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A portion of the Salt Lake Valley with Oquirrh Mountains in the background as seen looking southwest from City Creek Canyon.

Salt Lake Valley from space.

Greatest vertical relief in the valley. Twin Peaks has a rise of 7099 ft or 2164 m from the valley floor.

Salt Lake Valley is a 500-square-mile (1,300 km²) valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably West Valley City, Murray, Sandy, and West Jordan; its total population is 1,029,655 as of 2010. Brigham Young nicknamed it the place, when he and his fellow settlers moved into Utah after being driven out of several states.

The valley is surrounded in every direction except the northwest by steep mountains that at some points rise 7,100 feet (2,200 m) from the valley floor's base elevation. It lies nearly encircled by the Wasatch Mountains on the east, the Oquirrh Mountains on the west, Traverse Ridge to the south and the Great Salt Lake on the northwest, with the peaks of Antelope Island visible.

Every entrance into the valley is extremely narrow and often congested. They include the Point of the Mountain to the south via the Jordan Narrows, a gap in the Traverse Mountains, narrow entrances between the Great Salt Lake and Oquirrh Mountains to the northwest and the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Mountains to the north, and several canyons to the east including Parley's Canyon and Emigration Canyon.

The Jordan River runs north through the valley between Utah Lake and the Great Salt Lake bisecting the valley, and along with numerous mountain streams and reservoirs, provides irrigation water to the rapidly-growing valley. The only areas that have not been urbanized are near the Great Salt Lake (prevented by frequent flooding) and in the far west and mid-southwest parts of the valley, although even those areas are beginning to experience the effects of the Salt Lake City urban area's rapid expansion. Some experts are claiming that the valley will be urbanized rim-to-rim within the next 50 years.^{[citation needed]}

A company known as Kennecott Land, which owns the eastern foothills of the Oquirrhs in the western part of the valley, recently drafted a plan that would develop the rest of the entire valley within 75 years, adding at least 500,000 residents. The first development, known as the Daybreak Community, has already begun construction. It will focus on transit-oriented development and will also feature a ski resort in the Oquirrh Mountains and a university campus.

Interstate 15 runs north to south through the middle-eastern portion of the valley and Interstate 80 runs east to west in the northern quarter of the valley from Parley's Canyon into Tooele County to the west (where it cuts across a portion of the Great Salt Lake). The Interstate 215 belt route, State Route 154 (Bangerter Highway), and State Route 201 are also major transportation routes. The Utah Transit Authority operates an extensive bus system across the Wasatch Front, including the Salt Lake Valley, in addition to three light rail lines (known as TRAX) in the valley. A commuter rail line known as FrontRunner runs north to Pleasant View in Weber County.

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Salt Lake Valley

• Mormon Trail

Coordinates: 40°41′02″N 111°58′41″W / 40.6839°N 111.978°W / 40.6839; -111.978

Lake Valley may refer to:

• Lake Valley, California
• Lake Valley (Nevada), Lincoln and White Pine Counties, Nevada
• Lake Valley Township, Traverse County, Minnesota
• Lake Valley, San Juan County, New Mexico
• Lake Valley, Sierra County, New Mexico

This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

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Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars performing in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 19, 2010
Background information
Birth name	Peter Gene Hernandez
Born	(1985-10-08) October 8, 1985 (age 26)[1] Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Genres	Reggae fusion, pop, soul, R&B
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer, model, dancer
Instruments	Vocals, drums, guitar, keyboard, bass, piano, harmonica
Years active	2005–present
Labels	Atlantic, Elektra
Associated acts	The Smeezingtons
Website	www.brunomars.com

Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Raised in Honolulu, Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age. He performed in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood. He graduated from high school and then moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a musical career. Mars produced songs for other artists, joining production team The Smeezingtons.

Mars had an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, but then signed with Atlantic Records in 2009. He became recognized as a solo artist after lending his vocals and co-writing the hooks for the songs "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B, and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy. He also co-wrote the hits "Right Round" by Flo Rida featuring Ke$ha, and "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan. In October 2010, he released his debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans. Anchored by the worldwide number-one singles "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade", the album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.^[2] Mars was nominated for seven Grammys at the 53rd Grammy Awards, winning Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Just the Way You Are".

