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Finland's happy son-in-law
Pop singer Adam Lambert tries to find a balance between his dark and light side. He found true love with his Finnish partner, Sauli Koskinen.
Singer Adam Lambert arrives at our meeting in a hotel in Los Angeles dressed in all black and greets me in fluent Finnish.
- Moi! Mitä kuuluu?
Adam rose to success from American Idol, and up until a couple of years ago, described himself as someone who likes to flirt and date a lot. Meeting Sauli Koskinen, 26, over a year ago in Helsinki changed him.
- I'm totally faithful, monogamous. A relationship is a beautiful thing. I believe we both want the same thing. I was ready for true love and I'm happy to have found it, Adam sums up his relationship with Sauli.
Salty licorice and shots
Last year, Adam and Sauli spent Valentine's Day in Tahiti. This year, Adam is traveling the world promoting his new album.
- Sauli is welcome to join me whenever it's possible. I always try to arrange something nice for special occasions.
The couple spend much of their free time at their home on the Hollywood hills.
- We did yoga for a while last year, but neither of us felt like it was our thing. We'd rather go for walks or jogging, and we have a treadmill at home. We watch tv and movies and cook together. We have a lot of salmiakki (salty licorice) at home, but I don't care for it. Other than that, I like Finnish food and culture.
Adam is also familiar with Finnish drinks from his vacation in Finland over last Christmas. One drunken night in Helsinki made headlines around the world. In the small hours, Adam was taken into custody in Pasila and Sauli in Töölö.
- It was a perfect holiday, apart from one mistake, a night out where the strong mint schnapps tasted too good and resulted in a loss of control, Adam says.
He and Sauli worked through the incident right after it happened.
- We laughed about it, right after we'd gotten over the initial shock and made sure no one was hurt. Sauli's family made fun of me, too - ”oh, you went to jail for getting drunk. Welcome to Finland!”
Adam says things happen in life and you learn from your mistakes.
- We talked more about what happened after we got home. Time helped put it into perspective. I understood that I have responsibilities to myself, my loved ones, my family, my friends and my fans. That December night was childish, out-of-control and irresponsible. I have to take more responsibility for my actions in future and be more careful around alcohol.
Meeting Sauli's family
When Adam talks about the good things on his visit to Finland, his face lights up in a wide, genuine smile and his voice rises in enthusiasm. The reason for visiting Finland, meeting Sauli's family, was a success.
- It was important to both of us that I get to know Sauli's family. We had a lovely, traditional Christmas Eve at his parents' home. His mom, dad and sisters were nice. I followed things from the sidelines at times, because the main language of the evening was Finnish. But it was only fair, since Sauli has been in the same position in Los Angeles.
Adam has had to resort to body language before. When he was 19, he performed on a cruise ship with the Anita Mann group. The gig lasted ten months, and during that time, he also visited Finland for the first time.
- I sailed around the world with an international crew. The experience broadened my horizons, and I understood how small my home town San Diego really is.
A couple of years later, he performed in a production of Hair in Germany.
- I didn't speak any German, but I learned to communicate without words. I had to explain a lot of things using my hands and different facial expressions. Sometimes not sharing a language is challenging, frustrating and confusing, but there's a magic to body language. And it's often more honest than repeating learned phrases.
Light side, dark side
Adam admits that it's been a challenge to find a balance in his life. Over recent years, his attitude and style have changed. Openness, maturity and his love for Sauli show in the lyrics on his new album, Trespassing.
- I invite listeners to trespass into my life, I open up about both the light and the dark side of myself. Success has maximized my scale of emotion. The good times are amazing, the bad times are really dark.
Being judged, ignored and treated unfairly are experiences familiar to Adam.
- I'm different, I'm an outsider, and not everyone accepts me because of that. When I'm down, I'm a self-desctructive worrier who overanalyzes things. At those times, I'm critical and hard on myself.
Usually, Adam is a nice guy.
- I'm also a romantic, that's my light side. I've written songs about love – about finding the right one, which has now happened to me.
Sometimes Adam feels like he can't live without his other half.
- He keeps me grounded, even when I'm flying too high. Sometimes it seems like he knows me better than I know myself.
what a great interview
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