Adam Lambert (Glambert) Album Out in Fall

"American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert has told Rolling Stone magazine he is gay, answering a question that followed the singer for months since he gained millions of fans on the No. 1 U.S. TV talent show.

"I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay," Lambert told the music magazine in excerpts from an interview released Tuesday as it was announced that he had secured a record contract with his debut album due out in fall.

"I'm proud of my sexuality," he said. "I embrace it. It's just another part of me."

The issue with Lambert on the cover hits newsstands this Friday, with the full interview inside.

During his "American Idol" run Lambert was known for his falsetto singing, outlandish costumes, eyeliner and fingernail polish. He was nicknamed "Glambert" and Entertainment Weekly magazine called him "the most exciting 'American Idol' contestant in years."

When he lost in May's finale to the more buttoned-down Kris Allen, some fan websites and the media buzzed with speculation that being gay cost him votes from viewers who pick a winner.

Lambert, who was widely considered the front-runner going into the finale, had never publicly said he was gay. In March, when photos appeared on the Internet of him kissing another man and dressed in drag, he said only: "I have nothing to hide. I am who I am."

His sexuality became an issue widely covered in the media because "Idol," seen by an average of about 26 million viewers a week in 2009, had never crowned an openly gay winner.

The runner-up in 2003, Clay Aiken, hid his sexuality for years after his run on the show, coming out as gay in 2008.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, a group that advocates for homosexual rights, said it hopes Lambert's "decision to live openly and honestly inspires gay people and opens the hearts and minds of his fans."

On Tuesday, producer 19 Recordings said it had signed Lambert to a record contract and that his debut album will likely be released in the fall through RCA Records.

The announcement came a day after 19 Recordings said it had signed Allen to a record deal, a guaranteed result of his first-place finish on "American Idol." 19 Recordings is run by Simon Fuller, executive producer of "American Idol."

Lambert, 27, grew up in San Diego, California, and starred in musical theater before trying out for "Idol" last year.

In the Rolling Stone interview, he said he had a "psychedelic experience" at an annual festival held in the Nevada desert called Burning Man, and that experience convinced him to try out for "American Idol."

"I realized that we all have our own power, and that whatever I wanted to do, I had to make happen," Lambert told Rolling Stone.

Lambert also revealed a crush on Allen, who was his roommate for much of the two singers' run on "American Idol."

"He's the one guy that I found attractive in the whole group on the show: nice, nonchalant, pretty and totally my type -- except that he has a wife," Lambert joked.

"American Idol" is broadcast by the Fox network, a unit of News Corp. Past winners, including Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, have enjoyed Grammy-winning careers, but stardom has also touched runners-up such as Chris Daughtry.

SOURCE

Adam Lambert Finally Confirms: "I'm Gay"

Adam Lambert finally confirms his sexuality in the new issue of Rolling Stone (on stands tomorrow).

"I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay," the American Idol runner-up says.

Look back at the Season 8 Idol's finale most unforgettable moments.

"I'm proud of my sexuality," continues the rocker, who was photographed holding hands with interior designer Drake LaBry earlier this month. "I embrace it. It's just another part of me."

Check out photos of star couples who can't get enough of each other.

But Lambert, 27, from San Diego -- who performed Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" on the Idol finale -- says he's not the poster boy for gay rights.

"I'm trying to be a singer, not a civil rights leader," he tells RS contributor Vanessa Grigoriadis.

VIDEO: Adam Lambert talking to Rolling Stone about his cover shoot.

Lambert admits that he was nervous about coming out while Idol was still on the air because contestants are under a media embargo, and he wanted to do it on his "own terms." (He also says producers were open to him handling it however he wanted to.)

"I was worried that [coming out] would be so sensationalized that it would overshadow what I was there to do, which was sing," Lambert tells the mag. "I'm an entertainer, and who I am and what I do in my personal life is a separate thing. it shouldn't matter. Except it does. It's really confusing."

Find out what an Idol stylist has to say about Lambert's look.

Lambert credits the FOX reality show with helping him gain self confidence.

"I finally checked into my self-worth for the first time in my life, and the fact that it coincided with Idol is so sweet," he says. "I mean, I still have moments where I think, 'Oh, my skin is terrible, and I'm a little fat -- I should really go to the gym more.' But for the most part, when I look in the mirror now, I finally see somebody who can do something cool."

See before and after pics of Idol's weight winners (and losers).

For more details on which Idol Lambert is attracted to, how he came out to his family, and what was going through his head when those photos of him in drag hit the web mid-season, pick up the newest issue of Rolling Stone, on stands Wednesday.