Adam Lambert is calling out the issues within the LGBTQ+ community. In a new interview with British podcast host Josh Smith, the legendary vocalist poked fun over the various labels used to stereotype gay man.
"I was actually a twink at one point in time. I'm so far from being a twink now. I have a dad bod at this point. I'm a daddy," Lambert says.
He added that while he was once called a bear and often labeled a "queen" in the past, he's recently heard people call him "king," which surprised him in its implication of masculinity. "But by age alone, I'm a dad."
Lambert also spoke candidly about toxic masculinity within the queer community and why visibility has become a double-edged sword.
"We're already dealing with our own shame around who we are ā especially gay men. I think the reason why gay men get it worse than the gay women is because of toxic masculinity. It's because society expects men to act a certain way, to look a certain way, and if you don't, you're not a man or you're not enough of a man. People are so afraid."
Lambert worries that gay men are afraid to step out from the crowd and be their authentic selves. With the hostile political climate against the LGBTQ+ community rising, the Queen frontman wants more originality amongst his queer peers.
"I saw a picture the other day and I was, like, 'Geez, they all look the same.' I get a little freaked out by that scene. I'm, like, 'Does anybody wanna look different? Does anybody wanna express something that's singular, that's their own thing to help them stand apart from everybody?' People don't want to stick out. They don't want to look weird. Isn't that kind of boring?"
The American Idol finalist is also encouraging anyone living in fear to stay strong and optimistic, despite some of the hateful rhetoric being spread online.
"It's scary, and it's frustrating, but it's going to blow over. There's such a shame in anything other than a masc man that all these guys are assimilating into in order to be validated or in order to be desirable."
Lambert's new album ADAM drops July 9 on all platforms. Watch the full interview below.
