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Loading ...Lambert says he got carried away, but not sorry
(New York) Adam Lambert admits he got carried away with his sexually charged American Music Awards performance, but he’s offering no apology.
The glam rocker from “American Idol” said on “The Early Show” that his performance would not have caused as much controversy if he weren’t openly gay. He also said there were other “adult” moments on the show that caused no outrage.“I admit I did get carried away, but I don’t see anything wrong with it,” he said Wednesday. “I do see how people got offended and that was not my intention. My intention was to interpret the lyrics of my song and have a good time with it.”
Lambert kissed a male keyboard player, dragged a female dancer around by the ankles and had a dancer simulate oral sex on him while performing “For Your Entertainment,” a song with a sexual edge. ABC received many complaints about the performance and that network’s morning show, “Good Morning America,” canceled Lambert’s scheduled appearance on Wednesday because it said it couldn’t trust what he would do.
“The Early Show” on CBS, perennially third in a three-network morning show race, happily gave him a platform and milked it – interviewing him, having him interact with fans and asking him to sing. One of the show’s hosts, Harry Smith, tied the flap to rock history, noting that camera operators were only allowed to shoot Elvis Presley from the waist up during a network TV appearance generations ago.
Lambert admitted he didn’t rehearse some of the more risque elements of his award show performance – a point that particularly upset ABC, which said it was taken by surprise by what he did. In the future, he said he’d try to get these issues cleared before the show.
But he noted that Lady Gaga smashed whiskey bottles during her performance, Eminem rapped about rape and Janet Jackson briefly groped a male dancer.
“Janet Jackson, crotch grab,” he said. “I haven’t heard one peep about that.”
He said that “if it had been a female pop performer doing (his) moves that were on the stage, I don’t think there would be nearly as much of an outrage.”
“I think it’s because I’m a gay male,” he added.
Offered a chance to apologize, he declined. He said he didn’t consider that there may have been children watching because his American Music Awards performance came at nearly 11 p.m., and that it’s a parent’s job to monitor what their children are watching on TV.
“I’m not a baby sitter,” he said. “I’m a performer.”
Asked what he’d do differently if he had the chance, Lambert said, “I would sing it a little bit better.”
“I guess I have a tendency to divide people,” he added. “Apples and oranges – you either like it or you don’t.”
“For Your Entertainment” is the title cut and first single from Lambert’s new album, which went on sale Monday. He didn’t perform that on “The Early Show,” opting instead for the songs “What Do You Want From Me” and “Music Again.”
He said before performing, “Parents, this is appropriate, I promise.”
Lambert took questions from fans surrounding CBS’ midtown Manhattan studio, including one who said she had traveled from Japan to see him. None of the questions were about Sunday’s performance.
His mother, Leila Lambert, came on stage between his two songs, and was asked what she thought of her son at the American Music Awards.
“I was a little taken aback,” she said. “But, you know, I just went with the flow. It’s all good.”
‘Carried away’ HOOT! These perfomances are rehearsed over and over and over. So So true Lesbians can get away with anything. GAY’s nothing in Amurikan entertainment.
Okay, is he agrees he got carried away, it sounds like he took some advice to heart. Nothing inherently wrong with what he did, except that it’s not good show biz to be all about the raunch. It distracts the public from one’s real talents. Deal the “risque” cards one at a time, don’t klonk the audience in the head with the whole deck at once.
American entertainment in general is cheap and cheesy. It doesn’t add anything to my life.
I thought Adam Lamberts performance was raunchy and disgusting. In my opinion he went way over the top, and actually hurt the cause of gay men everywhere. He reinforced what straight, conservative people use to condemn us. What he did was more of a rape scene than a sex scene. I mean, he grabbed the guys head, shoved it forcefully into his crotch, and gyrated his hips. There was nothing sensual about it. The same holds true of the kiss. What could have been seen as something nice, turned out to be crass. He again, grabbed the guys head, and forcefully kissed him. He claimed that gay men get unfair treatment. Believe me if Madonna had grabbed Britney Spears, and forcefully shoved her head down to her crotch, and gyrated her hips, it would have been met with the same outrage.
We all know that, had he tits and a vagina, no attention would have been paid to the complaints. I wasn’t embarrassed at his performance, but then I don’t attempt to mimic constipated straight society.
It may have been over the top for some but I honestly doubt that it hurt our gay cause. Why do some gay men worry about what the fair right christian gay hating bashers care, they’ve already have us stereotyped and crucified way before Adam Lambert was ever heard of. All his performance was, was a sensual sexual fantasy that relates to his lyrics, that’s called freedom of expression. If a straight rapper can get away rapping about having six rapes under his belt or Janet Jackson groping some male dancers genitals on stage that night why the double standard if a gay man does his thing? If anything Adam Lambert should be admired and supported by all the gay community for being the first openly gay man to go where no gay man dared. If you choose to live a hidden gay life how are you helping the gay cause?
I realize that many of you can’t come out of your closet for fear of the repercussions from your employers as well as the repercussions one might have to face with one’s families. But there are many of us that are openly gay and out of our closets much like Adam Lambert. By hiding who we are only gives our gay hating opponents more fuel by keeping us hidden, ashamed and living in constant fear.
As a gay man I applaud and support Adam Lambert for not letting people control who he is, a gay man.
I have several things I’d like to say about Adam Lambert. First of all I read an article that stated that the editor of 365GAY J. Vanesco said that Lambert has hurt the “gay marriage issue”. I think this is nonsense. Anyone who was/is an opponent of gay marriage will remain so long after Adam Lambert has left the stage. Secondly, I find it interesting that 365GAY didn’t support Lambert 100%. It certainly doesn’t do to conquer and divide. You’ll never get anywhere if you don’t support each other. Adam Lambert despite even what he says has sparked controversy because he is an openly gay MALE. He is absolutely right when he alludes to Beyonce, Lady GaGa and Madonna when he says that there is a double standard. Straight women have been flaunting their sexuality for years on these awards shows. Although I don’t particularily like Lamberts music I do appreciate that he has loads of talent. I also think he didn’t win American Idol because he is gay.
Lastly, there is a “poll” on the homepage today with 3 choices about Lambert’s performance…the first asks if You didn’t like the music but weren’t offended second: you weren’t offended but he hurt gays and lastly;it was offensive. Seems a bit scewed doesn’t it? How about you liked the music and weren’t offended? what happened to that choice??? Methinks someone just doesn’t like Adam Lambert.
It’s interesting that, on the CBS Early Show, when they alluded to the Madonna/Britney Spears kiss, they showed the video. When they talked about Adam’s kiss they blurred it out so you couldn’t tell what was going on. Really? Two women kissing is ok, but two men kissing is too much for morning TV?
A CBS spokeswoman said: “We gave this some real thought. The Madonna image is very familiar and has appeared countless times including many times on morning television. The Adam Lambert image is a subject of great current controversy, has not been nearly as widely disseminated, and for all we know, may still lead to legal consequences.”
WHOA!?! WAIT?!! WHAT?!?! It may be illegal for Adam Lambert to kiss another guy? Is watching “Brothers & Sisters” going to be against the law too? What the hell kind of twisted logic is that?
Gene Tauber, my guess is that by “legal consequences”, they meant fines from the FCC which, unfortunately, has censorship authority.
I logged into this web site to see where the editor in chief supposedly said that Adam Lambert hurts gay marriage by reenforcing stereotypes of gay men, because I wanted to see a justification for a remark that incredibly foolish. I’m not finding it.
Unless you believe we should go back to the days when gay rights protestors had a dress code and were required to dress as perfect representatives of our genders I find this opinion farfetched at best.
His performance was vulgar and nauseating, but that’s not the point. I can’t count the number of vulgar, sexually-charged performances I’ve seen over the years from so-called “entertainers”. Would people have still complained if he was straight and had done these things with female dancers? Possibly, but there would have been fewer complaints and far less media attention.
As for those who suggest his performance has in any way hurt the gay rights cause, get a life. Seriously. You want equality, right? Well doesn’t that also mean extending an equal right to gay performers to be just as vulgar as straight performers? Why should the gay “community” shy away from vulgarity when its heterosexual peers see no need to do so?
Nauseating or not, same sex marriage in California and Maine were overturned much before Adam Lambert’s performance . Sometimes in order to win you have to continually stand up and fight for something by making yourself visible and vocal. If we allow the media and those that oppose our lifestyle the ability to censor a simple public kiss between two gay men then we’ve lost. We need to join together, get on the phones or email any television programs that censor us and file our own complaints. ABC received approximately 1500 phone calls objecting to Mr. Lambert’s openly gay performance. As this news emerged there should have been thousands of us in retaliation against those 1500 complaints, but there were none. As gay men and women we need to unite and become very vocal in our fighting for our own cause. All of us should have been making phone calls objecting to the censoring of a sensual gay fantasy performance by a gay man much like those sensual heterosexual fantasy performances that go ignored and without complaints. Our silence needs to come to an end or we can only blame ourselves for allowing people to treat us like second class citizens without any rights.
LegalINCT
I watched Adam Lambert on TV at an Asian fusion-style restaurant called Raku here in DC. After seeing repeated photo shots of him and his performance, I am even more finished with him. He is simply tacky. I refuse to be dazzled by the hype, glitz, glammor, and glitter surrounding this gay “golden boy” performer. To me he is just a gay version of Michael Jackson with his antics of crotch-grabbing, etc. that I do behind closed doors and drawn shades in the privacy of my home. I am not impressed by bedroom behavior made public like intimate mouth to mouth by anyone. I was brought up on a quick hug and kiss to the cheek at the most in public, not this bedroom appropriate soul-kissing, mouth to mouth, tongue to tongue stuff that looks tasteless in public whether on TV or on the street.
I am pleased that I have good friendships and a nice social life away from home to further reduce my dependence on TV.
I don’t blame families for calling in to complain about “blatantly sexual stuff” like simulated sex acts and crotch grabbing and intimate mouth to mouth kissing on daytime TV not suitable for young children’s eyes whether done by straight or gay performers.
That stuff belongs on after midnight TV not normally accessible to young children.
But he noted that Lady Gaga smashed whiskey bottles during her performance, Eminem rapped about rape and Janet Jackson briefly groped a male dancer.
“Janet Jackson, crotch grab,” he said. “I haven’t heard one peep about that
This why I am not impressed by TV and its coarse performers. Who are here today and gone tomorrow. Remembered today and forgotten 20 years from now as they age and as a new generation is born.
Enough said. Onto Thanksgiving preparations and house cleaning.
Morgan
And you are entitled to your own personal moral values Morgan, good bad or indifferent but the point is that there was a double standard that was set for those sexual gestured heterosexual performers to that of Adam Lambert’s performance. It’s not about liking or not liking Adam Lambert or Michael Jackson, it’s about censoring one and not the other performers actions. It’s about defending our rights and double standards are not equal rights.