Mars' music is noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, and contains elements of many musical genres. He has worked with an assortment of artists from various genres. Mars acknowledges the influences that his collaborations have had on his own music. As a child, he was highly influenced by artists such as Little Richard,^[3] Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson and would often impersonate these artists from a young age. Mars also incorporates reggae and Motown inspired sounds into his work. Jon Caramanica of The New York Times referred to Mars as "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop."^[4] Worldwide, Mars became the best-selling digital artist in 2011. He had three singles in the top ten, including first place with "Just The Way You Are," which sold 12.5 million copies.^[5] Mars won Best International Male Solo Artist at the BRIT Awards in 2012.^[6] Bruno Mars has sold 5 million albums and 36 million singles worldwide.^[7]

Early life[link]

Bruno Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez on October 8th, 1985, and raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii, by parents Pete Hernandez, of Puerto Rican descent, and Bernadette "Bernie," a Filipina.^{[8][9][10][11]} His mother emigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines as a child and his father moved to the island from Brooklyn, New York.^[12] Mars' parents met while performing in a show, where his mother was a hula dancer and his father played percussion.^[12] At the age of two, he was nicknamed "Bruno" by his father, because of his resemblance to legendary professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.^[13]

Mars was one of six children and came from a musical family who exposed him to a diverse mix of reggae, rock, hip hop, and R&B.^[14][15] In addition to being a dancer, his mother was a singer and his father used his musical ability to perform Little Richard rock n roll music.^[3] Mars' uncle was an Elvis impersonator. By the age of three his uncle had Mars up on the stage performing. He also performed songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations.^[10] At age four, Mars began performing five days a week with his family's band, The Love Notes, in which he became known on the island for his impersonation of Presley.^[16]

In 1990, Mars was featured in MidWeek as "Little Elvis", going on to have a cameo in the film Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992.^[10][17] He later reflected on the influence Presley had on his music: "I watch the best. I'm a big fan of Elvis. I'm a big fan of 1950s Elvis when he would go on stage and scare people because he was a force and girls would go nuts! You can say the same thing for Prince or The Police. It's just guys who know that people are here to see a show, so I watch those guys and I love studying them because I'm a fan."^[18] In 2010, he also acknowledged his Hawaiian roots and musical family as an influence, explaining, "Growing up in Hawaii made me the man I am. I used to do a lot of shows in Hawaii with my father's band. Everybody in my family sings, everyone plays instruments...I've just been surrounded by it."^[19] In 2003, shortly after graduating from President Theodore Roosevelt High School at the age of seventeen, Mars moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue a musical career.^[10][17] He adopted his stage name from the nickname his father gave him, adding "Mars" at the end because "I felt like I didn't have [any] pizzazz, and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I'm from Mars."^[20]

Career[link]

[edit] 2004–10: Career beginnings and It's Better If You Don't Understand

Bruno Mars performing in Houston, Texas in November 2010.

Shortly after moving to Los Angeles, Mars signed to Motown Records in 2004, in a deal that "went nowhere".^[21] However, Mars' experience with Motown proved to be beneficial to his career when he met songwriter and producer Philip Lawrence, who was also signed to the label. Mars, Lawrence, and engineer Ari Levine began writing songs together, and formed the production team The Smeezingtons.^[21] In 2006, Lawrence introduced Mars to his future manager at Atlantic Records, Aaron Bay-Schuck.^[22] After hearing him play a couple of songs on the guitar, Bay-Schuck wanted to sign him immediately, but it took about three years for Atlantic records to finally sign Mars to the label.^[22] In the meantime, Bay-Schuck hired Mars and the Smeezingtons to write and produce songs for the label's artists.^[22] According to Bay-Schuck in an interview with HitQuarters, Mars had stated that although his ultimate goal was to be a solo artist, he was willing to write and produce for other artists, both to help improve his songwriting and help him discover the type of artist he ultimately wanted to be.^[22] Bay-Schuck credits this as a period of "self-discovery" that contributed significantly to Mars' later success.^[22]

Before becoming a successful solo artist, Hernandez was an acknowledged music producer, writing songs for Alexandra Burke, Travie McCoy, Adam Levine, Brandy, Sean Kingston, and Flo Rida.^[14][23] He also co-wrote the Sugababes' hit song "Get Sexy" and provided backing vocals on their album Sweet 7.^[24][25] His first musical appearance as a singer was in Far East Movement's second studio album Animal, featured on the track "3D".^[26] He was also featured on pastor and hip hop artist Jaeson Ma's debut single "Love" in August 2009.^[27][28] He reached prominence as a solo artist after being featured on and co-writing B.o.B's "Nothin' on You" and Travie McCoy's "Billionaire"; both songs peaked within the top ten of many charts worldwide.^{[29][30][31][32]} He said of them, "I think those songs weren't meant to be full-sung songs. If I'd sung all of "Nothin' on You", it might've sounded like some '90s R&B." Following this success, Mars released his debut extended play (EP), titled It's Better If You Don't Understand, on May 11, 2010.^[33] The EP peaked at the 99th position on the Billboard 200 and produced one single, "The Other Side", featuring singers Cee Lo Green and B.o.B.^[34][35] Mars collaborated with Green once more in August 2010 by co-writing his single "Fuck You!". He performed a medley of "Nothin' on You" and "Airplanes" with B.o.B and Hayley Williams at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010.^[36]

[edit] 2010–present: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

Bruno Mars' debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, was released digitally on October 4, and saw its physical release on October 5, 2010.^[37][38] The lead single, "Just the Way You Are", was released on July 19, 2010,^[39] and has reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 as well as several other charts worldwide.^[40][41] The music video was released on September 8, 2010.^[42] The second single, "Grenade", was released September 28, 2010, and has also seen successful international chart performance.^[43][44] In the United States, Doo-Wops & Hooligans debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 for the week of October 13, 2010, selling 55,000 copies.^[2] The album also received generally positive reviews from critics. Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt praised Mars for his "instant-access melodies" and "sly snatches of dance-floor swagger", but noted weaknesses in songs deviant from his conventional pop and soul genres.^[45] He opened for Maroon 5 on the fall leg of the Hands All Over Tour starting October 6, 2010 and co-headlined with McCoy on a European tour starting October 18, 2010.^[38]

On September 19, 2010, Mars was arrested in Las Vegas for possession of cocaine.^[46] When talking to a police officer, Mars reportedly stated that what he did was "foolish" and that "he has never used drugs before".^[47][48] Mars pled guilty to felony drug possession, and in return for his plea, he was told that the charges would be erased from his criminal record as long as he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid a $2,000 fine, did 200 hours of community service and completed a drug counseling course.^[49]

On February 13, 2011, Mars won his first Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, having received six nominations; Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Nothin' on You", Record of the Year for "Nothin' on You" and "Fuck You", Song of the Year for "Fuck You", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

On September 16, 2011, Bad Meets Evil released their single, "Lighters", which featured Mars in the song. The song was met with mixed reviews from critics and many criticized Mars for doing this type of song.^[50] On September 22, 2011, it was announced on Mars' website that his new song "It Will Rain" will appear on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack which was released on November 8.^[51] On October 30, 2011, Mars gave an exclusive performance of "Runaway Baby" on the results show of The X Factor UK, the same day that Mars received six nominations for a Grammy Award; Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for Doo-Wops & Hooligans, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for "Grenade", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 54th Grammy Awards. During the ceremony, Mars performed "Runaway Baby" but he did not win any awards as Adele won in all the categories he was nominated in and also lost to Paul Epworth for Producer of the Year.

