# David Archuleta
**David James Archuleta** (born 1990 in Miami, Florida) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor who finished as runner-up to [David Cook](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-cook-singer) on the seventh season of *American Idol* in 2008 at age 17, the youngest contestant of that season[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2008182542.html) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). His debut single "Crush" debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, his self-titled debut album went gold and reached number 2 on the Billboard 200, and after his departure from [Jive Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/jive-records) in 2011 and a two-year LDS mission in Chile he continued his recording career[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) • [4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/). In 2021 he came out publicly as queer, and in 2022 he left the church[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name, birth | David James Archuleta, born 1990, Miami, Florida; raised in Sandy, Utah from age 6; lives in Nashville, Tennessee[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2008182542.html) |
| *American Idol* | Runner-up to David Cook, season 7 (May 2008), at 17 the season's youngest contestant and the perceived front-runner[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) • [3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) |
| Biggest hit | "Crush" debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 (8/30/08) and hit No. 1 on iTunes within 24 hours; later reported double platinum[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) • [4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/) |
| Debut album | *David Archuleta* (November 11, 2008), No. 2 on the Billboard 200, gold in November 2008[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) |
| Career break | Two-year LDS mission in Chile, announced December 2011, served 2012 to early 2014[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) • [4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/) |
| Public identity | Came out on Instagram in June 2021 as on "a spectrum of bisexual"; left the LDS church in 2022; GLAAD Award for outstanding breakthrough music artist, March 2024[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/) • [5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751) |
| Recent work | *Earthly Delights* EP with "Crème Brulée" (No. 1 in Thailand, over 7 million streams); "Warm Me Up" Holiday Tour announced for November[6](https://davidarchuleta.com/about/) • [7](https://davidarchuleta.com/) |
## Early life and musical beginnings
Archuleta was born in Miami, Florida, in 1990 to Jeff Archuleta, a jazz trumpeter, and Lupe Marie, a Honduran salsa singer, and spent most of his childhood in Utah with his four siblings[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) • [3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/). The family moved to Sandy, Utah, when he was six[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2008182542.html). He began singing at age six after watching a videotape of *Les Misérables*[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022).
Two early competitions shaped his voice. At 12 he won the junior section of the televised talent show *Star Search*, crowned Junior Vocal Champion in 2003[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). In the process he lost half his voice when a virus attacked his vocal cord, leaving one cord paralyzed[8](https://abcnews.com/GMA/WinterConcert/story?id=4572812). He later recounted overcoming this paralysis in his memoir[9](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/306632/chords-of-strength-by-david-archuleta/). He grew up in a Mormon family[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/).
## American Idol (season 7)
Archuleta competed on the seventh season of *American Idol* in 2008. At 17 he was the season's youngest contestant, and he finished as runner-up to rocker David Cook, 25, in the May 2008 finale despite being considered the front-runner[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) • [3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/).
His Idol exposure produced chart hits before he had a record deal. His performance of "Imagine" entered the Billboard Hot 100 on June 7, 2008, peaking at number 36[10](https://www.billboard.com/artist/david-archuleta/). The runner-up finish framed his launch: his debut album arrived one week before Cook's, on November 11 versus November 18, 2008[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/).
## Recording career
**The Jive years.** Archuleta's self-titled debut album was released on November 11, 2008, with him co-writing five of its songs[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/). It reached number 2 on the Billboard 200 and went gold in November 2008[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). His second album of originals, *The Other Side of Down* (October 2010), cracked the Top 20 but, by his later account, fizzled out commercially, and Jive dropped him in 2011[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022) • [4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/).
**The mission.** After the debut went gold in November 2008, Archuleta told Jive he wanted to serve an LDS mission but was rebuffed; the 2011 release from his contract freed him to go[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/). In December 2011 he announced a two-year mission in Chile, which he later described as partly an act of "rebellion" against pressure to capitalize on his Idol fame[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/). He served from 2012 and returned in early 2014[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). Recordings released during the mission kept his name active: *Forevermore* (2012, released in the Philippines), *BEGIN.* (2012), and *No Matter How Far* (spring 2013)[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022).
