David Archuleta was born with music in his blood.
He grew up watching his father, Jeff, play the trumpet with various jazz bands and his mother, Lupe, shine on stage as a salsa singer and dancer. The second of five children, Archuleta would often perform musical numbers with his family for neighbors and friends. But it was at six years of age, when he watched a videotape of the tenth anniversary concert of Les Miserables, that his passion for music was irrevocably forged in his heart.
(David, around age 3. To view our David Archuleta photo gallery, click here.)
“I couldn’t stop watching,” Archuleta recalls. “I didn’t understand the story line, but I loved the way the people sang the songs. The melodies, the emotions—they captivated me.”
The Journey Begins
Inspired by Les Miserables, Archuleta became obsessed with singing despite being naturally shy and uncomfortable with the sound of his own voice. He continued to perform, improving his technique and showmanship with guidance from his parents. Then, when he was 10 years old, his mother entered him in his first competitive talent show—the 2001 Utah Talent Competition.
“I about had a heart attack because I was so nervous,” he recalls. “I’ve always been a worrywart and very self-conscious.” Despite his insecurity and self-doubt, and a full-blown panic attack backstage just minutes before his performance, Archuleta received a standing ovation for his rendition of “I Will Always Love You” and was declared the winner of the child division. Completely taken by surprise at his victory, he was thrilled at the audience’s response and found a deep sense of pride in facing his fears head on.
After the talent competition, Archuleta’s parents continued to search for opportunities for him to perform, including television appearances on the Jenny Jones Show and the Early Show on CBS. Then, in 2003, he competed on the television show Star Search, going on to become the Junior Vocal Champion. It was another confirmation that Archuleta’s life was on the right path. But soon that surety would be replaced with doubt and despair.
“I got invited back to Star Search the following year to do Battle of the Champions, but I started having struggles with my breathing, singing, and talking,” he recalls. “I was wheezing, and I could only sing for a few minutes at a time.” After a visit with the doctor, Archuleta received devastating news—he had partial vocal cord paralysis.
The options for treatment were either a high-risk surgery that could permanently damage his voice, or voice therapy, which would hopefully slowly rehabilitate the paralyzed chord. Archuleta opted for therapy but he wasn’t optimistic, and at 13 years old his dreams of being a singer quickly evaporated.
“When I received the diagnosis, I had already given up,” he says. “I could only sing a song or two before I would get tired. To be a singer, you have to do full shows. I was really down and not sure what I should be doing with my life.”
He continues, “I just decided to go to school—I’d been home schooling on and off. Ninth grade was my first full year of school. Then tenth grade I tried to be a normal kid, but I’m not good at extracurricular activities, and I felt like I had lost a piece of myself.”
The Idol Experience
Archuleta continued to attend school. And when he was 16, auditions for the seventh season of American Idol were announced. An avid fan of the show from the beginning, he was finally old enough to audition. But by that point, Archuleta had lost confidence in his abilities.
“I thought it would be a waste of everyone’s time if I auditioned,” he recalls. “I didn’t think I had a shot, and I didn’t know how my voice would handle it.”
Archuleta’s family and friends consistently encouraged him to audition. The idea nagged at him, so he finally decided to make it a matter of prayer. “Something kept saying, ‘Go audition,’” he says. “I kept trying to ignore it. So I was shocked that I felt such a strong impression [to audition] after praying. But I felt there was something I had to learn from that experience, maybe meet someone who I needed to meet.”
(LDS Living photo shoot, 2011. Photo by Michael Schoenfeld.)
With the help of his father, Archuleta began choosing music for the auditions, and in July 2007 the two of them boarded a plane to San Diego to join thousands of other hopefuls for the chance to impress the American Idol judges. Archuleta made it through several rounds, received unanimous approval from the judges to move forward to the semi-finals during Hollywood Week, and was ultimately chosen as one of the 24 contestants to compete on the show.
“The whole Idol experience was pretty crazy,” Archuleta says of his experience on the show. “For the most part it was a positive experience, but it was extremely challenging to believe in myself while dealing with all the pressure. I had so many eyes on me.”
Archuleta describes the American Idol experience as “boot camp for singers.” “For iTunes we had to record songs each week. There were interviews, photo shoots, and music videos for the Ford commercials. There were fan letters and paparazzi. We were competing in front of millions of people every week. I thought, ‘If I can make it through this, I can handle anything.’”
Despite the overwhelming pressure in the spotlight and a grueling schedule, Archuleta managed to set himself apart. After battling with fellow contestants for 13 weeks, he won a coveted spot in the finale, going head-to-head with the other finalist, David Cook. Archuleta gave spellbinding performances, wowing the audience and the judges with all three of his musical numbers. American Idol judge Simon Cowell even predicted that Archuleta would win the competition. But on May 21, 2008, after the show tallied more than 97 million votes, Cook ultimately walked away with the title of “American Idol”—and Archuleta was perfectly happy with the outcome.
“I knew I wasn’t going to win,” he says. “But it was a life-changing experience. I was able to learn so much—all because I followed a prompting to go audition.”
The Image Dilemma
Following American Idol, Archuleta signed a recording contract with Jive Records, and his self-titled album, David Archuleta, was released in November of 2008. It was certainly a dream come true, but behind the scenes, he was constantly clashing with the record label.
“Record label management wanted to make me into a person that was so different from who I had presented myself to be on Idol. People would say, ‘You don’t know who you are. You don’t know what you want to be. This is who you are.’ But I told them, ‘You know what? That’s not who I am. Regardless if that’s what will get more radio play, that’s not what I’m supposed to do. I don’t want double-meaning lyrics. I don’t want things to be taken the wrong way. Music has an impact, and as an artist I can influence the way people think, the way they feel. No one can tell me what I am and am not. I’m just going to be true to myself.’”
Archuleta’s tenacity paid off. His first single, “Crush,” debuted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and has sold nearly 2 million copies to date. But he readily admits that romance is not his favorite topic to sing about.
“I’ve never been in a relationship, but that’s what everyone wanted me to sing about—I was so frustrated by that. They would say, ‘That’s what people relate to.’ But I didn’t relate to it.”
In fact, Archuleta does not plan on changing his bachelor status any time soon. “Dating isn’t something I’m taking seriously right now,” he explains. “There are definitely more things musically and personally that I need to accomplish before I get into a relationship.”
But when he does start dating, what qualities will his ideal girl have? “I want someone who has good values, who values family, and who thinks about others a lot,” he says. “I want someone I can learn from, who likes exploring and trying new things, who likes to have fun, who likes to eat—I like food, and I hope she will too,” he laughs. “Just someone who has a good heart.”
David even has a song dedicated to that ideal girl on his third album, The Other Side of Down, called “My Kind of Perfect.” “It’s about who that girl is going to be down the road,” he explains. “I want to be myself, so this is my love song—wondering who that person is going to be.”
To read the rest of this article, check out the November/December print issue of LDS Living by purchasing a single issue here or a one-year subscription for the special price of $10 here.
To view our David Archuleta photo gallery, click here.
To check out some behind-the-scenes video from our photoshoot with David and for his responses to some of our reader questions, click here.