Mars has confirmed on Twitter that his work on his second album has begun.^[52] On March 22, 2012, it was announced that Mars had signed a worldwide publishing deal with BMG Chrysalis US.^[53]

Musical style[link]

Mars performing on November 24, 2010. Mars plays several instruments including piano, guitar, bass and congas.^[54]

Mars' music has been noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, including pop,^[55] rock,^[55] reggae,^[55] R&B,^[56] soul,^[45] and hip hop.^[57] His co-producer Philip Lawrence says, "What people don't know is there's a darker underbelly to Bruno Mars." Mars himself says, "I blame that on me singing to girls back in high school."^[58] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times called him "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop, with a light, soul-influenced voice that’s an easy fit in a range of styles, a universal donor."^[4] Mars was initially influenced by R&B artists such as Keith Sweat, Jodeci and R. Kelly, as well as 1950s rock 'n' roll and Motown.^[59] In high school, he began listening to classic rock groups such as The Police, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles.^[59] All of these genres of music have influenced Mars' musical style; he observed that "It’s not easy to [create] songs with that mixture of rock and soul and hip-hop, and there’s only a handful of them."^[59] Mars also stated that he is a fan of Alicia Keys, Jessie J, Jack White and The Saturdays.^[60]

In addition, Mars claims that his work with other artists influenced his musical style, saying that "'Nothin' on You' had a Motown vibe, 'Billionaire' was a reggae acoustic guitar-driven song, though one of my favorites is the Cee-Lo [Green] song ['Fuck You']. I don't think anyone else could've sung that song. And there's 'Just the Way You Are.' If you know my story, you know I love all different genres of music."^[61] He cites doo-wop as a major influence on his music, referring to the genre as "just straightforward love songs – so charming and simple and romantic."^[61] In addition, Mars states that growing up in Hawaii influenced his music, giving the songs a reggae sound. He explains that "In Hawaii some of the biggest radio stations are reggae. The local bands are heavily influenced by Bob Marley. That music brings people together. It's not urban music or pop music. It's just songs. That's what makes it cross over so well. The song comes first."^[12] Lyrically, many of Mars' songs have been described as "feel-good", carefree, and optimistic,^[62] however, darker subjects are addressed in songs such as "Grenade", "Liquor Store Blues", and "Talking to the Moon", which detail failed relationships and self-destructive behavior.^[45][63]

Discography[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010)
• TBA (2012)

Tours[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans tour (2010–2011)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bruno Mars

• Official website
• Bruno Mars on Twitter
• Bruno Mars at the Internet Movie Database

Medal record
Men's snowboarding
Competitor for the  United States
Winter X Games
Bronze	2011 Aspen	SuperPipe

Louis "Louie" Vito (born March 20, 1988^[1]) is an American professional snowboarder.

Early life[link]

Louis Vito was born in Columbus, Ohio. He later moved to Denver, Colorado to continue his love of snowboarding.

Career[link]

Vito became prominent on the professional snowboarding scene at age 17 by completing a backside 1080 at the Australia Open — making him the first rider to successfully pull off the complex move. This helped propel him to the top of the podium, winning his first of two consecutive championships there.

In 2008, Vito was crowned the overall Chevy U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix series title champion. That year, he went on to win the Killington Grand Prix on the heels of winning the Tamarack Grand Prix. Two days later he won The Jeep King of the Mountain Superpipe Championships in Squaw Valley, California. Vito went on to win the Etnies GVR and took second place at the Vans Cup in a hotly contested battle for the championship with superstar Danny Kass.

Recently, Vito co-won the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix series title championship, his second consecutive title. He finished first at the Copper Mt. Grand Prix and 2nd at both the Grand Prix at Boreal and the World Cup in La Molina, Spain.

Vito has been featured on ABC Family's Switched. He has also made numerous appearances on The Daily Habit on Fuel TV, as well as features on Fusion and RSN TV. Vito has had feature stories on all the major TV networks as well as many cable stations including ESPN. He tried his hand at commentating when he had his debut on WGN-TV’s Fruit by the Foot Junior Jam.

Vito appeared on Season 9 Dancing with the Stars.^[2][3] He partnered with former So You Think You Can Dance contestant Chelsie Hightower. He was eliminated from the competition in week six of the program. In addition to his dance rehearsals for the show, Vito trained intensively for the 2010 Winter Olympics, where he later achieved 5th place.^[1]

Vito trained for gymnastics before starting snowboarding.^[4]

Contest history[link]

2005-06[link]

• 1st at the Australian Open
• 2nd at the Vans Cup
• 3rd at the Middle Earth Superpipe Championships in New Zealand
• 4th at the Nippon Open
• 4th at the New Zealand Open
• 5th at the World Superpipe Championships

2006-07[link]

