of what your fans really love about you. We thought you were here to entertain us? Please sing!
solace
I too have been a fan since Adam’s early Idol days, but I have to admit I was a little disappointed tonight… His singing was off-key and flat, which as someone else pointed out is unusual for Adam. The album cover song FYE, a Lady Gaga sound-alike, is average at best and not at all memorable. I love some of the other songs on the album though and will be definitely buying it. Adam, you possess an amazing voice and stage presence, please put them to better use next time.
NASTYGIRL
JANET JACKSON HAD THE BEST PERFORMANCE OF THE NITE AND THE LONGEST PERFORMANCE SHE OUT DANCED ALL THOSE 20 YEAR OLD; AND YES SHAKIRA’S ENTRANCE WAS A RHYTHM NATION RIP OFF; SEE HOW THE YOUNGINS ARE STILL COPYING FROM JANET & MICHAEL THEY STARTED THIS DANCE THING; JANET JACKSON IS THE FEMALE VERSION OF MICHAEL JACKSON NO OTHER ARTIST MALE NOR FEMALE CAN FUCK WITH JANET ON THE STAGE I DON’T CARE WHAT SHE WAS WEARING SHE KICKED ASS 2NITE!!
YellowRanger
Adam Lambert – I seem to be in the minority, but I loved it. The vocals were far, FAR from his best, but everything else(the fall and subsequent ninja roll to try and make it look planned, aside) made up for it. It reminded me why I liked him so much after he did ‘Ring of Fire’ on Idol. And the incoming tsunami of rage over it courtesy of the O’Reillys and Hannitys of the world should be good for a laugh…Or several.
Gaga – “Ooh, fun! Oh, yawn…”
Shakira – Sounded less physically ill while singing than usual.
Rihanna – Should be fired from live performances now and forever.
Taylor Swift winning artist of the year – I’ve never cared for ol’ Ratface, and I doubt that I ever will. Where’s Kanye when I need him?
Cate
No. 9, I agree 100% with everything said. You beat me to it!
josh
Adam did NOT kiss a lady dancer. He kissed a MALE band member named Tommy. Tommy does look effeminate though. But he does claim to be straight.
The west coast censored out a simulated bj that a male dancer gave Adam.
tommy
Lady Gaga blah? Oh no sir… that song Speechless had me in tears.
Ron
Wow. I did not even realize the fall wasn’t planned. He did a good job of covering. (When he hit that bad note during Mad World on Idol, I also thought it was planned, to make it sound ‘mad’). Well, there’s been an incredible amount of pressure on him, and I guess it finally took its toll. I hope people will stay with him, because he is incredibly talented, and I think his potential is incredible. His performance tonight had some really great moments, and if he was pitchy, dawg, he also still outsang eveyone else there.
Landon
Kelly Clarkson had the best performance of the night by far in terms of vocals.
romeo
The baby did good. BTW, couldn’t have been gayer, so all the fretting was for naught over this thing. Liked his makeup, but I thought the costume could have had a little more pizazz. One thing, I think it would have gone better if he had toned down the vocal flourishes and stuck a little closer to the recorded version. Actually, he seemed a tad nervous, which surprised me, but it’s understandable. There’s a lot riding on this.
Adam is a great singer, that’s never been in question. He’s also a great performer. I’m giving the album as Christmas gifts to a lot of people.
Wore rhinestones on his eyes I think, my favorite look for him. Sometimes he pisses me off, but I can’t help loving him. Go figure.
The Swimmer
FUCK YOU QUEERTY! YOU’RE ALL JUST UPPITY AND JEALOUS BECAUSE YOU WEREN’T THE LUCKY BASTARD WHO HAD HIS FACE SHOVED INTO ADAM LAMBERT’S MASSIVE AND WORSHIPPABLE PENIS! YOU GUYS ARE A BUNCH OF OLD BAREBACKING QUEENS WHO ARE STUCK WITH THE DADDIES FROM 440 ON CASTRO STREET! BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
ADAM LAMBERT LIVES FOREVER!!!!
GeoffM
I didn’t care for any of them except for Lady Ga Ga….but I have to ask this…am I the only one who was, uh, distracted by …..her ….you know? I’m not being rude. I love her 100% as is, but wow.
sadbunch
Right, I’m sure the ‘former’ fans of Adam were never fans to begin with. Please, I’d rather listen to him than Eminen or any other hip hop rap bs – now that’s totally boring, and it’s even becoming ‘safe’ music, not anything refreshing, wild and bold, like how Adam can make it. Sing your ass of, Adam, because you absolutely rock!
