well i watched it. i didn't even know who this guy was. for me the most offensive part by far was his singing... but the whole fingering move with the girl on the pole was just - too much, ugh! definitely wouldn't want kids watching that- but that could be said about any of these performances- you never know what crap is going to come up- or off... that's what's great about tivo, if you're worried about it you can scan it, fast forward through it or delete it!
Glory, I absolutely agree! I do think that he is extremely talented. I'm an American Idol junkie and he really stood out from the pack IMHO. I love his singing voice; for those who haven't heard it, they should google up his "Mad World" performance on YouTube. He got people talking, that's for sure! I still think that last night wasn't a great performance, though; it didn't really do him justice and it was a little too naughty for my taste.
Well I thought his performance was amazing and your comments were quite frankly, homophobic and disgusting.
I am a huge fan, and I didn't even watch him on American Idol. Artists have been pushing the envelope for decades, this is nothing new, and if anything, it tells young gay teenagers that it's OK to be who you are in public, and that you shouldn't be ashamed of your sexuality.
America needs a musician like Adam Lambert. He's an amazing singer, and he's openly gay, and there aren't that many openly gay, talented singers out there for gay teenagers (and adults) to look up to. He's got his head on his shoulders, and I think he's a positive role model.
I'm sorry, but this just makes me sad, because homophobia is still rampant, and people like Lambert (and me) are trying to stop it.
I hadn't actually watched this before, and just did - and I really didn't see anything that I hadn't seen a female performer do before. So again, I see his point about the fact that HE was so terribly offensive while some other female performer that pushes that envelope don't find themselves under the same kind of fire. Heck, when Britney and Madonna kissed at the VMAs in 2003, I don't remember it being this scandalous. So a double standard definitely does exist here.
I'd personally like to see ALL performances to a more family-friendly level - not to mention the lyrics. And I really do wish more artists would rise above that.
That's because it's pure sexism. It's a double standard. It's OK for a woman (straight or gay) to kiss another woman (or sing about it), but the *second* a gay man does it, it's disgusting.
(I had to put a space because it would have been starred)
God forbid a man perform dance moves like that, but it's OK for Britney spears to appear nude onstage (remember the flesh-colored body suit?) and gyrate and hump male back-up dancers and make out with Madonna.
Last edited by sunflowergirl68; 11-24-2009 at 04:08 AM.
It's quite interesting to read the responses in this thread.
The view of those of us in the rest of the world (pretty well universally) is that the US has a slightly screwed set of morals. On the one hand, people are up in arms over a homosexual kiss and a higher than acceptable for some hand action. On the other hand most people have the right to carry a firearm, and there are graphic shots of people getting their heads blown off on tv every night, either on the cop/detective fiction shows or on the news.
So graphic violence is ok, but sex isn't? Sorry, I disagree (not quite so vehemently as sunflowergirl!) as well. The outfits that Britney et al wear, and their cavorting on stage hasn't led to so much as a whimper from the moral majority, but as soon as a guy does the same thing he's shot down in flames. Something isn't quite right about that.
Honestly, some of Janet Jackson's shows in the past have made Britney's antics seem TAME. I've seen clips of her simulating actual sexual movements with a man strapped to a bed on STAGE.
I think entertainment in GENERAL has become too graphic. We're no longer talking "scandalous" hip shaking by Elvis. It's progressed far and beyond what I (a liberal woman in my late 20s) can even call entertaining.
I can't speak for everyone else, but for ME at least it's got nothing to do with Adam Lambert's sexual orientation. I didn't care about the kiss...it was everything else. It's too much for ANYONE, gay or straight, to do in a live performance at an awards show. If you're not convinced you're good enough to wow people with your voice and have to pull all kinds of stupid stunts to get attention (a la Lady Gaga, Britney, many others and now Adam) then find a new career.
What is sad though is the number of people who weren't shocked at ALL by the performance. It stinks that so many of my peers and younger have become totally desensitized to sexual acts (real or fake) and violence.
As a bisexual in a serious relationship with a transgendered ftm (female-to-male), I consider myself pretty open minded. I understand the message he was trying to convey, but feel he took it too far. I watched the clip on youtube and was reading through the comments which ranged from wholeheartedly supportive to outraged. Many of the comments left were also homophobic, and ranting about why they'd ever grant people like THAT the right to marry or adopt children. With the entertainment biz it's in the name of the game to shock the public and have scandalous debuts; and that's fine, when it's your own image. However, representing a culture which is already so heavily shunned in the world, and doing so in a rather risque way, does nothing but harm for the people who will then be associated with him. I, for one, was not appreciative.
I consider myself to be a very open individual and find most of the comments above to have a homophobic tinge. This dicotomy of morals is exactly what most people around the world hate about americans. People are carrying guns in their pockets, video games are violent beyond comprehension, but a nipple is illegal? So what if sex was portrayed on tv? I'd rather have sex than constant bludgering and murder in my face.
That said I don't think Adam Lambert has reached the point in his career where he should be taking risks like this. I don't need him to educate me. Is his career going to be about music or is it going to be about political statements? I'm tired of Hollywood pushing their views on us. Those who think of themselves as role models abuse their influence, and those that don't live lives of excess in the public eye which is far removed from any reality we can achieve.
Definitely no problem with him kissing a man (or a woman!) on stage, I do think simulated oral sex is going over the top. There is no double standard, I wouldn't want to see a woman simulate oral sex on stage either. Kissing is fine, though
Definitely no problem with him kissing a man (or a woman!) on stage, I do think simulated oral sex is going over the top. There is no double standard, I wouldn't want to see a woman simulate oral sex on stage either. Kissing is fine, though
That's how I feel as well, and have stated that several times but it seems that people who are upset are thinking that we are bothered by the kiss. I don't know how many ways to say it; it wasn't the kiss that bothered me. It was the angry, S&M depictions that disturbed me. And that has nothing to do with whether or not the performer(s) were men or women.
I ended turning it off after about a minute and a half. I agree with who-ever said he was trying to be like Lady Gaga. I never really liked Adam to begin with, but he is just gross.
I think the kiss is being commented on because its one of the things listed as "objectionable" in news stories about the piece, and also one of the items EZ listed at the beginning of the thread. So people are speaking to that as part of the general conversation.
I do agree that other performances, even well-liked performances, have more explicit content than this one did (again, Janet Jackson strapped a dancer to a bed and had simulated sex with him...and I don't remember any sort of backlash), and I do believe that a component of what makes people so uncomfortable is that he's male and we're not used to sexually objectifying men (unlike women). His sexual orientation also probably plays some role in why people are uncomfortable, because it's not something they are exposed to or comfortable with.
Still, though again I do think that this is a double standard, I wish that EVERYONE would tone down the explicitness in music. It just isn't necessary!
Still, though again I do think that this is a double standard, I wish that EVERYONE would tone down the explicitness in music. It just isn't necessary!
Agreed!
Also the things Madonna has done don't sound much different. She has whipped whips out, she has had bondage like stuff shown, she has fondled stage dancers, etc, etc.
There is a song on the radio that is about oral sex and I was like "really? c'mon now". I've listened to explicit music lyrics growing up but still some stuff is just way too much for me.
