Adam Lambert

Adam Mitchel Lambert (born January 29, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter and actor.

Lambert was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on January 29, 1982, to mother Leila, a dental hygienist; and father Eber Lambert, a program manager for Novatel Wireless.

His father is of partial Norwegian descent and his mother is Jewish, with roots in Romania.

Lambert was raised in his mother's religion.

He has a younger brother, Neil.

Shortly after his birth, his family moved to San Diego, California.

Lambert began performing with Metropolitan Educational Theatre network (now MET2) from the age of nine.

A few years later, he began more intense acting and vocal coaching, continuing to perform with both MET2 and what was to become the Broadway Bound Youth Theatre Foundation, as he moved through Mesa Verde Middle School and then Mount Carmel High School.

There, he became heavily involved with theater and choir, performed vocals with the school's jazz band, and competed in the local Air Bands competitions.

He also appeared in local professional productions such as Hello, Dolly!, Camelot, The Music Man, Grease, Chess and Peter Pan, at venues such as The Starlight, The Lyceum and others.

After graduating from high school in 2000, he attended California State University, Fullerton.

His major was musical theater, but left after five weeks to move to Los Angeles: "I just decided that what I really wanted to do was try to work in the real entertainment world. Life is all about taking risks to get what you want."

At 19, Lambert got his first professional job, performing on a cruise ship for ten months with Anita Mann Productions.

Afterwards, he performed in light opera in Orange County, California.

By 21, he was signed with a manager and cast in a European tour of Hair.

In 2004, he appeared in the Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) production of Brigadoon and a Pasadena Playhouse production of 110 in the Shade, before being cast in the role of Joshua in The Ten Commandments: The Musical at the Kodak Theatre alongside Val Kilmer.

He came to the attention of the casting director for Wicked, and was hired as the understudy for the role of Fiyero and an ensemble member in the first national touring production of the musical from 2005, and the Los Angeles production from 2007.

He also worked as a demo singer and a session musician; a compilation of his 2005 recordings was later released in 2009 on the album Take One.

He finished performances with the musical in 2008.

During this same period, Lambert briefly fronted underground rock band The Citizen Vein with Steve Sidelnyk, Tommy Victor and Monte Pittman.

Lambert rose to fame in 2009 after finishing as runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol.

Later that year, he released his debut album For Your Entertainment, which debuted at number three on the U.S. Billboard 200.

The album spawned several singles, including "Whataya Want from Me", for which he received a Grammy nomination for "Best Male Pop Vocal Performance".

Since 2009, he has sold over 3 million albums and 5 million singles worldwide.

In 2009, Lambert auditioned for the eighth season of American Idol in San Francisco, California by singing "Rock with You" and "Bohemian Rhapsody".

Advancing to Hollywood Week, he performed "What's Up" and "Believe" solo, and "Some Kind of Wonderful" in the group effort.

Simon Cowell voiced some concern about his theatricality, but Randy Jackson found it "current".

He advanced easily to the top 36 performing "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction".

In the first week of live shows, his rendition of Michael Jackson's "Black or White" was praised by all four judges.

For Country week, he sang a sitar-infused version of "Ring of Fire".

His Motown night acoustic version of The Miracles' "The Tracks of My Tears" drew praise from judges and a standing ovation from Smokey Robinson, the week's mentor.

Since 2011, he has collaborated with rock band Queen as lead vocalist for Queen + Adam Lambert.

Lambert is known for his dynamic vocal performances that combine his theatrical training with modern and classic genres.

In 2012, Lambert released his second studio album Trespassing.

The album premiered at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200, making him the first openly gay artist to top the album charts.

Alongside his solo career, Lambert has worked with Queen in several worldwide tours from 2012 to 2024.

In 2015, Lambert released his third album The Original High, which debuted at number three on the U.S. Billboard 200 and produced the single "Ghost Town".

In late 2019, Lambert founded the non-profit Feel Something Foundation, anchoring his ongoing philanthropy, LGBTQ+ and human rights activism.

Its particular focus is support for organizations and projects that directly and disproportionately impact the LGBTQ+ community, including education and the arts, mental health, suicide prevention and homelessness.

Their first album, Live Around the World, released in October 2020, and debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart.