David Archuleta

Tuesday night, the final four took on the huge selection of “500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.” This was the night that was supposed to be David Cook’s, after all he is the “resident rocker” of the group. Oddly enough, the night was owned by the 17-year-old “pop sensation,” “lil’ David”(as Seacrest likes to call him). Let’s break it down by performances now:

4. Jason Castro

As Simon stated, Jason should pack his suitcase. He tackled two “Bob” songs. The first, “I Shot the Sheriff” by Bob Marley was slightly awkward, especially when he tried to dance amd bob his head. Did anyone else notice that?
His second song, ”Mr. Tambourine Man,” by Bob Dylan, I thought was a better choice. I actually thought he sang it pretty well, but he did commit the ultimate ‘Idol” no-no by forgetting his lyrics. Although, he is the third contestant to do that this year following in the footsteps of Brooke White and David Archuleta. Whoops! It’s hard not to like Jason because he is so charming and laid-back, but he will go home Wednesday.
Grade: D

3. TIE between David Cook and Syesha Mercado

David Cook

Did anyone else expect more out of DC tonight? His first song, as Simon said was a bit of a copycat version of Duran Duran’s ”Hungry Like the Wolf.” He sang it pretty well, but had some trouble hitting those lower notes. He also sang with a more nervous energy than he has in the past few weeks.
However, David seemed more in his element with ”Baba O’Riley” by the Who. I do agree with Randy in that something weird was going on with him tonight. He definitely will survive and I fully expect he will be on his A game next time.
Grade: B

Syesha Mercado

Once again, Syesha has proven why she is the last female standing. She has such a strong, powerful voice that causes one to have goosebumps when she sings.
Her first song ”Proud Mary,” by Tina Turner was quite theatrical, which seems to be her nitch. I don’t know if it was the best choice because she did not get to show that powerful voice.
She definitely redeemed herself with the second song, ”A Change Is Gonna Come,” by Sam Cooke. She truly connected with that song for various reasons as she stated and we saw her completely lose it when Randy told her she tried too hard. Surprisingly, Simon and Paula both loved it and Syesha seemed to calm herself down after hearing Cowell’s approval.
Grade: B

1. David Archuleta

“Lil David” had the best night by a mile or as Simon said “he crushed the competition.” His version of ”Stand by Me” by Ben E. King was excellent because he truly made it his own and connected with the audience by opening his eyes, as Paula pointed out. His vocals were also outstanding.
For his second choice, David sang the more subdued “”Love Me Tender” by Elvis Presley and I don’t think it was quite as good as the first because of the lack of vitality within his vocals.
One slightly negative thing to say about David is that he sometimes chooses songs that may be a bit too mature for a person his age and in the process loses some of his youthfulness. No harm done, though. He definitely rocked and had the best night of the remaining competitors.
Grade: A

I am still thinking that it will be a David vs. David final, but both men better be at the top of their games next week because Syesha is on fire right now.
What do you think? Do you think Jason Castro will be the one packing or do you think there may be a “huge shocker” in store for us?

…source 

It’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame night on American Idol tonight. Which seems oddly appropriate, somehow, in this strangest of Idol seasons — fine one minute, not-so-fine the next — because there’s only one true rocker left in the bunch.

And, no, it ain’t David Archuleta.

Those Idol fans with long memories — long enough to go back, way back, all the way back to this time two years ago — will remember that it was at about this point in Idol’s season that consensus critics’ pick Chris Daughtry was told his Idol journey was over. Daughtry, the sole hard rocker to make the final four that year, exited the stage — and immediately went on to sell a gadzillion CDs. He’s still selling them, to hear the music charts tell it.

This time, music fans, and not just Idol believers, can only hope the same doesn’t happen to David Cook.

But it might.

Right now, this is the other David, David Archuleta’s, Idol to lose. In a terrific — if somewhat angry — post on The Huffington Post, that noted archival site for all things Idol, culture critic Chez Pazienza said as much, noting: “David Archuleta’s going to win American Idol — you may as well get that through your head right now.”
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Seemingly all of Utah and half of America is rooting for David Archuleta to be the next “American Idol.” But one of the Murray teen’s best friends wouldn’t be completely heartbroken if he’s not. “I miss him a lot, so it’s OK with me if he comes home,” Jessica Judd said, with a laugh.

The signs of how big a deal this is are all over Murray High — literally. Not only is the school Archuleta attends plastered with posters, but they’re selling “I voted for David Archuleta” T-shirts.

And the media have descended on the school to find out what the “Idol” favorite is really like.

(One friend, Mietra Aarabi — the girl who looked so uncomfortable on camera when “Idol” host Ryan Seacrest was teasing Archuleta about the upcoming Murray High prom — said she’s signed an agreement with Fox that prevents her from giving interviews.)

