Adam Lambert has performed with Queen for more than a decade, producing some flamboyant Freddie Mercury-style performances, reports Mirror.co.uk. But the American Idol winner said it took an ITV documentary to get bandmates Brian May and Roger Taylor to sit down on camera and discuss how the late singer’s sexuality influenced him as an artist.

On the Adam’s Out Loud And Proud doc, the trio talk about how Freddie would have refused to identify as a “queer performer”, with Brian suggesting he would have dismissed the term, saying: “I’m a performer, darling.”

Adam said yesterday the chat was unique, despite the group being together since 2011. He added: “They’re not usually comfortable speaking about ­Freddie’s sexuality on camera - they respect his privacy. But we found a way to speak about it in a respectful manner. It wasn’t revealing secrets. It was how it informed him as a creative, an artist, a human and bandmate.

“I always try to honour Freddie. Everything I do on stage is a tribute to him. I’m honoured that they felt comfortable with me and open to talk about their experience with Freddie and his experience as a queer man in a time where it was taboo to talk about it publicly.”

Read more at Mirror.co.uk.

According to Hits, Queen has reportedly agreed to sell their recording, publishing and other rights to Sony Music for a record-breaking $1.27 billion US. The deal also includes name and likeness rights, potentially opening the door to musicals, commercial and film placements, merchandising and other money-making opportunities.

Classic Rock 96.1 claims the $1.27 billion US marks the largest music rights sale on record, surpassing Bruce Springsteen's previous $500 million deal in 2021, also to Sony Music, as well as a deal reached earlier this year in which Sony agreed to pay $600 million for half of Michael Jackson's publishing and recorded masters catalog.

Queen’s catalog features megahits like "Killer Queen"," Bohemian Rhapsody", "Another One Bites The Dust" and many more.

News of Sony’s reported talks to acquire Queen’s catalog arrived a year after Music Business Worldwide broke the news (in May 2023) that discussions were happening between Queen’s representatives and certain companies over a potential $1 billion-plus catalog sale.

That catalog, they reported, combined both publishing and recorded music rights, all jointly and equally owned by the band’s surviving ‘classic’ line-up (Brian May, Roger Taylor, John Deacon) plus the estate of Freddie Mercury.

More at Music Business Worldwide.