What might Adam Lambert's "Rolling Stone" cover look like?

In every interview and TMZ ambush, Adam Lambert has played semi-coy about his sexuality. The American Idol runner up has never denied being gay, and everyone at the show knew his orientation, and the media all but confirmed where he stood after Queerty was blogging about it for the entire season. But Adam has never come out and said those two words: "I'm gay." In the next issue of Rolling Stone, however, he'll do just that. Why'd it take so long to acknowledge the obvious? Perhaps it's because American Idol's producers legally required him to stay mum.

It's no secret that Idol production company 19 Entertainment owns most every aspect of a contestant's life. That's the trade-off for competing on the show: Simon Fuller holds the deed to your soul in exchange for the chance at worldwide celebrity and riches. It also means 19 Entertainment gets to tell you what you're allowed to speak to the press about, and that includes your personal life.

Lambert's mother Leila reveals that not only has Lambert signed away his right to free speech, but so has she. "We signed a contract with Idol and unless it has been set up by them, I'm not allowed to answer," says Leila, acknowledging the deal Team Lambert struck with producers. Her statement also confirms the Rolling Stone interview where Lambert will "officially" come out is part of a packaged Idol press onslaught (because you didn't know before how music marketing worked).

Most significantly, however, is that because Lambert is instructed by 19 Entertainment on what to speak about publicly, this means Idol producers are on board not just with Lambert being openly gay, but with pushing that storyline as part of his artist profile.

Of course, they only permitted Lambert to speak about it after the show wrapped, but Rolling Stone will hit before Lambert's first album and tour does, which means they must be confident they can market a gay singer. And that, friends, is pretty remarkable.

OF NOTE

In the comments there's a lot of discussion about straight folks (particularly women) wanting to deny the significance of Adam being gay or ignore his being gay or flat out deny his being gay. Boils my blood. Why do folks come on gay or lesbian sites to tell us how "insignificant" our being gay or lesbian is. It's not for them to say. Being out and proud is INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT not just to the individual but to our community as a whole. Coming out and being visible is one very important weapon in the arsenal against discrimination and homophobia and I'm SOOOOO OVER straight folks saying "I don't care if he/she is gay/lesbian" or "It's their business" or "It's private, why are you talking about their sex life"

Acknowledging that someone is gay or lesbian is not the same as talking about what they like to do in bed or who they are doing it to. It is just a descriptive fact about the person like Eye Color, Height and Ethnicity.

Being gay is not some dirty secret uber private thing that has to be protected (particularly if the person in question is completle open and not closeted.)

UGH, BLOOD BOILING!

IF folks don't want to hear about gay folks talking about being gay, why go to gay and lesbian websites?

WTF, WORD!