Priscilla
I have never been a fan of Adam Lambert bc he always seems like he is trying to hard to make his voice hit those high pitches. That’s why his tongue is always sticking out! And I even waited to see his performance, did not change my mind. His voice was horrible! The black eyed peas did the best performance on there!
Michael
Kelly Clarkson was the best of the night. I liked Adam’s performance. It was everything I hoped it would be.
JLM
Why is it that it is always the Queens that slam Adam?? He kissed a guy and you still aren’t happy!! Adam did exactly what he set out to do except at 1 minute 14 seconds the sound went down, he lost his vocal ques and it threw him off pitch. Later someone tripped him with a cain but he recovered flawlessly. Was it his best performance vocally – nope. But Adam decided to take a risk and he did it with creative vision and with balls of steel. Can’t believe anyone didn’t at least love it for that. The whole damn night was just a bunch of women struting their sex and when a guy does it, half the world falls appart. LOL!! Adam you rock. The album is fantastic by the way!!
kendall
Why is the controversy over the crotch-to-the-face and the gay kiss, when he actually finger-banged one of the female dancers live on network television?
Qjersey
Adam made his statement. period. He even walked through a (closet) door.
There was so much female pussy thrusting all night long that his antics were totally comparable.
Cory
JANET!!! Please, please tour!!! Awesome performance… You other folks were good too…
YCKTR
Ummm…at least Adam was actually singing – you have no idea how difficult it is to perform while actually singing. Good for him.
And GaGa remains THE most interesting thing happening to music right now.
!
andrew
Adam is nothing like Britney and Madonna at the VMA’s. Adam is gay and doesn’t hesitate to show his emotions with other men. Britney and Madonna acted like boner dykes for the benefit of the sleazy straight guy fantasy, and then ran off to be with their husbands.
Big difference.
andrew
Yes, I also get sick of these female performers who try to act sexy all the time. Beyonce, Madonna, Britney…ewwwww. They do it because their talent is basically zero, and thus there’s a need to compensate and distract.
Half of these female attention-seekers are basically mime artists lip syncing to their own songs. They’re singing karaoke to their own songs.
bruce
Janet Jackson can’t sing, I’m afraid. Her voice is dreadful. The only thing that makes it stand out is production. Live, she’s awful.
bruce
Please do not compare Adam Lambert to the Britney/Madonna kiss at the VMA’s. Adam is proud of who he is, and isn’t afraid to show it. Britney and Madonna use their so-called bisexuality as a marketing ploy to appeal to the type of men who hate us.
staciegirlie
Why didn’t this writer sign his name to his article so I can give him his proper tongue lashing? There you go, trashing Adam.
bruce
Here’s a direct quote from Adam Lambert after the show:
“I do feel like there’s a bit of a double standard in the entertainment community, on television, on radio. I feel like women performers have been pushing the envelope, especially, for the past 20 years. And all of the sudden a male does it and everybody goes ‘Oh, we can’t show that on TV.’ For me, that’s a form of discrimination and a double standard.”
So true, don’t you think?
Alan
Look Adam Lambert did an OK performance of a poor song- with basically a tired ‘controversial’ Britney dance routine. The serious problem for him is that it was absolutely boring musically and creatively.
Nothing new at all zzzzzzzzz
kendall
Yes, at least Adam was actually singing live. Even the parts where his lips were not moving but you could clearly hear his voice on the backing track.
He should have lip-synced the whole thing, because the portions that were live were awful.
Blondiegrrl
#13 … I’ll echo what Ron said. Not Adam’s best vocal performance, but he gets props alone for big brass balls. I love him for that. Lady Gaga was fantastic; I think “Bad Romance” is her best song to date. The Black Eyes Peas were kinda cool, and Kelly Clarkson sounded fantastic. I didn’t pay attention to anything else.
YCKTR
@kendall
Those can, do. Those who can’t, make snarky comments on the internet.
!
Qjersey
Gaga was brilliant as always, Adam should be mimicking her, not Madonna a la “erotica”
christopher di spirito
I like Adam. He’s talented and he can sing.
But last night, when up against the likes of Lady Gaga, the Black Eyed Peas, Janet, and Whitney, Adam seemed amateurish and, well, quite frankly, like a second place finalist from American Idol.
Quake
OK.
