Video Blogs
TV Shows:
Find Articles On:
Who's onlineThere are currently 52 members and 1686 guests online.
|
Adam Lambert goes straight for "Details"?
Adam Lambert is making the media rounds as he gears up for the release of his new album, and his most recent stop at Details magazine has the internet abuzz. As the most recent coverboy for Details, the risqué photo shoot has him posing seductively … with a naked woman! (Warning: If you follow that link, some of the pics are NSFW.) Now I know lots of gays all over the internet are POd, and I have to admit, I’m not a big fan of the idea either. So imagine my shock when I woke up this morning and actually saw the photos! This wasn’t just Adam with some random nude model, creatively finding ways to use Adam to hide her lady parts. This was full out scandal! The pictures range from Adam groping the model, practically suckling her, and one shows Adam en route to deliver a French kiss. And I loved it!
Why? Because this wasn’t an attempt to straighten him out or to try to hide his gayness or downplay his sexuality. It was pure PR magic set to deliver a fierce dose of shock value -- and that's what rock and roll is all about. And those of you worried about the possible degaying of Adam will be happy to know that the article openly embraces his sexuality, even going as far as to discuss his boyfriend who apparently Adam is trying to keep a secret. Hmm, he may want to check in with the rest of the internet on that one. As for his onstage persona, Adam says:
Now really, is anyone out there less excited for his new album because of this? To me, it’s just another cog in the wheel of the PR push surrounding his upcoming album, For Your Entertainment. And if you’re really still down on the fact that Adam’s “gone straight” in this shoot, you can revel in the fact that he’s just spent a day with Lady Gaga recording a new track she penned just for him.
That should bring him back to uber-gay, right? And for more lighthearted fun, here is the behind the scenes video of the shoot. In it, Adam describes the shoot as edgy, nostalgic, sweaty, and of course, “heterosexual.” So what do you think about it? Submitted by on Tue, 2009-10-20 16:10. |
 Recent Comments
Recent blog posts
|
Welcome to AfterElton.com!
- Login
- Join Now!
News, Reviews & Commentary on Gay and Bisexual Men in Entertainment and the Media
I tend to think it's cheap
I tend to think it's cheap and pointless as all the faux lesbian kisses made for photo-ops.
So yes, it's probably a good move in terms of PR.
Gaga/Glambert
I never doubt this boy's decisions. Every move he makes is one step ahead, I think. I think this album is going to be huge. Like HUGE huge. Like there's a new Prince of Pop huge.
And now with their recently announced collaboration I think a Glambert/Gaga tour is a foregone conclusion.
Still think it's lame
It's quite obvious the PR brains said, "We HAVE to make Adam appeal to the straight guys & girls again! Look, the article can talk about how gay he is however much it wants to. But the PICTURES have to be full-on HETERO!!! Image is everything!!!"
I think it definitely sends the wrong message to all those gay kids who fell in love with their newest idol this past year. And granted, it's not Adam's responsibility to care about living up to his gay fans' hopes & expectations. After all, it is a business for him, and a brand new sparkling one at that. Still, I come away pretty disappointed that these are the images he wants to put out there so early in his career and after making such a point of coming out of the closet. Feels like the PR guys are making him jump right back in the closet. The dollar is definitely mightier than the message. Feels rather like a sell-out to his gay fans. Sadly. (And I LOVE Adam, don't get me wrong!)
Btw, why couldn't they have had some naked sexy guy in the shoot too? At least that would have alluded better to his sexuality imo. Hot naked girl and girl, sandwiching Adam.
Hmph, I'm grumpy today...
........
He. Was. Never. IN the closet!
I'm sure he'll pose w hot guys at some point, but this photoshoot was for fun and art. Seriously.
Good point
Oh, oops...
Love the pics!
He is so beautiful and sexy!!
Did you know that Adam's 'Time For Miracles' (for the movie 2012) is out on iTunes and Amazon today? Go download :)
A Girl Can Dream
He certainly entertains me!
If a straight guy did this
If a straight guy did this it would flirt dangerously with sleazy. As it is these are just beautiful pictures.
He'll also be on the cover of "Out" magazine. That should even things out. I doubt he'll be draped with a girl there.
Well if this hasn't "cured" his homosexuality...
...then nothing will!
Another Middle American myth falls by the wayside.
Didn't George Michael already do this?
It was that "I Want Your Sex" video.
Which, in retrospect, is doubly hillarious given George's sexual orientation and the pretentious "Explore Monogamy" written on the back of a chick. I mean, considering that he has yet to "explore monogamy" with his putative partner who's taking a backseat to his cottaging habit.