**Independent years.** His later discography includes the holiday albums *Christmas from the Heart* (2009) and *Winter in the Air* (2018, on Shadow Mountain), the latter containing the single "Christmas Every Day"[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). *Postcards in the Sky* followed in October 2017 with the singles "Numb" and "Up All Night"[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). His 2019 album was *Therapy Sessions*, promoted on a tour postponed by COVID-19[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/).
## By the numbers
"Crush," released in August 2008, went to No. 1 on iTunes within 24 hours and debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 30, 2008; Billboard credits him with one Top 10 Hot 100 hit[3](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/) • [10](https://www.billboard.com/artist/david-archuleta/). Variety reported in 2021 that "Crush" went double platinum[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/).
Chart-run lengths for his Hot 100 entries are reported inconsistently on Billboard's own artist page: the entry for "Crush" shows both 12 weeks and 23 weeks on the chart, and the entry for "Imagine" shows both 1 week and 12 weeks[10](https://www.billboard.com/artist/david-archuleta/).
On current streaming, his official site reports that "Crème Brulée," the single from the *Earthly Delights* EP, reached No. 1 in Thailand and surpassed 7 million streams[6](https://davidarchuleta.com/about/).
## Personal life and public identity
In June 2021, Archuleta came out on Instagram, announcing that he is on "a spectrum of bisexual" and revealing his asexuality; Variety described him afterward as one of the most high-profile openly LGBTQ members of the LDS faith[4](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/). After coming out as queer in 2021, he left the church, widely known as the Mormon church, in 2022[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751). He has discussed faith and identity publicly in interviews, framing his departure as part of living a meaningful life[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751).
## Other work
Archuleta published the memoir *Chords of Strength*, a New York Times bestseller recounting his unexpected journey, including how he overcame vocal cord paralysis to pursue a singing career[9](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/306632/chords-of-strength-by-david-archuleta/). Holiday music is a recurring strand of his catalog, from *Christmas from the Heart* (2009) through *Winter in the Air* (2018) to his holiday touring[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022). Of Honduran and Spanish descent, he has also planned writing and recording projects beyond English-language pop[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751).
## What has changed since 2023
In March 2024 Archuleta won a GLAAD Award for outstanding breakthrough music artist, and in April 2024 he returned to *American Idol* as a guest performer[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751). His recent release is the *Earthly Delights* EP, featuring the single "Crème Brulée," which reached No. 1 in Thailand and surpassed 7 million streams[6](https://davidarchuleta.com/about/). As of 2024, at 33, he was working on a memoir, hoped to record a Spanish-language album and a dance music album, and was set to perform at Pride events in summer 2024[5](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751). His official site's announcement described the "Warm Me Up" Holiday Tour as coming that November, with a full holiday set, new songs, his No. 1 original holiday hit "Christmas Every Day," and classics such as "O Holy Night" and "Let It Snow," and said tickets would go on sale August 7[7](https://davidarchuleta.com/). His official biography describes a major personal transformation that radically altered his identity as an artist since his pop debut at 17[6](https://davidarchuleta.com/about/).
## References
1. [Archuleta, David, 1990- , LC Linked Data Service, Library of Congress](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2008182542.html)
2. [David Archuleta | Biography, Music & News, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-archuleta-mn0001018022)
3. [David Archuleta set to move beyond "Idol," Reuters (2008)](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-archuleta-idUSTRE4A584N20081106/)
4. [David Archuleta on Coming Out, 'American Idol,' and His Mormon Faith, Variety (2021)](https://variety.com/2021/music/features/david-archuleta-coming-out-american-idol-mormon-1235129586/)
5. [David Archuleta on leaving the Mormon church, coming out and 'living a meaningful life,' NBC News (2024)](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/david-archuleta-leaving-mormon-church-coming-living-meaningful-life-rcna154751)
6. [About, David Archuleta official site](https://davidarchuleta.com/about/)
7. [David Archuleta official homepage](https://davidarchuleta.com/)
8. [Behind the Big Voice: Who Is David Archuleta?, ABC News](https://abcnews.com/GMA/WinterConcert/story?id=4572812)
9. [Chords of Strength by David Archuleta, Penguin Random House](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/306632/chords-of-strength-by-david-archuleta/)
10. [David Archuleta | Biography, Music & News, Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/artist/david-archuleta/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Pop singers, 2000s to present › Mainstream pop singers, 2000s–2010s › Surnames A to H*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license