First of all Adam Lambert needs to apologize to ABC for performing fellatio on stage during a broadcasting, as well as a kiss which is quite useless anyway. Who created this guy’s stage? This is jus a epic fail
Gaga is always going to be a hit performance, she barely fails at all since she started. Speechless is not my favorite song from the Fame Monster. But boy does she know how to put on a performance to pursuade you into loving the song.
Quake
@ Bruce
Well it is a double standard but for obvious reasons. Male sexuality is not really T.V. friendly like a women is. Getting your dick sucked on stage is quite offensive, people would rather see tities and skimpy hooker clothes then to see that. Even women would agree.
I know its quite sad, but male sexuality is just not viewed in the same light as a women’s. And its always been like that, unless someone changes that standard.
The morden society you live in holds female sexuality on a pedastool, while male sexuality has a stigma attached to it. I guess when you add up all the rapes, pedophiles, abuse, molestation, its always associated with a man although a women is more than capable of doing those things. I guess the feminist movement helped women more than they thought…
Alexa
You may remember I’ve been pretty critical of Adam recently, but I thought this performance was pretty good. He’s sounded better, but I didn’t see anything wrong with his act. He’s right, it’s a double standard and it’s pathetic and it needs to change. Gaga was fantastic (I don’t see anyone complaining about her costume, but you can bet if Adam had worn something similar there would have been a million complaints). It’s a shame Queerty didn’t show the night’s best performance, Kelly Clarkson was fantastic.
David Ehrenstein
Adam was scrumptious.
Brandon33
Oh please, this has very little too day with a double-standard. Adam Lambert’s performance was just bad and needlessly tacky.
I’m all for overt sexual overtones, and I love a perfectly proportionate male crotch (and even a little well-timed thrusting), but Lambert was just too much. Too all over the place. Too desperate. Like the old guy who’s always at the bar and hitting on EVERYONE.
Madonna and Britney may have had some raunchy numbers themselves, but it was always with a *finesse* and ease that Lambert DEFINITELY lacked last night. I mean, he was literally TRIPPING across the stage in an effort to hump everyone and everything on it.
Not too mention that, with the exception of his first note, the vocals were so terrible it didn’t matter that he was singing live. “Well, at least I was singing live” isn’t a defense if you sounded like a cat passing kidding stones while doing so.
Brandon33
**ahem**…kidney
Cam
I didn’t see it, but I don’t know, just the thought of Janet Jackson and Whitney Houston performing already had me bored.
As for Adam, I have been first and foremost to tell his crazy fans that come on here to go to hell and stop attacking us, HOWEVER, if he DID simulate oral sex on a guy, I have to admit that it sounds like it was a funny response to the “OUT Editors comment about him touching a girls boob but not simulating a blow job on a guy. So nice one there. LOL! As for people like (Screename Swimmer) who come on here and say things like this…
No. 16 · The Swimmer
FUCK YOU QUEERTY! YOU’RE ALL JUST UPPITY AND JEALOUS BECAUSE YOU WEREN’T THE LUCKY BASTARD WHO HAD HIS FACE SHOVED INTO ADAM LAMBERT’S MASSIVE AND WORSHIPPABLE PENIS! YOU GUYS ARE A BUNCH OF OLD BAREBACKING QUEENS WHO ARE STUCK WITH THE DADDIES FROM 440 ON CASTRO STREET! BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
ADAM LAMBERT LIVES FOREVER!!!!
__________________________________________________________
Um………you sound insane.
audiophobe
Vocal critics, listen again for accuracy. You don’t recognize Lambert’s voice. Monte’s vocals were the problem. He can sing but the mixing was screwed. HE was the loud voice in harmony and drowned Lambert out from the time he harmonized at approx 1:16. Monte was oversinging Lambert & off key. You can even see it on tape every time he was on camera. You did NOT hear a recorded track you hear Monte Pittman. From 2:02 it’s Lambert only and back on key pretty much when there’s no Monte. (the guitarist).