So Adam's really on well-worn turf here. Besides, it's not like he's pretending to be straight any more than Cindy Crawford was pretending to be a lesbian shaving K.D. Lang on that magazine cover way back when.
The lucky model probably didn't feel the least bit sexually exploited with an openly-gay man wrapped around her naked body.
Can I just say
Can I just say this...
Your posts. I often read them with delight. Cheers.
I swear sometimes I think we are on the same wavelength...
I immediately thought of that iconic photo. Was it Annie Leibovitz?
I think that the pictures are art. The magazine is DETAILS. If he had posed this way in People, US, or some Middle America pulp fodder and the pictures were less artistic then I would say it was a way to "straighten" his image but really how many straight men/women read Details. Didn't they once call it the "The Advocate for guys still in the closet." on Will and Grace?
I like the fact that modern gay celebs can have fun with their image. Why shouldn't he strive to be attractive to women and men. Not to mention that you know he will get some free press out of these pictures and if they are focusing on these pictures then they aren't looking at his personal life. It is a common PR stunt to create something bussworthy so they don't look for something more.
It's not that deep...
I posted this earlier on another thread, and I'll say it here again:
Anyone who thinks it is 'pretentious of him to be posing with a nude woman' - is overreacting.
He is proudly out and posing with a woman in one magazine does not threaten his gay, lol. In fact, I am not opposed to seeing a happily gay dude become a sex symbol for both women and men.
Magazine photoshoots are not all about realism, are they? Most of it is an illusion, a fantasy. I highly doubt that he was trying to make some big political statement here. And it is abundantly clear that he is not trying to dive back into the closet. Where is the problem? I see none. In fact I like the pictures.
Oh Come On
Equal opportunity sexploitation
I don't see anything happening with Adam here that hasn't happened with millions of women since photography began. He's using his body to make fantasy pictures that don't turn him on personally. How is that different from what happens to women every day? Or what happens to men in that business? Sex fantasy pictures are all about the fantasy. They're the edgier version of boybands in that they're safely removed from any consideration of whether the model(s) would actually want to do with you whatever they're doing in the picture, leaving you free to come up with your own fantasy.
PHOTOS?
If you look in the little box under Adam's photo to the right
Thank you. Um, he's
Thank you.
Um, he's dressed, she's naked. Why are we talking about those pictures sexualizing him?
For real...
These women are basically just being used as props to make Adam look hot. Classy.
Not.
It's nothing new, but it's still frustrasting.
"I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them." - Pablo Picasso
Adam has a fan base of straight women --
isnt it ironic
Would Details Magazine ever...
dare to do a similar photo-shoot with two guys. One of them being naked.
No, of course not.
THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN. Which is why this particular Adam Lambert photo-shoot is pissing everyone off.
Exactly
dare to do a similar photo-shoot with two guys. One of them being naked.
No, of course not.
THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN. Which is why this particular Adam Lambert photo-shoot is pissing everyone off.
That's totally what bugs me about the whole thing bud.
"I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them." - Pablo Picasso
Tempest/Teacup interface
Oh for God's sake. There's a real element of 'only in America' going on here. I seriously don't understand why Americans don't get irony. He's gay, he's said he's gay and he's wearing better nail polish than the female model. But because he's in close connection with a female who's nude his sexuality is somehow called into question? Oh for God's sake get over yourselves. This is a fun, intelligent photo shoot that takes the piss out of/comments on American Puritanism.
It's a great set of photos and it's also a very witty and literate series of photos. Enjoy them for what they are - basically a gay man playing around with sexuality.
Having read some of the comments here, I don't think the US should depreciate Adam in terms of his sexuality. I think you should venerate him. He's playing around with gay sexuality and gay visibility in America that's really old hat elewhere in the world.
Seriously, this is a fun and liberating set of photos. Enjoy them for that they are and please don't start tearing down a man who is only doing good things for the gay population of the US.
Exactly
Darrien - You are so right with everything you say. I also don't understand the reaction. It's as if everyone is totally missing the context, i.e., as if this were just anyone, not Adam Lambert, whose sexuality is so out there and obvious for all to see. I could understand it a bit if it were Clay Aiken and was just tentatively out of the closet. It would make some sense to think he was playing to expectations, just trying to sell his album. But this context is so totally different, and yet everyone seems to be missing that.
Some people even seem to think this represents in some way Adam backing away from his sexuality! Maybe you're right, and Americans just don't get irony. Or perhaps they're too threatened by anything that goes outside a narrow box of acceptable behaviour (I did the English spelling just for you!) for gay people.
