Idol
Photo Credit: Shaun Vadella
ION: You’re a hard man to track down. You’ve been touring.
David Archuleta: I was in Asia. It’s always great. It’s a very different experience over there.
ION: You’ve also been touring with Pentatonix.
DA: I’m good friends with them, and it’s really fun to do shows with friends and I admire their talent. They put a great show, and it’s really fun because it’s not too loud since it’s all just vocal. A completely different concert experience. It’s nice to be able to cheer other people on and not have the whole evening being about you. It’s kind of nice to share the load.
ION: David, if you had your Holy Grail of recording opportunities, who would you like to record with?
DA: It’d be fun to record with Sabrina Carpenter. She’s just killing it right now. She’s a vocalist, but still very pop-y. I love her new album; I’ve been listening to it a lot.
ION: Fans and followers always wonder who who their favorite singers are listening to.
DA: I’ve listened to all of the summer girlies like Chaperone, Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, Sabrina. I’ve listened to Tems as well. I love Tems! She’s amazing! She’s from Nigeria.
ION: Since you left the Mormon (LDS) Church that you’ve expanded your horizons and business. You’ve discovered and raves.
DA: It’s been great! I’ve really loved it! It’s a whole new experience, and it’s been very liberating. I guess that before I just didn’t think it was okay for me to go to raves. I always thought, “Oh, it’s bad, I don’t want to be there.”
ION: You have a book deal coming up with HarperCollins for a memoir. You’re only 30, you’re very young, still. It must be interesting to mine from your experience and put it in book form.
DA: It’s been really a great. I’ve written my first full draft of the book, and I’m just waiting back on the publishers to give their notes. I spent the last year working on it, and I have been working with my editor, but I wanted to make sure that I wrote it myself, of course with help from my editor afterwards. I’ve gotten a really positive reaction so far.
Photo Credit: Ryan Welch
ION: After gathering your thoughts about your experiences, putting them in a linear format, was there anything that jumped out at you that you learned about yourself that you had forgotten and re-examined?
DA: I feel like it was kind of like opening up a can of worms; of a lot of childhood wounds and family drama and career drama. Just a lot of things you try to move on from, but when you’re going back and seeing the chronological order of your history, it’s like, “Okay, I have to address these things in order to realize, understand why I got from point A to point B.” It’s definitely been an interesting look back on everything. Sometimes I’ve had to take a little breaks because it’s a little too much. But overall it’s, it’s still been positive to see where I’ve been, and I hope that there’s more to reach, too. I think it’ll be a story that a lot of people can relate to in different ways.
ION: You’ve been a big advocate for mental help and your 2020 album Therapy Sessions concerned your struggles with anxiety in your music. How are you feeling now?
DA: I’m still getting acquainted with my anxiety. I’ve changed a lot. Therapy has been really helpful. It’s really important to have grace with yourself and realize that just because you’re feeling a certain way it doesn’t necessarily always guide you the way you’re supposed to go. It’s important to give yourself some grace for why you’re feeling the way you are. Sometimes your feelings have been programmed a certain way to protect you; it doesn’t work in every situation, and you have to be aware of that, make some adjustments and seek better ways of handling situations where you may feel uncomfortable or unsafe. The way that your body’s handled it in the past doesn’t work for every situation, especially if you’re triggered or traumatized. It can’t react in an extreme way in every situation that makes you nervous or anxious. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps you to think through things a different way and to have better control over your life and your emotions and your thoughts.
Photo Credit: Shaun Vadella
ION: We watched you on American Idol, you were tremendous. Was it difficult … I want to phrase this the right way, you were a singing prodigy – a bit of a child star. Was it difficult progressing, growing up to let people know, “Hey, I’m not just a teenager who has a good singing voice! I’ve got more in me”?
DA: I didn’t really feel like a teenager even when I was a teenager. I wasn’t really singing pop music until I got signed to a record label, so that was pretty interesting. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned how to enjoy being in my youth, and so I’m trying to take advantage of it while I’m still not too old and still have the energy to have fun, and that’s why I’ve enjoyed going to raves and such.
There’s a really good song by Olivia Rodrigo called “Teenage Dream,” and it kind of addresses that. And I was, like, “Wow! That reminds me of how it felt suddenly being a teenage star!” She talks about how people say, “Oh, you’re so good for your age!” But what if I am just good for my age? What if I’ve already given everything I have to offer? People have so many expectations. She sings, “You’re bound for great things! But what if I’ve already accomplished everything?” It’s a really interesting song that she’s sings, “Maybe I’m more.” It’s on her latest album.
ION: You were – I’ll say an ambassador, along with actor David Arquette – for World Kindness Day in 2022. You spoke about kindness to the community, including the importance of finding a sense of belonging and being accepted for who you are.
DA: It’s really wonderful to promote things that will hopefully bring out positive movement forward and change to people’s lives, gain better access to those resources that may not always be available to everybody and not easily obtainable to everybody. It was fun working with David Arquette.
Photo Credit: Shaun Vadella
ION: It’s also nice that there’s no scandal associated with you. You haven’t ended up in the tabloids for doing something horrible. It’s great to see someone who has such a positive influence inspiring others.
DA: So far I’ve been without scandal. (Laughs) I guess, we’ll see what happens in the future; you never know. Hopefully I’ve left a good impression. I just try to be myself; I’m learning as I go. I still, regardless, will try to be real with people.
ION: Let’s get into the nitty-gritty. David, what is your worst habit?
DA: My worst habit? Oh my gosh! Probably singing without even realizing it. People will go, “There you are – singing again!” I didn’t even realize I was singing!
ION: What is a guilty pleasure you have that might surprise people.?
DA: A guilty pleasure? I do love to go out dancing, shake a chancla. What else? I mean, I don’t watch TV. Guilty pleasure? Oh! Yes! Phone games! I love my phone games! Bloons in particular. And Monkey Tower Defense.
ION: Tell us a secret, something about yourself that might surprise your fans and our readers.
DA: I’m always going out dancing. When I’m traveling and stuff I’m like, “Where’s somewhere I can go dance?” Going to the gym and dancing are usually my “go-to” things.
ION: What can we expect when we see you performing on the Main Stage of Phoenix Pride?
DA: People can expect a lot of energy, and some good dancing. I mean, maybe not good dancing, (laughs) but dancing and good times. I really hope that people leave feeling inspired. I’m getting to the point where I can just have fun in the shows, but I’m still kind of sharing this journey I’ve been on, and I think it comes across in the show –this progression of learning how to accept myself and embrace it and then have fun with who I am and letting everyone else partake in that.
Catch David Archuleta on the Main Stage closing out the 2024 Phoenix Pride Festival on Sunday, October 20 at 8 p.m. at Steele Indian School Park.
Photo Credit: Shaun Vadella