The mistake Lambert made vocally was to deviate from the actual song and insert wails that didn’t belong there in that type of live first time out performance. Props for everyone who sang live. None sounded right. Kelly was not offensive but not her best audio. Note she toned it down. Nobody’s bitching that Gaga was lip syncing Bad Romance? THAT’S BECAUSE SHE’S DANCING. The hardest thing in the world to do. People LOVE suspending disbelief. They want to pretend that lipping is real.
terrwill
Can we all just for once stop and realize that a performer who is absolutley 1000% of the homosexual varitey was given one of the choicest slots to perform last night. Yeah it was over the top, and yeah Adam takes may be just a bit screechy at times. But as a bunch ‘o Gays lets step back and for once take one for the team and realize this guy is doing something fairly historical. He didn’t wait until his careeer was fading and after years of speculation to poke his head out of a slightly adjar door. He blew the fucking doors off his closet and it hasn’t hurt him one bit. Evidence is the placement of his performance on the show. For once stop the hating and realize that if he is successful the other 90% of entertainers who are Gay won’t be so concerned with the supposed “career suicide” that comin out is supposed to be………………
Brandon33
I don’t know audiophobe…you may be right about some of that, but that last series of notes was definitely all Lambert, and those were definitely the notes the prompted my cat to drop a deuce on top of my cable box.
At the end of the day it was a bad vocal. He really was off-key most of the time. Maybe it was his nerves, because he’s usually so good. I personally attribute it to the air of desperation that perfumed his entire set.
trent
I enjoyed Adam’s performance and I enjoyed Lady Gaga’s performance. I didn’t think one was more dramatic than the other. I keep hearing how everyone says he is too theatrical, but gaga is ok. I personally may think this is a situation where its ok for female performers to be over the top and theatrical, but not ok for our guy pop stars? Double standard, maybe?
scott ny'er
I’m don’t dig Adam’s screeching. But, I actually like FYE, after a couple of listens tho. And think he sounds reminiscent of George Michael back in the day.
Adam is correct, that it’s a double standard. This performance probably won’t help album sales and work against it. I’ll give it up for Adam. He’s got big balls. And kudos to him for doing something HOMO, like kissing a dude, and the oral sex thing. And for breaking the conservative nature rock and to a larger extent this country has fallen back into. What ever happened to the crazy, free love 70s.
so… YAY FOR ADAM! KUDOS!!!
Brandon33
@Terrwell
Saying “I’m here and queer” is only part of the battle. You have to be here and queer…and good. And Lambert kinda wasn’t last night.
And I’m willing to bet that his antics aren’t going to make it the least bit more “ok” for gays in the industry than it already is. Between this over-the-top performance and his even more over-the-top album cover, Adam is running the risk of becoming a caricature.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the guy is extremely talented. He just needs to simmer down, let his undeniable talent speak for itself, and be more natural. Because right now he crossing the line between playful and in-your-face, and desperately trying too hard.
And now I’ll stop with the rapid-fire posts. lol
deareditor
“….(And no, it wasn’t his decision to kiss a lady keyboardist, nor “give head” to a male dancer.)”
Oh Queerty Queerty. It’s second hand embarrassing that you don’t know the kiss recipient is Tommy Ratliff. The BASS PLAYER. See, he’s astrummin one of them thar modern geetar contraptions. Which musta been what confused your musically sophisticated brain into thinking it was the keyboard.
And classic that you liked the lip sync Bad Romance and call the live self accompanied Speechless “blah”. No wonder they even use autotune at football games with audiences like you.
Jackasses.
GJO
YIKES, the Adam Lambert performance looked and sounded like something out of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. I wasn’t impressed at all. There was nothing new or exciting about it and he sounded bad!
When are fans and Rhianna’s management people going to accpet the fact that she should never never sing live, ever!
JLO, stay home and take care of your kids!
terrwill
Brandon33: You are correct but too many of the posters are not thinking about the impact of Lamberts being a Gay and being somewhat accepted by the suits. He does need to simmer down a bit and stop morphing into a Gay cartoon charachter, but am urging the Gays to not be so quick to toss the hate bucket his way……………He is going into fairly unchartered area and I think as a community we need to support him as much as possible……..(and of course there are going to be haters disagreeing with me so go on and get it ova with……….)
AlwaysGay
I’m an Adam Lambert fan. He is enormously talented. However, last night wasn’t a good performance. He was nervous and was given a bad microphone (many performers also had microphone troubles). He does need to tone it down. The “Dirrty” music video hurt Christina Aquilera’s career because many were turned off by the content. He should learn from Christina and tone it down a bit.