Considering...
...that in the States homosexuals cannot even get married, I feel like we have a few more important and valuable steps before one of the few blatantly out figures of our culture decides to go this kind of "provocative". In the part of the country I live in, its still scary for people to even be out. At my college, the admins deny the existence of any homosexual students at our school. America has a long way to go before this kind of "artistic message" will be helpful at all.
"I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them." - Pablo Picasso
I see your point, but I
I see your point, but I disagree. I don't think gay marriage or generalized homophobia have anything to do with this particular situation. America is a wondrously diverse place. In your school the existence of homosexuality is denied. In my company I've been totally out for over five years, and have been promoted twice since then. In some parts of the country you'll be beaten or verbally abused for being seen as gay. In other parts, like here in Minneapolis, you can walk around the lakes holding hands with your boyfriend and no one pays any attention.
Art and media can't cater to the lowest common denominator, and they can't hold themselves back from expression because things aren't perfect throughout the country. In this case we're dealing with an artist who has a hip, sophisticated gay friendly fan base, and with a magazine catering to readers who "get it". How bizarre it would be if this artist and this magazine went against their creative instincts because gay marriage isn't legal in most states and because the entire country hasn't yet become gay friendly.
I might be wrong here, but
I might be wrong here, but I'd think that Adam's first concern here might be his music, not his gay agenda. There's a time and place for everything and I'm not quite sure that a feature in DETAILS, a few weeks before the release of his new album, need be anything other that what it is.
I might be wrong here, but
I might be wrong here, but I'd think that Adam's first concern here might be his music, not his gay agenda. There's a time and place for everything and I'm not quite sure that a feature in DETAILS, a few weeks before the release of his new album, need be anything other than what it is.
It's a learned reaction
Aha!!!!
Wow, Adam looks incredibly
Fakesexual?
I think this is the first time that fake heterosexual love/sex has been used to gain attention, in the same way fake homosexual love/sex has been used in the past (i.e. "lesbian" kisses).
As much as I would have rather seen Adam make out with a hot guy for the shoot (and trust me, that would get female fan attention), I think it's delightfully wicked the way he's toying with people. Basically it screams "Adam Lambert is sex, no matter who it's with."
....I tried to come up with a heterosexual version of "fauxmosexual" and failed.
You too can be saved by the blog! www.savedbytheblog14.blogspot.com
I may be straight, but I'm not narrow.
Wierd.
Yeah I doubt he's trying to "look straight" for the reasons people have already mentioned... I just do not understand who thought this would be creative. It just seems kind of lame and its really probably just mostly shocking and offensive to the lgbt crowd so... idk. Whatever.
"I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them." - Pablo Picasso
This has never been done before!
So What? It's gorgeous!
not a fan of the photoshoot
Is there a marketing person out there?
I would actually love to hear the take on this photoshoot from someone who works in marketing. What do you think the intention is of this shoot -- think the PR machine meant for it to be artwork using irony, or to "butch him up/queer him down" a bit for the masses?
I definitely appreciate that much of the world outside of the U.S. can view these photos as simply using irony. However, my problem with that is that it's fairly safe to assume that this is meant for an American audience by an American-minded (ie. capitalistic) marketing team with Adam's upcoming cd release as its main reason for being. They (quite literally) don't want Adam to embrace his homosexual side in photos yet for risk of limiting his appeal to a single niche (ie. gay) audience.
Again, I certainly can't blame him for that. He is trying to get his career off the ground after all. But to disregard that seems fairly naive to me. Out of context though, I do think the pics are gorgeous too. But in context, they leave me feeling cold.
Marketing
I'm not actually a marketing person, but I'm in the business world and have been in enough meetings to have some idea of how these guys think. It seems to me that the intention is simply this: generate buzz, get people talking. In that sense it certainly appears they've been extraordinarily successful in this photo shoot. I don't think there's anything more going on here, apart from perhaps an extension of Adam's wonderful nature of playing with expectations and insistence on doing things his own way.
I completely don't understand the wailing and gnashing of teeth in the gay community about this. This is Adam Lambert! There's no way you're going to "de-gay" him or "butch him up" at this point. I suppose you could argue that it could work that way for middle or conservative America. But are those the folks who would buy his CD anyway? Obviously not. The market for his music is totally tuned into who Adam is. They TOTALLY understand his sexuality. These pictures aren't doing anything other than getting people to talk, and to play, once again, with expectations. And I love Adam more than ever for being himself, for refusing to be boxed into other people's demands, and for following no tune but his own.
I dunno.
His own tune
The words you choose imposes them
Gay/homosexual means you're not attracted to women, yes. Just like being a vegan means you don't eat meat.