• 1st at the Garnier Fructis Pro Challenge (Australian Open)
• 2nd at the New Zealand Open
• 2nd at the U.S. Grand Prix at Mt. Bachelor
• 2nd at the U.S. Grand Prix at Tamarack

2007-08[link]

• 1st at the Grand Prix at Tamarack
• 1st at the Jeep King of the Mt.
• 1st at the Etnies GVR
• 2nd at the Australian Open
• 2nd at the Vans Cup
• 1st at the U.S. Grand Prix at Killington
• U.S. Grand Prix Overall Title Winner

2008-09[link]

• 1st at the U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mt.
• 2nd at the World Cup at La Molina, Spain
• 2nd at the U.S. Grand Prix at Boreal
• 5th at the Dew Tour at Breck
• U.S. Grand Prix Overall Title Winner

2010[link]

• 5th in the Half-pipe Snowboarding Final at the 2010 Winter Olympics
• 2nd At the 2010 US Open {Superpipe}
• 3rd (bronze) at 2010 Winter Euro X Games
• 1st at the Winter Dew Tour 2011 at Killington, Vermnt

2011[link]

• 3rd in half-pipe at winter X Games
• 1st in half-pipe at European Winter X-Games, Tignes

2011-12[link]

• 2nd at the U.S. Grand Prix at Breckridge

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• Louie Vito at the International Ski Federation
• Louie Vito at EXPN Online
• Rider Info on O-Matic Snowboards
• Louie Vito Checks in For Hump Day on YoBeat.com
• US Snowboarding Team Officially Named
• Official Olympic Athlete Bio

David Archuleta
Archuleta in the American Idol Experience motorcade at Walt Disney World (February 2009)
Background information
Birth name	David James Archuleta
Born	(1990-12-28) December 28, 1990 (age 21)[1] Miami, Florida
Origin	Murray, Utah, United States
Genres	Pop[2]
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, actor
Instruments	Vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar
Years active	2003–present
Labels	Jive[3] (2008–2011) Ivory Records[4] (2011–present)
Website	www.davidarchuleta.com

David James Archuleta (born December 28, 1990) is an American pop singer-songwriter. At ten years old he won the children's division of the Utah Talent Competition leading to other television singing appearances.^[5] When he was twelve years old, Archuleta became the Junior Vocal Champion on Star Search 2.^[5] In 2007, at sixteen years old, he became one of the youngest contestants on the seventh season of American Idol.^[6] In May 2008 he finished as the runner-up, receiving 44 percent of over 97 million votes.

In August 2008 Archuleta released "Crush," the first single from his self-titled debut album.^[5][7][8][9] The album, released three months later, debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart; it has sold over 750,000 copies in the U.S., and over 900,000 worldwide.^[10][11][12] In October 2010 he released a third album, The Other Side of Down featuring lead single "Something 'Bout Love". In 2011, Archuleta announced he is taking a two-year hiatus to be a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.^[13][14] As of February 2012, Archuleta has sold 1,108,000 albums and 3,327,000 tracks in the United States.^[15]

Early life[link]

Archuleta was born in Miami, Florida, to Jeff Archuleta and Lupe Marie Mayorga. His mother is a salsa singer and dancer from Honduras and his father is a jazz musician of Spanish-Basque descent;^[16] he speaks a little bit of Spanish and aspires to learn more.^[17] Archuleta has four siblings.^[18] His family moved to the Sandy, Utah, suburb of Salt Lake City when he was six. He now lives in Murray where he attended Murray High School.^[19] He is a former Boy Scout and is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.^[20]

Archuleta started singing at the age of six, inspired by a Les Misérables video. "That musical is what started all of this", he said.^[21] He started performing publicly at age ten when he participated in the Utah Talent Competition, singing "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton; he received a standing ovation and won the Child Division.^[22]

Music career[link]

2003–06: Star Search and musical beginnings[link]

In 2003, when he was twelve years old, Archuleta sang on several episodes of the television show Star Search.^[23][24][25] He ended up as the Junior Vocal Champion on Star Search 2, Losing the Junior Grand Champion title to Tiffany Evans.^[26] On one episode, he sang against then-11-year-old Alexandréa Lushington, who became a "top 20" semi-finalist on American Idol alongside Archuleta.^[24] Around the second year of being on Star Search he started focusing on the lyrics, "I didn't even pay attention to the lyrics when I was 12, 13".^[27]

