AMA Performance

I'm a bit late to be blogging on this (considering the performance was at the 2009 AMA's), but to be fair, I just found out about it a few days ago and just got around to looking up tonight. Super late at night, to be exact. Or early. Either way, I should be sleeping. But that's besides the point.

To anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about (which is probably all of you), Adam Lambert performed at the American Music Awards (AMA's), which aired on ABC. He was performing For Your Entertainment, as it was (I believe) a day or two before the release of his album, and he hadn't released any other singles. But again, so far off topic. It was the content of the performance that mattered.

You see, the performance was incredibly controversial, considering it aired on ABC, a family television network. The theme was obviously S&M, with the start of the choreography involving Adam holding two men on a leash and shoving one of their faces into his crotch in an act of fake fellatio. And while that did get a few raised eyebrows, it was something else entirely that got the outcry. You see, somewhere towards the end of his performance, Adam shares one scorching kiss with his keyboardist, Tommy Ratcliff. On live television.

You want to see it? So did I. Here's the link. That is the link to the entire performance. Pay attention if you want to see the make-out. I missed it the first time I watched it. And the bleeped out words are ABC censoring him.

Anyway, the outcry. I think this is where Adam Lambert is building his niche, and it's believable, whether there is feeling behind that kiss or not. He's not the first musician to give a fan-service like that and make-out with a member of his band on stage. In fact, the band Cinema Bizarre did it on many occasions. And because of the nature of the song, you have to expect a risque performance. If Lady Gaga grabbed on of her band members and gave them a kiss like that, people probably wouldn't blink. They didn't blink when she had faux-sex in her Alejandro video. Because it's expected.

It's expected from Adam too. Or at least it should be. He is just as wild, just as risque, and just as into the theatrical performances as she is. He has a strong background in theater (as can be seen from his clips on youtube as Fiyero from Wicked), and anyone who expects him to perform has to expect a bad ass stage presence. I genuinely believe that thousands of teenage girls (possibly including me) cream their pants when they watch any performance from Adam Lambert, but that's besides the point. From his first music video (For Your Entertainment) he did the leather, glam, glitter, and whips type of performances, and that's just who he is. If you want a subdued performer, someone with a gentler stage presence, hire Taylor Swift. But don't expect Adam Lambert, or Glambert as people like to call him, to tone it down.