May 22
Watch: Adam Lambert Restores Queer Angle to Hit 'Whataya Want from Me' 15 Years Later
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Adam Lambert has revisited a single from his 2009 debut album "For Your Entertainment" to restore the song's original lyric, which, with a male vocalist, imparts a queer vibe.
"The singer/songwriter rerecorded 'Whataya Want From Me,' the Grammy-nominated track from his debut studio album," USA Today reported, adding that Lambert "enlisted DJ White Shadow for the remix ... or as Lambert is calling it, the 'HeMix.'"
As it turns out, the crucial change is a pronoun.
"In addition to new vocals and an up-tempo dance beat, Lambert changed the lyric from 'it messed me up' to 'he messed me up,' which was how it was originally written," USA Today noted.
The writeup recounted that the song was originally intended for inclusion on a Pink album, but Pink decided against putting it on her own project. That's when Lambert got it.
"Under the pressure of the music industry at the time, he opted to change the pronoun from 'he' to 'it,'" USA Today explained, before going on to add that "Lambert was advised that if he sang about a man breaking his heart, radio would be reluctant to play the song."
"Lambert made the change hoping that he could continue his career trajectory and that his chart success would pave the way for other queer artists," the article continued.
"It's one word, but in a very subtle way signals that times have changed," Lambert told the newspaper.
"We're in a different era," the "American Idol" alum added. "And in a lot of ways, it kind of illustrates all of the growth that I've been able to do as an artist and as a creative person."
When Lambert told Pink's co-writers, Max Martin and Shellback, that he was restoring the lyric to its original form, he got a "glowing blessing" from them, he told USA Today.
"The new track comes ahead of June's Pride Month," the newspaper said, adding that "Lambert kicks off the festivities in LA, where he'll perform at WeHo Pride with another artist who rose to pop stardom in the late 2000s: Kesha."
Watch Lambert's interview with USA Today below.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