Archuleta's competing on Star Search was preceded by an appearance on The Jenny Jones Show, meeting the finalists from American Idol's first season, for whom he performed a spontaneous a cappella rendition of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" from Dreamgirls. He received praise from Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson,^[27][28] and the episode led to appearances on CBS's The Early Show. The year after Star Search, he found out he had partial vocal paralysis but declined risky surgery and has said he feels he is almost fully recovered.^[21][27] He limited his singing for specific occasions like Stadium of Fire, the Independence Day celebration at Brigham Young University Stadium.^[27]

Archuleta made initial attempts at songwriting and arranging music after his star search experience and has written at least three songs.^[27] His first singles in 2002 included "Dream Sky High" and "Don't Tell Me".^[29]

[edit] 2007–08: American Idol and David Archuleta

Archuleta received his ticket to the Hollywood final auditions at the San Diego tryouts – held at Qualcomm Stadium at the end of July 2007 – with a performance of John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change" with judge Randy Jackson spontaneously joining in to sing the background "waiting" in the song.^[22][30] He was sixteen during the Hollywood auditions and attended school while a part of American Idol's seventh season.^[6] His parents were there because he was a minor.^[6] Archuleta also took advantage of the decision to allow contestants to play musical instruments when he accompanied himself on piano for his performances of "Crazy", "Another Day in Paradise", and "Angels".

During the 1970s themed week Archuleta sang the John Lennon song "Imagine", omitting the earlier verses in favor of the last one. Los Angeles Times columnist Ann Powers speculated that he wanted to avoid singing "no religion too" because of his faith. "As a Mormon, he's unlikely to espouse the song's agnostic ideal," she wrote.^[31] However, he did sing the entire song on Good Things Utah when he was thirteen. When asked by judge Randy Jackson why he didn't sing the first verse, Archuleta said the third verse was his favorite because it has "a great message."^[32]

After his performance of "We Can Work It Out", which judge Simon Cowell called "a mess", Entertainment Tonight reported that Archuleta was feeling pressure from his father, Jeff Archuleta, who "reportedly yelled at" his son after a recording session the previous night.^[33] Jeff Archuleta, in an interview with Us Weekly, denied the claim.^[34][35] A May 2008 Associated Press article reported that Jeff Archuleta had his son add a lyric from the Sean Kingston song "Beautiful Girls" into an interpretation of "Stand by Me" (from which "Beautiful Girls" samples its bass line), increasing the costs for licensing, and that this had resulted in Jeff Archuleta being banned from American Idol backstage rehearsals.^[36] Archuleta defended his father calling him "a great guy" who keeps him grounded.^[37]

During the Top 7 results show, the contestants were split into two groups. In one group was Syesha Mercado, Brooke White, and Kristy Lee Cook. In the other group was David Cook, Carly Smithson, and Jason Castro. Archuleta was the only one not sorted into a group. He was declared safe after the groups were formed, then was asked to choose the group he thought was safe. He refused, and sat down on the floor of the stage, much like Melinda Doolittle had done the previous season.

In the finale he sang "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", "In This Moment" and "Imagine". Judge Simon Cowell declared that Archuleta won the evening and even David Cook, who ultimately won, thought Archuleta would win: "I have to concede it, the kid came out all three songs and nailed it", said Cook.^[38] In the final tally, Archuleta received 44 percent of the votes.^[39][40] During the finale show, identical commercials featuring Archuleta and fellow finalist Cook mimicked the Tom Cruise scene from Risky Business where he dances in his underwear playing an air guitar; they were promoting the game franchise Guitar Hero.^[41]

Archuleta performing during the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2008