“He’s exactly the way he seems on TV. He’s sort of shy,” said one friend who asked that her name not be used. “But then everyone is surprised the first time they hear him sing.”

Archuleta’s friends use words like “sweet,” “genuine” and “humble” repeatedly — something that comes across on TV but seems too good to be true to some viewers.

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Wouldn’t it be cool if David sang this?

Top picks from the fans…”When You Believe,” “Never Too Far,” & “Make It Through The Rain.”  We’ll see.

I know what David is singing…but do you? The night before another exciting Tuesday, many people are referring to the song choice being “There’s Got To Be a Way.” An unfamiliar song to even Mariah fans, but are they right? Have a listen!

According to Idol’s Musical Director, Michael Orland says, “One of Orland’s picks to wow Cowell & Co. Tuesday night? None other than Idol’s boy wonder, David Archuleta. “It is so natural,” he says of the 17-year-old fan favorite’s vocal talent.”

Will this be another fantastic performance from our David Archuleta?

Update:  Okay to stop confusion, he is NOT singing “There’s Got To Be a Way.”

How will the Top 07 remaining contestants, including David, be able to handle the songs of Mariah Carey.  Throughout the years, the judges have always criticized contestants for taking on big songs from hit powerhouses including Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.  Being the mentor for next week’s Mariah theme, how will they judge the contestants on her songs?

Many are speculating on what David will be singing…Another slow song or an upbeat song?  One that has meaning or not?  So many choices to choose from; and my lips are sealed.  Down to a few choices, Archuleta is deciding on the final song choice to perform.  How will he, and all the other contestants, handle the pressure of Mariah Carey?

Teen Is Favored to Take ‘American Idol’ Crown

David Archuleta, who began singing around age 7, comes from a family of musicians. His father is a trumpeter; his mother is a vocalist and salsa dancer.

The 17-year-old hadn’t yet entered his teenage years when his vocal coach Dean Kaelin recognized his talent six years ago, the “very first time I heard him sing.”

By the time Archuleta turned 12 he already had won the juniors singers’ competition on the televised talent show “Star Search,” but in the process, Archuleta lost half his voice when a virus attacked his vocal chord. It left one chord paralyzed.

“I said, ‘OK turn your head and sing.’ One vocal chord was doing all the work,” Kaelin said.

The shy boy with the big voice had to deal with a medical problem that permanently changed his voice.

It took months of work and vocal training for Archuleta to heal, but Kaelin said the he never fully recovered. Ironically, the damaging illness gave the teen his unique textured sound, which has been much praised and lauded.

Kaelin said Archuleta, who was raised in the Mormon Church, chooses all of his songs on the popular singing show, which reveals facets of his personality.

“What you see is genuine. He’s very honest. He’s very unassuming. He’s very humble,” he said.

Friends said the Murray High School student, who cited Natalie Cole, Stevie Wonder, Kirk Franklin and Bryan Adams as musical influences, is the same whether he is before 35 people or 35 million.

The seemingly gentle demeanor of the shy boy isn’t the only thing attracting attention. Some critics have questioned whether his father, Jeff Archuleta, is pushing his son too hard to be a success.

But, Archuleta’s friends said there’s nothing unusual about the pair’s relationship.

“Like any dad would be supportive and helping him telling him to practice and trying to get him do his best,” said Archuleta’s friend Jessica Judd.

“I really am really grateful for his friendship, not just his stardom that’s gotten me on ‘Good Morning America,’” Judd said.

…source

http://www.nationalledger.com/artman/publish/article_272619776.shtml

Apparently Archuleta is already being written off as an “also-ran” in this competition.  The man makes some valid points, but I think it’s rather unfair to compare a potential Archuleta victory to Taylor Hicks’s Season 5 victory.  Two completely different contestants whose styles could NOT be any more different.

And the statement where he says “if David Archuleta keeps getting worse each week and still wins the competition,”…….excuse me, but WHEN THE HELL did his performances start becoming “worse”????  What competition have you been watching, sir???

A bunch of BS, if you ask me.

You know what I expect of all of you Archuleta fans tomorrow…VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!

So on the night of the Top 10, everyone flooded the site because they wanted to know if David had a girlfriend. You guys are all killing me…First off, who cares if David has a girlfriend or not, you can still dream anyway. When discussing his prom plans the girl they panned over to was not his girlfriend, but only a long time friend from high school, Mietra. You are all taking this and making it such a big deal it’s about to make people suicidal.

Before getting into the meat ‘n’ potatoes of this post, I would like to take this brief opportunity to congratulate David Archuleta on making it to the Top 10 of American Idol.

I really couldn’t be any happier about this. I am thrilled that he will be traveling the country this coming summer, performing for packed arenas and getting a taste of stardom as a musical performer. There is truly no one that deserves this more than him.

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