David Archuleta: โI dared to not be afraid to be a Mormon in the entertainment industryโDavid Archuleta: โI dared to not be afraid to be a Mormon in the entertainment industryโ
Yes, of course, thereโs the Monday performance at Abravanel Hall by the Beehive Stateโs favorite โAmerican Idolโ alum. But, as for the truly momentous and newsworthy way he intends to spend the rest of his time here โฆ
โIโm gonna get a haircut,โ Archuleta revealed exclusively to The Salt Lake Tribune in a phone interview.
Ummm, youโre a platinum-selling pop singer โ surely youโve got something epic going on.
โNot really, other than my haircut!โ he added with a laugh. โI usually just stay home. My sisters show me anime, โcause theyโre big fans of anime. So theyโre like, โWatch this one!โ They always show me really good ones. So thatโs usually the thing.โ
Haircut โฆ anime โฆ got it.
Of course, the former Murray resident and โIdolโ runner-upโs life has not always been so sedate. But then, thatโs precisely why heโs so enamored of his current calm.
Now 26 years old and going on a decade removed from Idolmania, heโs naturally experienced a fair bit of change.
For one thing, he moved to Nashville about three years ago. For another, his latest studio album, โPostcards in the Sky,โ released last month after a four-year hiatus, saw a distinct shift from the Top-40-driven material of his earlier efforts to a more personal, heartfelt songwriting style.
The biggest transitions, though, have largely been internal. Mostly, he no longer feels like a scared kid putting on a brave face.
โI think Iโve definitely grown up. I was 16 when I started getting publicity, when people started watching to the degree that it was with โAmerican Idol.โ It happened so quickly and I still didnโt know who I wanted to be,โ Archuleta said. โI think a lot of that was I was a very conservative person, I was a very introverted person. โฆ To be in a world where I had to be โonโ all the time, and all of a sudden to feel like I couldnโt be myself or people werenโt going to like me or watch me โฆ I was like, โOh my gosh, I donโt know how to do this!โ โฆ It was really overwhelming.โ
And while it may ultimately have proved a mentally healthy thing that he never came to believe in his own hype, it certainly was not helpful in the moment that, as public adoration for him grew, he lived in constant fear of being exposed as a fraud.
โI never had the confidence before to believe I was good at what I did,โ Archuleta said. โI got a lot of attention, and my worry was, โI donโt get why people like me. I must have fooled them, because itโs not like Iโm that good at what I do.โ And I became very self-conscious, like, what if I mess up and then people are like, โUgh, he wasnโt as good as I thought he was.โ โ
Like many other members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Archuleta credits his religious mission with helping him gain needed perspective and maturity.
After two years proselytizing in Santiago, Chile, he returned far more comfortable in his own skin.
โWhen I went on my mission, it kind of gave me a step away from everything, and I was able to grow up a little bit, on my own, without everyone watching me,โ Archuleta said. โWhen I came back, it was like, โI can still be introverted and conservative, prioritizing my religion and my spirituality, and always liking these positive things.โ Thatโs what I like! And I was always told before that I couldnโt โ โThatโs too cheesy. Youโve gotta be more macho. Youโve gotta be more mature. Youโve gotta have a little bit of a dark edge to you.โ And thatโs just not what I am. โฆ Now, Iโm still me and I can still help people have a fun time at a show being who I am. Itโs been really refreshing.โ
Part of that has entailed folding his spirituality into some of his songs.
Though Archuleta is quick to clarify that โIโm not a Christian artistโ and that โPostcards in the Skyโ is โnot a Christian album,โ he points out that his desire to make more authentic music naturally precludes him from excluding matters of faith from his writing.
โIt was always hard for me to sing breakup songs, especially as a teenager that had never been in a relationship before, even into his 20s! So, talking about life โ โWho am I? Do I matter? Can I do any good in this world? Do I have a purpose?โ โ those are all questions that I asked myself and I wondered about and I struggled with. So I wrote about that on this album,โ Archuleta said. โMaybe there are other people out there who are having a hard time finding their worth, feeling like theyโre good enough, and I can tell them a little bit about my challenge with those insecurities, and finding a purpose in spirituality. I dared to not be afraid to be a Mormon in the entertainment industry.โ
He also dared to make other tough choices โ the move to Nashville, for instance.
While acknowledging that he misses Utahโs mountains and loves coming home to visit, he maintains heading to Music City was necessary for the opportunities and the escape it offered.
โInterestingly enough, a lot of people who were on the show โAmerican Idolโ have moved to Nashville. I think after โAmerican Idol,โ becoming this big hometown deal to a lot of people โฆ you still love home but youโre not sure how to be treated and what you consider normal anymore,โ Archuleta said. โAnd Nashville is a place where they have this understanding in general of a musicianโs lifestyle. So theyโre not saying to you, โWhen are you gonna get a job?โ โOh, well, I do music.โ โWell, what about when you need to get a real job?โ Things like that.โ
And to be sure, this is Archuletaโs real job.
Earlier in his career, he acknowledged, โI was so caught up in wondering, โDo other people like what Iโm doing?โ [that] I didnโt ask, โOh, do I like what Iโm doing? Do I enjoy this?โ โ
He knows the answer now.
โI want to keep doing this. I want to tell stories that are actually meaningful to me, that come from a vulnerable place in my life. I want to do that. So Iโm gonna keep working at this,โ he said. โI have to restart in a way, after being on a hiatus. I have to remarket myself to people and show them who I am. I mean, Iโm still David, but โRound 2โ now.โ
Speaking of Round 2, care for another go at divulging some even minutely entertaining activity you might be engaging in now that youโve returned to your old stomping grounds?
โI just look forward to the simple things โ being able to stay home, not having to go out to eat, because I donโt know how to cook. I mean, I try โ I can make quesadillas, but thatโs about it,โ Archuleta insisted. โSo to be at my familyโs house and just have meals and not have to go out and figure out what to eat is a nice feeling.โ
There you have it, folks: haircut โฆ anime โฆ meals sans quesadillas โ an intimate peek inside the lifestyle of a pop star.