Archuleta's first appearances on music ranking charts were with the three songs he performed in the American Idol finale; "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", "In This Moment", and "Imagine", debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the week of June 7, 2008. "Imagine" entered at number 36 (giving Archuleta his first top forty hit), "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" at number 58, and "In This Moment" entered at number 60.^[43] That same week he had three songs on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart as well, where his versions of "Longer", "Think of Me", and "Angels" debuted at number 15, number 19, and number 24 respectively.^[44] In July 2008 So You Think You Can Dance, a dance competition reality show, Archuleta's cover of "Imagine" by John Lennon was the featured music for contestants Katee Shean and William Wingfield with their pas de deux performance.^[45]

Archuleta signed with Jive Records in June 2008. His self-titled album, David Archuleta, was released in November 2008. His first single "Crush" was released in August 2008 on Z100, a New York radio station.^[7][46] On August 12 "Crush" became available on iTunes.^[47] It debuted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, beaten only by Rihanna's "Disturbia".^[48] It was the best chart debut in more than 18 months.^[49] According to Nielsen SoundScan, the track sold 166,000 downloads in the first week in the United States.^[50] It has sold 1.92 million digital copies in the US.^[51]

Archuleta signs autographs while serving as Grand Marshal at the Krewe of Caesar Mardi Gras parade in Metairie, Louisiana, on Valentines Day, 2009.

Along with American Idol winner David Cook, Archuleta placed second on Forbes' list of "Breakout Stars of 2008".^[52] The two co-presented an award at the 2008 Teen Choice Awards in August 2008.^[53] Archuleta also received the Teen Choice Award surfboard for "Most Fanatic Fans".^[53]

[edit] 2009–present: Christmas from the Heart, The Other Side of Down, Forevermore and Begin

Since the release of his debut album, Archuleta has released three new songs: "Let's Talk About Love (The Build-A-Bear theme song)," "Save the Day (released only in Japan as a bonus track in his album)," and "Zero Gravity." In February, it was announced that Archuleta will be touring the United Kingdom supporting British band McFly on their "Up Close...And This Time It's Personal" tour.^[54] The tour began on April 21, 2009 and continued until May.^[54] Archuleta became the opening act for Demi Lovato's tour which began June 21, 2009.^[55]

On April 22, 2009, Archuleta returned to the American Idol stage in its eighth season and performed the third single from his debut album, "Touch My Hand".^[56] On April 30, 2009 he made his first UK television appearance, on the Paul O'Grady Show, performing "Crush" and chatting about his album, which was released there in May. In May, Archuleta and fellow American Idol David Cook, visited the Philippines.^[57] Two days later he made live appearances on two of GMA-7's shows, Sis and Eat Bulaga. He also confirmed that month that he was working on two new albums, his sophomore pop album and a Christmas album.^[58] In August 2009, Archuleta won three Teen Choice Awards for Breakout Artist, Love Song, and the Music Tour category with Demi Lovato.^[59] In September he won the Year in Music – Rising Male Star award at the ALMA Awards and performed a cover of the standard "Contigo en la Distancia".

Archuleta's acting debut was when he appeared as himself for his acting debut on Nickelodeon's show iCarly titled "iRocked the Vote". The episode aired February 7, 2009. He had also made a special guest appearance in Season 3 of the Disney Channel show Hannah Montana^[60] In the episode "Promma Mia" as himself and he sang a duet: "I Wanna Know You" with Miley Cyrus who plays the title character; the song was featured on the soundtrack, Hannah Montana 3.

On May 16, 2009, Archuleta and David Cook performed in the Mall of Asia: Concert Grounds for their Back-to-Back Concert in Manila, Philippines. On June 1, 2010, Archuleta released Chords of Strength: A Memoir of Soul, Song, and the Power of Perseverance, a memoir which refers to "the partial vocal paralysis he suffered in 2004 but has now fully recovered from". He went on a book signing tour beginning in Ridgewood, New Jersey.^[61] The book was a bestseller.^[62]

Archuleta came back to the American Idol stage on April 7, 2010 on the show's ninth season and performed John Lennon's "Imagine", which David had performed previously in the Top 20 Week when he was a contestant on the show. After his performance, he mentioned that he was working on his third studio album.

