Kris Allen & Adam Lambert Talk About the Albums They Want to Record

In the wake of the biggest upset in American Idol history, winner Kris Allen was still surprised he’d beat out front-runner Adam Lambert, when the two spoke to reporters on a recent conference call. “Adam was the most consistent person all year, seriously one of the most gifted performers I’ve ever met,” Allen said. “I think it could’ve gone either way, and America could not have got it wrong.”

Lambert, for his part, had made peace with the results. “I’m totally okay with it,” he said. “I know it sounds cliché, but I really feel like I won by getting to the final. I was able to use American Idol as a platform to get myself out there, and now I have a career. So there’s no need to dwell on the negative.”

Sounding exhausted but excited, both Allen and Lambert gamely addressed questions from the press. Keep reading for the highlights. – Shawna Malcom

• Heartthrob Allen, 23, Idol’s first married winner, revealed that wife Katy had shared Simon Cowell’s concern that her presence could hinder his chances of advancing in the competition. “She’d actually been saying that kind of stuff before [Simon did],” Allen said with a laugh. “She was like, ‘I don’t know if you need to mention me.’ She was trying to look out for me.”

• Now that Allen’s won, he and Katy are preparing themselves for the effect his new stardom will have on their 8-month-old marriage. “It’s definitely a topic of conversation all the time,” the Conway, Ark., native said. “Things are definitely going to change but we’re really strong, and she’s really cool, so we don’t have any questions that everything’s going to be fine.”

• When Lambert was asked whether he thought rumors about his sexuality had affected Idol’s outcome, the singer laughed and responded, “You know, probably.”

• Lambert revealed he had no idea Katy Perry was going to show her support for him by donning a cape emblazoned with his name when she performed on Idol earlier in the season. “I was shocked and completely honored,” he said. “I had a huge smile on my face the minute I saw it.” After Perry’s performance, Lambert thanked her with a hug and received some valuable advice on dealing with sudden fame from the “I Kissed a Girl” singer. “She was like, ‘Just make sure you keep your friends you had before all this started and keep them close,’” he said.

• Both offered an early taste of their upcoming albums. Allen said, “‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ — that’s the kind of stuff I want to do, stuff that has that feel, that kind of moves people.” Allen, who’s been writing music for six years, hopes to contribute songs to his record. “I’m not a man of many words,” he said. “I’m not very expressive or emotional but it comes out in my music. It’s the way I express how I feel.”

• “Labels tend to try to put one box around every artist and keep them in one genre, but I think [my album] can be a collection of different styles,” Lambert said of his plans to record. “I don’t want to do one specific genre. I’m more about fusion. There are a lot of pop artists that are using the ‘glam’ kind of vibe in their music currently so I think I’m actually part of a wave. There just happens to not be many guys doing it right now.”