Adam Lambert Reflects on George Michael’s Grace and Confidence After the Singer Was Forced to Come Out

Adam Lambert has long considered George Michael one of his greatest musical influences. At the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, that admiration took on a more personal meaning as Lambert joined a star-studded tribute to the late singer — and reflected on the way Michael handled one of the most difficult moments of his life.

Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE on the VMAs carpet on Sunday, Sept. 27, Lambert, 44, recalled that Michael and Michael Jackson were the two male artists he most admired while growing up.

“He was such a good singer, and a great writer and a great producer,” Lambert said of Michael, pointing to the range of talents that made him such an important influence.

But for Lambert, Michael’s legacy extends beyond his music.

Lambert Praises Michael’s Response to Being Outed

Lambert specifically remembered how Michael handled his sexuality becoming public after his 1998 arrest for a lewd act in Beverly Hills.

Michael subsequently addressed the issue in a CNN interview, explaining that he had not intended to reveal his sexuality in that way. He nevertheless made clear that he felt no shame about being gay.

For Lambert, the way Michael responded was particularly meaningful.

“At that time, I thought he did it with such grace and confidence and didn’t apologize and he owned it,” Lambert told PEOPLE. “He stood up for himself and he called out the media and everybody else.”

Lambert said he continues to look back on that period with pride, describing Michael’s response as an important moment for the LGBTQ+ community.

“I just think that was a really important thing for us to see as a community,” he said. “I think it’s really, really beautiful that he handled it that way.”

Michael himself later reflected that although his sexuality had been exposed in circumstances he did not intend, he did not feel ashamed.

Adam Lambert Joins George Michael’s VMAs Tribute

Lambert’s comments came as he prepared to take part in the 2026 MTV VMAs tribute honoring Michael, who died in 2016 at the age of 53.

The tribute brought together Lambert with Sombr, RAYE, Teddy Swims, MEEK, MNEK and Saint Harison. Orville Peck introduced the segment, highlighting Michael’s extraordinary career and his influence on music, visual culture and the LGBTQ+ community.

The performance was structured as a journey through some of Michael’s best-known songs.

Sombr opened with “Faith” and “Father Figure,” wearing Michael’s actual leather jacket from the Faith Tour. RAYE followed with “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” incorporating Aretha Franklin’s original vocals, before Teddy Swims delivered “Careless Whisper.”

Lambert then took the stage for “Freedom! ’90,” joined by MEEK, MNEK and Saint Harison for the closing celebration.

The choice was particularly fitting given the song’s place in Michael’s career and its association with his decision to reclaim his own public narrative.

A Decade After Michael’s Death

The VMAs tribute arrived 10 years after Michael’s death and four decades after the release of his landmark album Faith.

Michael had already left a significant mark on the VMAs during his lifetime. He won four MTV Video Music Awards and received the Video Vanguard Award in 1989.

His influence has continued to resonate well beyond his chart success. His songs, videos and approach to his public identity helped make him one of the defining pop figures of his generation.

That legacy will receive another major spotlight later this year with the release of George Michael: The Faith Tour. The 18-track live album, recorded during Michael’s 1988 European Faith Tour at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, is scheduled for release on Nov. 6, 2026.

A feature-length concert film of the same name is also scheduled to arrive in theaters in December.

A Tribute Rooted in More Than Music

For Lambert, the opportunity to honor Michael was about more than performing one of his biggest hits.

It was also a chance to recognize an artist whose influence reached beyond singing and songwriting — someone whose response to an intensely public personal crisis became part of the legacy he left behind.

By closing the VMAs tribute with “Freedom! ’90,” Lambert helped bring that legacy back to the stage a decade after Michael’s death.

And for an artist who grew up considering George Michael one of his two favorite male performers, the moment offered a deeply personal way to honor a musician who had influenced him long before they ever shared the same stage.