For David Archuleta, an attention to music began one day at age 7 when his father put on a "Les Misérables" tape. Archuleta was drawn to the tape and has loved music ever since.
Five years after his interest was piqued, Archuleta performed in the junior category of "Star Search" and ended up on top, winning the competition. An article in the Deseret News from March 2008 reported that after Archuleta won "Star Search" and consequently won $100,000, he stated that the first thing he was going to do with the money was pay his tithing.
"American Idol" was the show that changed Archuleta's life — as overall runner-up, Archuleta grabbed the attention of many inside and outside the music industry. Aside from releasing an album, Archuleta also performed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the annual Christmas concert last year.
As a 16-year-old boy from Murray, Archuleta's journey through "Idol" hinted at his faith as a Latter-day Saint. In his rendition of John Lennon's "Imagine," Archuleta skipped the first verse of the song which says, "Imagine there's no Heaven," and later, "… no religion too." A writer for the Los Angeles Times speculated that his reason for only singing the third verse was that he was a Mormon and "unlikely to espouse the song's agnostic ideal." Archuleta did sing the full song on "Good Things Utah" at age 13, but for whatever reason, he decided to skip the first verse this time around on "American Idol."
When Randy Jackson asked Archuleta why he did not sing the first verse of the song, his response was that the third verse was his favorite and that it had a good message.
The New Era published an article in August 2008 that discussed Archuleta's devotion to the gospel. His seminary teacher reported that Archuleta kept up with his daily scripture reading for class, and class members also stated that Archuleta attended church while in Hollywood, despite the craziness of his schedule at that point.
Mormon Times
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