Adam performs tonight on The Late Show with David Letterman. His album is out NOW! Buy it.
staciegirlie
That kiss was HAWT! AMA’s overall stage production…not so hawt. I did notice Adam was more nervous than I have ever seen him. (I’ve watched every performance of his available on youtube.) I’m going to place a small amount of the blame on Hickmin for harrassing him last week. Adam sure gave someone the bird during his performance.
niamh
Adam’s dad occasionally posts on one of the TV forums’ Adam thread, and his username is Dadalus. I was reminded of that this morning when I saw the hand-wringing that was going on.
“Yes, our Icarus may have gotten a little toasty last night, but his willingness to leap toward the sun is what thrills us about him. Chill, hand-wringers. Our boy is gluing those glittery feathers on even more tightly, getting ready for that next bold leap.”
niamh
then there’s this:
Rolling Stone loved it.
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/11/23/full-frontal-glambgasm-rob-sheffield-on-adam-lamberts-amas/
lambert remarks:
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/11/23/adam-lambert-breaks-down-amas-controversy-as-stars-react-to-his-wild-night/
…”But when it comes to being a live performer, thinking is the biggest enemy. It’s about trying to be in the moment as much as possible.” As for how bass player and keyboardist Tommy Joe Ratliff, who’s been playing with Lambert all of three weeks, got roped into a nationally televised lip-lock? Easy, he didn’t know it was coming. “He just believes in the spirit of rock & roll, as do I,” said Lambert. “He’s a really cool open guy. There’s a quote from the movie Velvet Goldmine that we both get a kick out of: ‘Rock & roll is a prostitute — it should be tarted up.’ He believes in that the same way I do.”
Landon Bryce
1. Despite the fact that viewers for that time slot usually get the sleazy Desperate Housewives and goody-goody gays of that other show, ABC censored Adam Lambert’s antics for the West Coast. This is depressing.
2. How many years before Adam is headlining a national tour of Rocky Horror? You know, Tim Curry was hss age when he was doing Rocky Horror. Lambert here looks like he’s desperately trying to be Frank-n-Furter, and not succeeding. Tim could hit his mark, simulate sex, and stay on pitch! Adam’s a little more out than Tim (whose sexuality is genuinely complex), but otherwise Curry got there first and better in every way.
Nobodyatall
So is Lady Gaga just rockin a penis full on? I mean, good for her… I’m honestly just surprised that its not a bigger deal on the internetz in general.
Ben
The whole performance was just off to me. The sound mixing sounded wrong, and Adam’s own vocals weren’t that spectacular.
Frankly, I wasn’t bothered by the simulated BJ or the gay kiss. Knowing that Adam is gay, I was a lot more bothered when he grabbed a female dancer’s crotch. That moment was a lot more obviously “risque” and exploitative, along the lines of the Britney Spears and Madonna kiss.
Overall it just seemed like he was trying too hard.
I say this never having heard or seen an Adam Lambert performance before in my life.
Bill Perdue
The quality of the lyrics and choreography are irrelevant.
I’m all for rubbing it in their christer faces.
Go, Adam!
stormy
Ummm…Glambert was pretty awful. That song wasn’t good and all of the unnecessary making out with people and crotch shots is exactly the type of behavior that turns heteros off from the homo cause. Thanks Adam…you just set us back.
Michelle
I like that Lady Gaga sang the second song! It was pretty and showed that she is indeed a talented singer and songwriter.
Mo
I don’t know about you but I actually suffer from hetero-fatigue, that endless stream of moments on television and in movies where I have to watch men and women kiss. So watching Adam last night, in a performance that reminded me of The Rocky Horror Show, when he grabbed the keyboardist and planted a tongue insertion into his mouth, I was very happy. I was happy that America had to see this and boy, if you check any of the right wing blogs they were in huff, not only about Adam, but the whole damn show was near porn for them. And I say: That’s right America! Indeed the show itself was horrible beginning with a Janet Jackson who seemed burdened by gravity, slow and cumbersome and not anything like her late agile brother. And what a great time to be dancer, right? OK, so the show seemed like it was choreographed by one person, what is it about the AMA and sound? It’s like listening to a program through a soup can and string, and the dancers, ah, the dancers get all sexed up with their leery mouths and groin bumping to a point where it just becomes silly. And the biggest problem was one of no emotion—there was little emotion in these acts, save the Gaga and the Whitney. Adam did gay culture a great service by simply being sexual (think of that lovely couple in Brothers & Sisters with a penis and you’ll get what I mean) and for that, he should be congratulated.
