Adam Lambert's Rise to Fame

Adam may be recognized wherever he goes, but he still gets starstruck at times. When he met Madonna, one of his music idols, for the first time, he says his heart started racing. "It was wild," he says. "I've looked up to her as a pop star, as like a creative being, my whole life."

Their first encounter came about when Madonna's guitar teacher, a musician who plays in Adam's band, invited Adam to her New York City home. "[I was] in my best outfit. Put the tie on. Put the jacket on. Looked good," he says. "She came in in like no makeup, yoga wear. Just totally Zen. She walked into the room, and her presence is very powerful. She's very intense."

Struck by nerves, Adam says he was almost speechless. "I said: 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just really intimidated right now.' And she said, 'Why?'" he says. "'Because I love you.' And she said, 'So love equals intimidation for you?' And I said: 'Yes, pretty much. Most of the time, I think, when I feel love, that's the way it manifests itself at first.'"

Adam says Madonna offered a few words of advice about being a celebrity. "[She said], 'Just keep your eye on the prize and put your blinders up,'" he says. "'Don't get sidetracked with all the extra fuss.'"