Queen and Lambert first performed together in 2009 when Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor appeared as guests on the eighth season of American Idol on which Lambert was a contestant. On the show, Lambert and the eventual winner Kris Allen performed "We Are the Champions" together with the band. Soon after the finale, May indicated to Rolling Stone that he was considering Lambert as a frontman for Queen. May later revealed that he became interested in Lambert as a replacement for Paul Rodgers after watching a video of Lambert's audition for American Idol where he performed "Bohemian Rhapsody".