RyanInSacto
I’ll admit, I’m not an American Idol viewer and what I know about Adam Lambert derives from reading this blog. However, I was curious to finally see what the hubbub was about this guy, so I checked out the AMA clip. My thought: What’s the fuss about? This guy can’t sing at all. Maybe he’s interesting in other ways, but a singer he is not. And if you love his CD, that’s fine, but I’m guessing you should probably thank his producer who probably spent a lot of hours fixing his vocals.
Republican
Not one of his better performances.
hardmannyc
This is the first time I’ve heard Adam Lambert sing and BOY DOES HE SUCK. His voice is like sandpiper and he was off-pitch at least 1/3 of the time.
Next year, I can confidently predict we’ll be saying “Adam Who”?
romeo
@ Hardmannyc: That performance was in no way representative of his singing ability. Adam will still be around next year, trust me.
Sealily
No#65
See that’s the problem….Adam actually can sing! He has great range and phrasing. This was just not a good performance. He was pitchy partly due to technical glitches like sound mix. You could hear the back up WAY too much. I felt the choreography was way too busy. Check out his Upright Cabaret Performances on the internet. They are stunning. And some of the Zodiac Club stuff paired great vocals and great choreography. Crawl through Fire for one. (I so wish he had done something like that!!!) And the CD has amazing vocal performances, including a gorgeous ballad completely in a flawless falsetto.
One performance should not make or break an artist!
markey
ryaninsacto #65 Lambert did over 50 live shows around the country. And on GMA and other venues. His vocal prowess is legendary already. What you saw on tv was alot of lip sync and did you know they also use autotune at football stadiums?
staciegirlie
Stormy says–Ummm…Glambert was pretty awful. That song wasn’t good and all of the unnecessary making out with people and crotch shots is exactly the type of behavior that turns heteros off from the homo cause. Thanks Adam…you just set us back.
_________________________________________________________________
You think so? Maybe complaints alleging he was trying to appear “straight” egged him on.
I’ll reiterate from previous posts. Adam should’ve gained more power before attempting this, however, he is moving forward. Unfortunately, change is uncomfortable. Fortunately, people will cope. Eventually.
I loved his performance. The only painful thing to watch was his struggle with his nerves, the sound system and the guy tripping him up with the cane. It better not have been sabatoge.
marksnyder
Kelly Clarkson had the best vocals by far, finally returning to her good pretty singing instead of shouting her way through.
gladys
Why can’t you fools get off Adam’s dick long enough to admit that he SUCKED! He was AWFUL! It was a cringe-worthy performance that was embarrassing to watch! I cannot believe there are actually people out there that like him and his complete garbage. The only person more punch-able is Chad from “Million Dollar Listing”.
James UK
I think it’s fair to criticize Adam’s vocal performance – it clearly wasn’t his best.
But as for the rest of the whining about the sexual nature of the performance, much of it is homophobic.
Clearly some people would object to any display of sexuality beyond a chaste peck on the cheek, because unless it’s married sex, without birth control and in the missionary position, no more than once a week and never on a Sunday, it’s against God’s will. I couldn’t agree with that position less, but it is at least consistent and honestly expressed.
What most people are objecting to however, is not the display of sexuality per se, but the type of sexuality displayed, namely homosexuality.
Well they have the right to state as loudly they wish that they don’t think that they should have to watch it on television. However, the rehearsal footage was heavily trailed by ABC on its AMA webpage and elsewhere in the media. The easily offended could have chosen not to watch. They could have pressed the off button on their remote controls. Or changed the channel. The performance was at the end of the show. At close to 10.00 p.m. On a school night. Besides, kids can watch it unexpurgated on YouTube anyway at any time of the day. Whether the performance was on network television or on cable matters not.
Those with the point of view that the whole thing “ought never to have been allowed” should have the courage of their convictions and say why. Using “the kids” as an excuse to cover embarrassment about sex, a failure to educate their children openly and honestly about sex and of course their own feelings of disgust about homosexuality and homosexuals, is both disingenuous and spineless.
Adam is gay. From the Rolling Stone magazine cover to the AMA performance itself isn’t a massive leap. Perhaps people expected a gay boy with a pronounced feminine side to be cute, loveable and only interested in shopping and playing dress-up. And not really interested in actual sex. (Beyond maybe kissing and the usual stuff early teenaged boys get up to with each other when they realize post-puberty what they can get up to with their genitalia, which as we all know hardly counts.)
