Adam Lambert is turning heads — per usual — while walking the 2026 MTV VMAs red carpet.
Lambert, 44, brought the drama for one of music’s biggest nights, opting for a sleek black look with a cape that draped on the floor while attending the Sunday, September 27, show at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
Lambert paired his outfit with a black headpiece that read, “Adam,” while donning black nail polish and dark eyeshadow with black earrings.
While Lambert is not nominated for an award on Sunday, he teased his potential involvement in the show.
“I’m excited to see this Madonna opening,” he told Extra on Sunday, referring to the network selecting this year’s most-nominated artist to open the show. “Yeah, I’m very excited about that. I might be here for, you know, a particular reason that I can’t really disclose at this time.”
When a reporter asked Lambert to “tease something,” he replied with a laugh, “Wasn’t that the tease?” After being asked if he was “maybe presenting something” or doing a “tribute,” Lambert then added, “You know, my voice is warmed up.”
Lambert’s red carpet appearance on Sunday comes on the heels of the July release of his album, Adam. While promoting his latest body of work, Lambert opened up about facing imposter syndrome during his music career.
“I always think I’m my own worst critic, and I can be incredibly hard on myself. I mean, I’m gay, that’s just part of our baggage. It’s integral to our experience!” he told Out in Jersey at the time. “Coming up in theater, I think I was always looking for validation from the audience, and that was something I got really addicted to. It’s like, ‘Oh, they’re clapping for me; they think I’m good enough.’ Their reaction is always what told me if I was good or not. So there have definitely been moments throughout my career where I’ve had to learn to muster up that validation on my own. But without external validation, it’s harder and more abstract.”
He continued, “At the beginning, the imposter syndrome was a lot thicker for me. But over time, that’s changed. After being on tour with Queen and putting out great music, yeah, I think my reputation’s good. People often refer to me as ‘Oh, he can sing.’ That’s a simple statement, but a powerful one. It’s great to know that people know who I am and know what I can do. I think that’s a great place to be.”
