A Public Coming-Out & Three Record Deals

Even three weeks post-finale, American Idol continues to make headlines. The week's juiciest morsel? Runner-up Adam Lambert's long-anticipated announcement that he is, indeed, a friend of Dorothy. ''I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay,'' Lambert says in the latest issue of Rolling Stone. ''I'm proud of my sexuality. I've been living in Los Angeles for eight years as a gay man.'' (The interview's aww-worthiest moment? When the ostentatious rocker, dubbed Glambert, copped to a crush on Idol winner and boy-next-door Kris Allen, below.) But Lambert wasn't the only alum making headlines: He, Allen, and fourth-place finisher Allison Iraheta all announced music deals with 19 Recordings, and each plans to release a disc in the fall. Notably absent from the dealmaking? Danny Gokey, the polarizing crooner who placed third. Says an Idol rep: ''There's nothing to report just yet.'' C'mon, Gokey, keep up!