And the sad thing is, that sort of homophobic criticism is also coming from other gay men. I’ve read lots of “he’s damaged the cause” commment around the web on lots of sites and from people who can generally be counted on to know better. Shockingly, I’ve read better today from people who can generally be counted on to know less – i.e. Perez Hilton!
These views are typical of a current, supposedly modern, post-gay mindset that the only proper way to be gay is to be gym-trained; teeth-bleached; spray-tanned (lightly with perhaps a little Touche Éclat for Men for the morning after the night before); Abercrombie-and-Fitched (a size too small, naturally); gay-but-only-if-asked; assimilation-ist; and of-course-I’m-not-a-bottom mannequin. These guys think that they are 100% out and proud.
The rest of us however can still smell the mothballs.
I’d rather have a queen any day.
So far Adam has refused to apologize. Not for being gay. Not for being open about it. Not for wearing make-other than the male grooming products of the kind approved by the Committee for the Advancement of Approved Gay Lifestyles. Nor for (shock horror) being interested in actual sex. And not even for the worst sin of all, contradicting that which from time immemorial we have all held to be a sacred truth, that all queens want to be on the bottom.
Thank you, Adam. You’re so right to leave the apologizing to the closet cases. They’re better at it.
RJ
#74 James UK
BRAV-FREAKIN’-O! Well said! Going out later to get Adam’s CD and I can’t wait 😛
hardmannyc
Romeo: I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. As I said, I’d never heard him but that was truly cringe-worthy.
The Artist
The entire show lack luster. Janet performance seem lazy…midrange. Worst performance goes to Adam and best does go to GAGA, cuz we GaGa 4 her. Strong Vocals, instrumentally talented and performance confident. Totally recalling Prince, you know, back when he was interesting.
Cam
I’ll give him the benfit of the doubt and pick up his Cd. If he was responding to the OUT editors criticism, then good for him, if he was already planning on this, then good for him. Either way, hey, I bitched about him possibly being “Afraid of the gay” so I’ll be the first to congratulate him on being out there for this performance.
It’s a shame about the vocals, as somebody who watched Idol, he actually can sing.
bruce
One of the things a lot of you forget is that liberals have promoted the bisexual double standard for at least 40 years. From art-house movies of the 1960’s to the porn of today, the female-female sexual interaction is mainstreamed but the male-male one isn’t. This different treatment of the two types of homosexuality has played into the hands of homophobes whose true opposition to homosexuality is based on it being two men or two women who don’t conform to the lipstick lesbian image.
A culture based on intellect cannot be allowed to get away with treating male homosexuality as gross and female homosexuality as hot. Adam made this point, and I applaud him.
AlwaysGay
After looking at his performance again and reflecting on it I think what he did last night was a great thing for gay people. He pushed a big boundary for gay men and that is expressing our sexuality just as openly as heterosexuals. Adam did it. Although there were people who were taken aback it didn’t generate the condemnation I thought it would. So three cheers to Adam!
John from England(used to be just John but there are other John's)
@ Cam (78)
This posting is random-as in I was just checking the mayhem that is usual with bitchy queerty commenters but dude that’s why you’re needed here. And I posted.
Honesty.
Word.
John from England(used to be just John but there are other John's)
Also…
Why the HELL do we need/have to put up with women touhcing themselves and showing their private parts to get attention??
He kisses a guy…wow…
What did Madonna do? Even before she was famous…(Adam standard)or Lady Crap Crap?
Come on.
RyanInSacto
ryaninsacto #65 Lambert did over 50 live shows around the country. And on GMA and other venues. His vocal prowess is legendary already. What you saw on tv was alot of lip sync and did you know they also use autotune at football stadiums?
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@markey: Let me make sure I understand your lip sync comment correctly. Are you telling me that this guy recorded a crappy vocal track and lip synced to it? That doesn’t make any sense at all. If he was lip syncing, he probably would have used a flawless track so that he sounded good, not bad. That’s the point of lip syncing.
Also, I don’t really care where they use autotune. They could use it at football stadiums or supermarkets for all that I care. The point is, when you listen to this guy and he sounds “good,” it appears to me that it is a product of a piece of software, not talent. That goes for any other singer that relies on autotune to give them what nature and hard work did not.
romeo
This has been on my mind all day. (Jesus, Adam, what have you done to me?) There was a lot of technical shit that sabotaged the performance. But I just knew that that didn’t matter, but I just couldn’t verbalize why. Holy cow, did Adam drive me to the ineffable? But then it occurred to me.
