Before Adam Lambert became a global superstar, Grammy-nominated artist, and one of the most electrifying voices in music, he was a 13-year-old theater kid from conservative North County San Diego, struggling to fit in at middle school and trying on his mother's makeup after class. Then Lynn Broyles, a voice teacher with fierce energy and impeccable taste, saw something in him that no one else had: a kid who needed a safe space to just be himself. In this deeply personal and unguarded conversation, the trailblazing artist sits down with David Begnaud to share...
Before Adam Lambert became a global superstar, Grammy-nominated artist, and one of the most electrifying voices in music, he was a 13-year-old theater kid from conservative North County San Diego, struggling to fit in at middle school and trying on his mother's makeup after class. Then Lynn Broyles, a voice teacher with fierce energy and impeccable taste, saw something in him that no one else had: a kid who needed a safe space to just be himself. In this deeply personal and unguarded conversation, the trailblazing artist sits down with David Begnaud to share the story of the woman who believed in him when he was just beginning to understand who he was.
Adam opens up about meeting Lynn at 13, a voice teacher who introduced him to Sondheim, cabaret, and the gay cultural lexicon without ever calling it what it was. He talks about growing up with parents who let him wear their makeup and high heels as a toddler, spending Saturdays in a theater company that taught him discipline and teamwork, and the moment he auditioned for American Idol by quitting his job in Wicked with no guarantees. He shares what it felt like to kiss a guy on live television at the 2009 AMAs the night before his first single dropped, getting yanked off Good Morning America because ABC threatened to sue, and why that controversy made him realize his career was about something much bigger than just making music.
There's also a raw reflection on identity, fame, and what it means to finally say what you've always felt. Adam talks about starting to feel shame for being gay once he got famous, encountering homophobia for the first time in mainstream America after living in an LA bubble for 10 years, and why he started having imposter syndrome even though he believed he could win. He opens up about fronting Queen for 10 years, performing for millions at Rock in Rio and on the steps of Buckingham Palace, and why being around Brian May and Roger Taylor taught him the gravity of iconic music through osmosis. He reflects on moving to New York, doing six months on Broadway as the Emcee in Cabaret, and bringing Lynn to see the show as a full circle moment. He shares why he's finally ready to stop people pleasing, why his new self-titled album Adam feels like a return to where he started, and why after 17 years in the industry, he's done being polite about what he wants.
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Chapters ☀️
Chapters
- 00:00:00 Intro: The Voice Teacher Who Saw the Queen in Him
- 00:01:23 The Instant Connection: When Humor Became the Language
- 00:05:22 The Loud, Verbal Kid Who Preferred Adults
- 00:08:52 Growing Up Different in Conservative San Diego
- 00:11:40 The Anger Management Lessons and Counting to Ten
- 00:14:05 Middle School Hell: When the Teachers Liked You Wasn't Cool Anymore
- 00:15:39 Metropolitan Educational Theater: Learning Discipline Through Performance
- 00:17:30 Lynn's Gift: Sondheim, Cabaret, and the Gay Cultural Lexicon
- 00:18:04 The Unspoken Understanding: I Think She Knew I Was Gay
- 00:26:51 The American Idol Audition: Quitting Wicked for a Shot
- 00:37:45 The AMA Kiss That Changed Everything
- 00:45:37 Coming Out on Rolling Stone: The Gay Label and Double Standards
- 00:35:49 Imposter Syndrome and Finding My Voice
- 00:53:53 Ten Years with Queen: Pinch Me Moments and Learning from Legends
- 01:02:29 The Five-Year Relationship: Finding Work-Life Balance
- 00:50:03 The New Album ADAM: Accepting All of Yourself
- 01:10:42 Broadway Cabaret: The Full Circle Moment with Lynn
- 01:14:13 The Evolution of LGBTQ Visibility: Then vs Now
- 01:16:50 Feel Something Foundation: Giving Back to Queer Youth
- 01:20:42 Give Me My Flowers: It's My Turn
ABOUT THIS PODCAST:
The Person Who Believed In Me is hosted by David Begnaud, founder and CEO of Do Good Crew and often called "America's storyteller." In each episode, David sits down with world-class guests to ask one simple question: Who believed in you before the world did? Big names. Honest stories. Relatable takeaways. Different paths — same question.
David is also a CBS News contributor and host of the weekly segment Beg Knows America, which airs every Monday morning.
Host: David Begnaud
Guest: Adam Lambert
Executive Producer: David Begnaud, Olivier Delfosse
Booker: Sully Bloch
Director of Photography: Foster Parks
Live Production Technician: Joseph Gabay & Will Whitley (Statik Creative)
Social: Maxim Trofimenko, Kylee Anderson, Gracie Pekrul
Theme Music: Slipstream
Post-Production: Longwave Digital, David & Luana Co.
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