In 2009, Adam Lambert came to prominence after becoming the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol. After signing with 19 Entertainment in a joint venture with RCA Records, he released his debut studio album For Your Entertainment in 2009; it debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 with 198,000 copies in first-week sales, and reached the top 10 in several countries. Its singles “For Your Entertainment”, “Whataya Want from Me” and “If I Had You” also became international successes.

Soon after the album release, he headlined a worldwide concert tour, Glam Nation, the first American Idol contestant to do so in the year following his Idol season. Lambert took executive producer credit and was a principal writer on his second studio album, Trespassing, released in May 2012, to critical acclaim. It made its debut in the number one spot on the Billboard 200 album chart. Lambert made music history as the first openly gay artist to achieve this top charting position.

In 2015, Lambert released his third album, The Original High, which debuted at #3 on the U.S. Billboard 200.

Alongside his solo career, Lambert has collaborated with rock band Queen as lead vocalist since 2011, culminating in a successful world-wide tour from 2014 to 2016.