Sexuality is a continum, but I would sincerely hope that most people have their own sexuality sorted out by their late '20s. If not, than I pity what their partners are going through. There's a certain point at which experimentation/curiosity being masked under the cover of inexperience and youthful indescretion cannot be taken seriously. If you want to be with men and women at the same time, you're not gay, you are bisexual.
The tune Adam is following in these shots are the tune that 90% of America already follows, that of women and men being together sexually.
gay and attraction to women
If someone self-identifies as gay/homosexual, it does not mean they cannot find the opposite sex attractive as well. And finding someone attractive does not always mean you personally want to have sex with them.
The internet is full of blogs and forums devoted to discussing everything Adam. Most of the participants are girls and women who are fully cognizant that Adam is gay, yet many of them still find him incredibly sexy.
From a marketing perspective, it's called creating buzz and fantasy for the audience.
Sorting out Adam's sexuality
Three things:
1. "Gay" does not necessarily mean you're not at all attracted to women. You said it yourself: "sexuality is a continuum". Adam can be gay, and still find women attractive in certain circumstances, or still find it interesting or fun to fool around with them. Literally millions of guys fall into that situation.
2. Why would you say that Adam doesn't have his "sexuality sorted out"? Based on everything I've read he knows who he is better than most people I know.
3. It seems really constricting to me to say that "experimentation/curiosity" can't be taken seriously when a person reaches a certain age. In my eyes that is overt age-ism. I hope to remain curious and experimental about all sorts of things all through my life. You don't have to turn off your vitality or your curiosity or your zest for new and different things just because you've reached a certain age.
But you don't understand
He doesn't need to "attract the female audience" because he always had that audience! THAT'S the only reason he got to the finale. Most women realized he was gay even when he didn't say it and certainly after he said the words in RS. Not only did he not lose any female fans, he GAINED many new ones.
Did you follow the tour? Did you see and hear the reactions to him on tour? It was unbelievable! And it was amazing that something like that could indeed happen.
The audience he doesn't have is the straight men. It also doesn't seem like there's a concensus about him in the gay community and I'm talking before these pics.
LAME
This photoshoot is seriously lame, it sends a bad picture of gay people too. You can only be a successful gay man if you pretend to be straight. I know his intention was to show that gay men are not grossed out by women, they can still find them sexy, and the other way around, female fans can like a male celebrity even if he is gay.. But the thing is, it's obvious it's just a publicity stunt. It's obvious he did this just to caiter to his female fans. Like they would be grossed out by seeing him making out with another guy.. he's trying too much with this photoshoot, he's trying to be "provocative" and "controversial" when he's anything but. Yes, he is a gay man posing with a straight woman, but at the end of the day this is just another straight photoshoot. He could have done so much more, he could have been controversial if he wanted to. He could have pushed the envelope by making out with another guy. Instead he goes down the obvious route and "pretend to be straight" to keep his female fan base. I think it's utterly stupid and lame.
It just comes to prove that Adam is not as "bold" as he seems. I think he's done some pretty stupid things by now, this photoshoot being one of them. The Rolling Stone article annoyed me too. Are we suppose to believe a what.. 27? 28? yeard old man is not sure about his sexuality? He still has to explore it and sleep with women? Really? He said he was gay in the interview, but it's like he just had to throw "bi-curious" in there to, again, keep his female fan base. And what about not wanting to support anything gay? He doesn't want to support gay causes, he refuses to speak with gay media, he refuses to do gay photoshoots. He's a gay man, but thinks it's bad if the fans see him as a gay man. Yeah, what a great role model!
Harvey Milk: You gotta give 'em hope.
I gotta agree.
Mia - I don't mean to be
Mia - I don't mean to be rude, but how can you possibly interpret this as saying that "you can only be a successful gay man if you pretend to be straight"? Do you really think that Adam is pretending to be straight? Adam Lambert? As I said in other posts in this thread, it seems obvious that he's playing around with sexuality as a concept, playing around with expectations, perhaps even intentionally confounding them.
And how is this sending a "bad picture of gay people"? Is "Details" being read by southern evangelicals or midwestern housewives or little old grannies? If so, then perhaps they could get the wrong impression. But the readership of "Details" totally gets Adam's sexuality. Hopefully we've come far enough in our sophistication about gay people that we don't have to worry about being oh so careful about every little thing anymore. Hopefully we can playfully subvert conventions and have it be a positive comment rather than a negative one. I personally think this set of photos, considering who Adam is and the nature of his public persona, is wonderful.
I think what she's saying.