Heavy/Getty "American Idol" alum and Queen frontman Adam Lambert
During a rare Instagram Live session on March 21, 2024, “American Idol” alum Adam Lambert disclosed several major shifts in his health to fans, including losing 60 pounds over the last eight months.
Lambert’s impromptu late-night video chat has since been deleted from his Instagram feed, but excerpts have been posted online by fans. Among the topics he addressed during the over 40-minute session, the 42-year-old singer opened up about how taking Mounjaro, a prescription diabetes and weight loss medication, has positively impacted his health — including giving him the confidence to wean off antidepressants.
Lambert, who’s been the lead singer of Queen since 2012, said he hadn’t planned on “spilling the tea” about his weight loss and mental health, but when an exchange with a fan led him to talk about Oprah Winfrey’s recent ABC special on weight loss, Lambert decided spontaneously to discuss his own recent health journey.
Adam Lambert Says ‘I Feel Incredible’ Amid Changes to His Physical & Mental Health
Chatting with fans from a dressing room in Sydney, where he’s serving as a coach on the Australian version of “The Voice,” Lambert’s revelations about his health came as he answered questions from fans, including one who asked when he last cried.
“I’m really easy to make cry watching TV,” Lambert replied. “I literally watched the Oprah special last night about weight loss drugs and got teary. It was such a touching moment, like, Oprah got choked up, too, about it.”
Lambert then said, “Actually, I’ll use this opportunity to talk about — I’m dropping some tea on you guys right now! I’ve been on Mounjaro for the last, I think, eight months and I’ve lost almost 60 pounds. I feel amazing.”
Noting that his doctor brought up the medication because his blood sugar “was not in a good space,” Lambert said he first tried a prescription for Ozempic but experienced side effects including “the worst acid reflux.”
“When I switched to Mounjaro, a lot of those symptoms went away and I had hardly any side effects and I feel incredible,” he said. “I feel better, I feel more confident. I feel like my actual body feels better, like my digestive system feels more regulated.”
Lambert said that taking Mounjaro has helped him eat less food, drink less alcohol and even feel so confident and capable in his daily life that he’s weaned off his antidepressants.
“It’s affected my mental health is a really positive way,” Lambert said. “Actually — I’m spilling all the tea — I was on antidepressants for a while.”
Lambert explained that he still has “bad days” and “occasional anxiety moments,” but said that he feels more capable of managing the negative thoughts than when he was first required medication to aid his mental health.
Adam Lambert Has Experienced Ups and Downs With His Weight Since He Was a Kid
🎥|@AdamLambert talked about his weight loss journey, taking antidepressants, and where he is today with his mental health!
We’re glad that he’s being honest with us, even though he doesn’t have to tell us anything.
We’d also like to add that, do what makes YOUR body feel…
Lambert has spoken previously about having struggled with weight and body confidence issues for much of his life, including in interviews after he was named the “American Idol” runner-up behind Kris Allen in 2009. That year, according to CNN, he told Sirius satellite radio’s Larry Flick of the Morning Jolt that being heavy as a teen affected his self-confidence.
“When I was in high school, I was 250 pounds and that creates some stuff … some body image stuff, some confidence issues,” Lambert told the radio host. “And I got a lot of my confidence from the validation I got as a performer.”
In February 2023, a fan posted excerpts of an Instagram Live Lambert conducted at the time, during which he admitted he’d gained “pandemic pounds” and that he’d seen online comments about his obvious weight gain.
“I’m like, ‘Yeah, thanks for pointing that out,” he laughed. “I’m fully aware! I live in this body, I know it’s bigger.”
During his March 21 Instagram Live, Lambert also said that he appreciated how Winfrey’s TV special explained emotional eating, which can lead to weight gain.
Lambert said, “I know that growing up, when I was heavier, I was…eating my feelings, they say. Like, I was emotionally eating for sure. And I’ve had moments throughout my whole life (of doing that) and if it’s not because I’m sad, it might be because I’m stressed. Or because, you know, a lot of the travel that I do around the world, I get jet lagged and, like, the only thing that made me feel better was food for some reason.”
Calling food an “emotional security blanket” for many, Lambert urged people during his Instagram Live to hold their judgment on how others heal their issues with weight and drop pounds, whether strictly through diet and exercise or by using a prescription drug.
“I don’t think we should be judging each other on how we choose to take care of our body or address how our relationship to food is,” he said.