. In May 2009 he finished as the runner-up on the
.
Early life and education
Lambert was born in
Indianapolis, Indiana[3] and lived there for a year before moving out West to
California. He grew up in
Rancho Peñasquitos, San Diego, California and attended Deer Canyon Elementary School,
Mesa Verde Middle School, and
Mt. Carmel High School, where he was in theater, choir, and frequently performed with the school's jazz band.
[4] Lambert is
Jewish and has performed at Jewish events.
[5]Early career
Lambert has been a stage actor since he was about ten years old; he was cast as Linus in
San Diego's Lyceum Theater's production of
You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown.
[6] He also played a part in
The Ten Commandments: The Musical at the
Kodak Theatre alongside
Val Kilmer.
[7] He was the understudy for the part of
Fiyero in the touring and
Los Angeles casts of the musical
Wicked.
[7] Since 2004, he has regularly performed at the Zodiac Show, which was co-created by
Carmit Bachar of the
Pussycat Dolls. He also performed at the Upright Cabaret.
Lambert has cited several musical influences, e.g.
Queen,
David Bowie,
Michael Jackson,
Aerosmith and
Led Zeppelin.
[1][8]American Idol
Lambert auditioned for the
eighth season of
American Idol in
San Francisco,
California. During his initial audition, he sang "Rock with You" and "Bohemian Rhapsody." In the semifinals, Lambert was voted into the Top 13, joining fellow Group 2 performers
Allison Iraheta and
Kris Allen. Lambert and Allen became roommates in the Idol mansion, with Allen stating it was due to their neatness.
[9]During
Michael Jackson week, he sang "
Black or White" leading to praise from all four judges, with
Paula Abdul predicting that he would go on to the finals.
[10] The following week, Lambert sang a version of "Ring of Fire". While
Randy Jackson, DioGuardi, and Abdul all liked his performance, Cowell called it "indulgent rubbish".
[11] On
Motown night, Lambert distanced himself from his rocker persona, singing a slowed down, acoustic version of "The Tracks of My Tears". The judges all liked it, and
Smokey Robinson, the week's mentor and the original singer-songwriter, gave Adam a standing ovation. For his Top 8 performance, Lambert sang the 2001
Gary Jules arrangement of "Mad World". Because the show had exceeded its time slot, only Cowell gave a critique, which he did by simply giving Lambert a standing ovation. During the results next night, the other judges agreed that a standing ovation was the best critique of Adam's performance.
[12] For his second Top 7 performance, Lambert sang "If I Can't Have You", delivering what DioGuardi described as his "most memorable performance", while Cowell described his vocals as "immaculate". Abdul was reduced to tears, with host
Ryan Seacrest joking that Lambert had melted her into a "pool of Abdul".
[13] In the Top 4, Lambert was the first to sing, performing "Whole Lotta Love". Cowell commented, "that was one of my favourite performances... nobody can top that now", while Abdul, punning on the song's title, described Lambert's performance as "a whole lotta perfect".
Season 7 American Idol winner
David Cook stated that Lambert and Allen are his favorites of Season 8.
[14] Country music singer and actress
Reba McEntire has echoed the same opinions, also adding Iraheta to her list of favorites.
[15]Photos of Lambert kissing a man were shown and discussed by conservative commentators on
The O'Reilly Factor; they agreed that the images would likely have no impact on the competition because the focus remains on the singers' talent.
[16] Lambert confirmed that the photos were of him, stating he had nothing to hide and has always been open about his life.
[17]For the top three show, Lambert chose to sing at his alma mater,
Mt. Carmel High School.
[18] While there, he performed both
Michael Jackson's "
Black or White", and
Tears for Fears' "
Mad World."
[19] After his performance, San Diego mayor
Jerry Sanders declared May 8 "Adam Lambert Day."
[20]On May 20, 2009, Lambert was announced as the runner-up for the eighth season of American Idol. Lambert performed a medley of
Beth,
Detroit Rock City, and
Rock and Roll All Nite with rock band
KISS during the final episode. His version of the winning single "
No Boundaries" was later released on iTunes alongside American Idol winner
Kris Allen's version.
