Why Should it Matter if Adam Lambert is Gay?

"Gay" is such a contentious buzzword when it involves outing someone against their will, and it probably drew many of you here. Which of course is okay because our message is simple and positive. So, we're not ashamed to have lured you here.
You "Commie, Homo-Loving Sons of Guns!"

Bottom line: It shouldn't matter to anyone if Adam is gay or not, Right? I know, I know, little girls fantasize about being swept in his arms. They go to bed, hoping against hope, that he'll come flying through their window like a scene out of Twilight. So, what happens when the media outs someone before he gets a chance to be judged as a singer and not a "gay" singer?

The media is starting to flood Twitter and Blogs with questions about Adam's sexuality. While some people question why it matters, others want to know because it does matter. It matters to them because they're gay too, and it's a moment of pride to have someone so talented, as a role model. So, those of you who question why there's so much hoopla, it's because it's human nature. It may not necessarily be exploitative just because the word "gay" appears it the title.

Being gay in the music world has long been taboo. Since the early days of music, being gay has left managers, record labels and star-makers with a politically challenged marketing dilemma. How do we market a gay singer, when it's girls buying all the records?
Well kids, the world has changed and maybe it doesn't really matter anymore. For one thing, people are buying CD's less and less, and coming out of the closet more and more. Back in the day, I might have re-considered buying a Mika cd when my cool, leather-clad bud Rick, was at the cash register at the local Harvey Sound. With the advent of iTunes and the internet, most buyers are teenagers, and between males and females, they are both just about equal spenders.
They buy singles and don't judge.
At least I speak for most civilized people.

When I first joined the Audition Portal team, we started watching American Idol while we were all still at work at the L.A. office and I thought, wow, this is cool and these people are cool. We were gay people and straight people hanging out, laughing together, and interacting creatively and musically. Many of my peers are actors and singers, and we all fit right in. What resonated with me is how much of the entertainment industry is gay. Yet, many are still not so ready to divulge personal info when it could end in conservative-media controversy. It's not that people don't want to come out of the closet. It's just that they don't always care to be the subject of people's judgment. That's also why it matters whether someone is Gay or not–people use it as a weapon to "hurt" someone's career. Many of us actors, musicians, liberals are open to it, but not everyone's that progressive.

Maybe that's why Adam has been quiet. We really do not know his personal life. He could be Bi or asexual like Morrissey, right?

The reason why females bought more records in the 50's, 60's and part of the 70's, is that most acts were males purposely marketed for young female consumption. Our dear Elvis, whom many people are comparing our dear Adam Lambert to, paved the way for this hysteria. Then the Beatles arrived and lit light bulbs above greedy record executive's heads, and the stoking of the star-making machinery began. As the soot settled, testosterone-inducing bands of the ate 60's and 70's, like Led Zeppelin came to the forefront and both women and men started buying record more equally. 

These days, ambiguity works too. Emo, or whatever style that is, makes it cool for young males to dress androgynously and style their hair in a way that would have gotten their cute little keesters kicked by the hard rockers years ago. Take Judas Priest singer Rob Halford, for instance–yes, he could kick your but, and he was "Breaking The Law" and "Hell Bent for Leather" and errrr....very Gay. Yet, males still bought their records. I think 75% of them knew what was up and just ignored it. Now, everyone knew Freddie Mercury was gay right? I did. Well, okay I admit it, I just thought he was "theatrical" like this Adam kid.
But you know, it didn't matter to me or to my straight friends either. Music transcends judgment sometimes. If the singer has a God-given talent, if they've been blessed with a natural gift, it moves us and uplifts us. That's all that really matters when it comes to music and listening. Does it matter to us whether Adam is gay or not of course not. Does it matter to the media & the little little girls? Sure it does. So, in the end, it actually does matter, good or bad.

Adam Lambert may be gay or straight, as long as the little hairs on my arms keep doing the happy (or gay) dance when he sings, that's all that matters to me.

Jared Lifeson
www.auditionportal.com