Instead of playing safe, toning down the production, de-gaying it, etc., ADAM CHOSE TO THROW DOWN.
romeo
(hit the wrong key.)
He chose to throw down and go head on the first time out on his own. However frenzied it was; however nervous he got; we saw something historic. A gay man stepping unapologetically into the spotlight. HE KNEW HOW DANGEROUS THAT WAS. HE KNEW THE RISK.
And he did it anyway. And I feel honored. A gay man stood on that stage the wild assed equal of any straight up there. He mattered as much as they did.
As I said, he was sabotaged by technical problems and mishaps, but there’ll be plenty of opportunity to display the voice most of us know is there. None of the problems mattered one bit. It was history, and he’ll always have plenty of audiences after that.
Just maybe not as many grandmothers as he had before last night. LOL
James UK
And of course, some people deserve to be shocked.
Frequently.
Preferably with electrodes.
Where the sun don’t shine.
[Oops, I was forgetting about the lady’s discreet vibrator.]
Appallingly homo-normative of me.
I apolo…..
No. I don’t.
romeo
Yeah, James, no more fucking apologies from any of us. We’re here; we’re queer, and we’re better than anybody else! LOL
ricky
lady gaga is a musician. she proved it. hence the ballad. which i liked. i am 51 and i love lady gaga. lambert makes my ears bleed.
romeo
Don’t let it get on your cardigan.
markey
#83 ryaninsacto NO, you’re right worded clumsy. He did not lip sync, the lip sync of the other performers.
It annoys me that Gaga is revered for her “strong vocals” when she completly lip sync’d Bad Romance. If you don’t believe it, watch towards the end when her head is down. I’m not near my tivo to clock it. Her damn lips don’t move.
Further, to praise her for Speechless is ridiculous. I love her voice and her piano. She killed on SNL on piano. But sitting at a piano and controlling your accompaniment and voice is hardly the same as Lambert’s bombastic production. Which is why she did lip sync. Kinda hard to dance AND sing.
Doing a lip sync (besides the fact that he has no clue how)..that performance would’ve been a cakewalk. Notwithstanding the adrenalin rush of knowing that he was about to make international history.
I’m with @Romeo. The guy threw balls to the wall and made the commitment. Fu*kin fearless. I even hope the “fall” was real not choreo. Complete abandon and spirit.
Think what you want imagining he can’t sing live. How did he work in theater forever? There are around 25 youtube live performances from light opera to stage to rock that prove you just uninformed.
I saw him in The Ten Commandments with Kilmer. Lambert was the only one with good press.
Here, laugh your ass off at Kilmer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvwcJUhIa0U&feature=PlayList&p=8C7103F6B8D5AC0C&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=2
Brigadoon light opera 22 yrs old 3:23 has a 22 second breath hold:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJYyqzUr6jU
NOW you see the sacrifice he made for yesterday. He colored his timbre and lower register differently on purpose for an even greater risk knowing they’re not his money notes.
PootieTang
Some people will never be happy, no matter what Adam Lambert does. Before it was “o he is not gay enough!” Now it is “oh he kissed a guy, big deal!” There seems to be way too many people here sitting on their asses a la J.Lo watching his every move to criticize him. Nasty nasty nasty.
alan brickman
is copyright the new censorship??…
Doug
What a repressed society we really are! We act like performers should give a performance as were used to and if the deviate from the norm then they are no talent freaks! America kinda sucks
TS
I still have Adam’s performance vid up at http://littleglitterlittleglam.blogspot.com – it looks like Youtube is pulling them as fast as they’re posted.
markey
new interview after the show about the kiss and adrenalin
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/11/23/american.music.awards/
Randy214
he was awful. whitney with her crack riddled voice could still out sing Adam. i hope adam is ready to join rueben, taylor, et. al. because he isn’t going to be around in a couple of years. oh, sorry i forgot. adam didn’t even win idol. the cute guy with good voice did.
mikeandrewsdantescove
Thanks for posting all the performances. It was obvious to me that Janet and Jennifer Lopez lip synced due to their intricate dance moves.
Adam did have a powerful voice in the opening and it became weaker as he moved throughout the performance. He did sing live and I give him kudos for that.
Mike
Dante’s Cove
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=302835391&s=143441
derrr
lady gaga does not lip sync.
period.
its pretty obvious she doesn’t need to.
and adam just bores me. in every way.
he seriously just has never intrigued me in any way.
Daniel
There is more than one Daniel posting on queerty