Archuleta sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "Stand by Me" at the 30th anniversary of the annual A Capitol Fourth concert in Washington, D.C. on the Fourth of July. The show was aired on PBS at 8pm EST live and tape delay PT.^[63]

Archuleta sang live at the Tejano Music Awards covering Selena's songs, Como La Flor and No Me Queda Más at the event as a tribute on July 11, 2010.^[64]

In an interview with AOL's Something Pitchy, Archuleta revealed that the release of his next album is planned for Fall 2010 (he did mention a late September release, but then went back to the Fall). On June 24, 2010 Jive Records announced that his new single would be released on DavidArchuleta.com on July 13, and iTunes on July 20. However, on June 30, 2010 the full version of "Something 'Bout Love" became available to play on his website. His album The Other Side of Down was released on October 5, 2010.^[65]

On October 7, 2010, it was announced that David Archuleta would be the guest star at the annual Christmas concert of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Archuleta was scheduled to sing in performances on December 16–19.^[66]

On February 18, 2011 it was announced by Jive Records that David Archuleta had been released from his contract with them. It was also announced on February 17, 2011 that Archuleta left his management Wright Entertainment Group.^[67] Archuleta intends to spend time working on writing original material.^[68]

On July 2, 2011, Archuleta joined Brad Paisley to perform at the Stadium of Fire, where he performed the national anthem in addition to his five song set.^[69] From July 16 to 26, 2011, Archuleta toured Asia, performing in Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam (Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh), and Malaysia.^[70]

In early 2012, Archuleta signed a contract with TV5 to shoot a primetime mini series in the Philippines titled Nandito Ako (Here I Am), which was broadcast in February and March of 2012.^[71] An Original Pilipino Music album was released in March 26, 2012 in the Philippines, titled Forevermore.^[72] This album contains covers of classic Filipino songs, including "Nandito Ako" (an Ogie Alcasid original), "Forevermore" (a Side A original), and "Rainbow" by South Border. ^[73]

At the conclusion of the December 19, 2011 show of the My Kind of Christmas Tour, Archuleta announced his intention to serve as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for two years. He stated that he would return to music upon the completion of his mission.^[13] Archuleta, who has reportedly been assigned to Chile, entered the Provo, Utah Missionary Training Center on March 28, 2012.^[74]

According to Archuleta's official site, he will release a brand new album titled "Begin", on August 7, 2012 in the United States.^[75] The album will consist of original songs as well as cover songs.

Philanthropy[link]

Along with Do Something and the Dunkin' Brands Community Foundation,^[76] Archuleta is involved with helping willing teenagers make a difference in others' lives with disaster relief.^[77] He is also one of several teen celebrities taking part in DoSomething.org's Teens for Jeans charity initiative, which donates denim to homeless teenagers nationwide.^[78] In January 2010, Haiti was hit with a major earthquake. On January 22, 2010, Archuleta joined other celebrities for a 2-hour fundraising telethon where he answered phones, and even stayed longer afterward to keep answering the phones.^[79]

In January 2011, Archuleta travelled to Chennai, India with Rising Star Outreach,^[80] a non-profit charity giving children from leper colonies a first-class education and a chance at a future in India.^[81]

Archuleta was one of the many Latino singers who participated in Somos El Mundo, the Spanish version of "We Are The World 25 for Haiti".^[82] The song and video premiered on the Cristina Show in March 2010, funds raised benefit Haiti relief.

In support of ChildFund, Archuleta partnered with the charity for his My Kind of Christmas Tour in an effort to increase awareness and recruit new sponsors for children in need worldwide.^[83]

Musical influences[link]

Archuleta's mother is from Honduras, and much of the music he listened to as a child was Latin-influenced, including watching his mom sing at events with her sisters.^[27][84] She also "was big on dancing" according to Archuleta, and would "make" him dance to traditional music with his older sister.^[85] He also listened to jazz music, he said, from his father's collection as well as gospel, pop, rock and "soulful music."^[21] In a later interview, he revealed that his father was a jazz musician. Archuleta also said he enjoys Broadway musicals.^[86]

On his American Idol "Fast Facts" page, Archuleta cited his musical influences as Natalie Cole, Stevie Wonder, Kirk Franklin and Bryan Adams.^[22] Like Elliott Yamin and another singer he admires, John Mayer, Archuleta tries to infuse his pop selections with a soulful vibe.^[21] In a Seventeen interview he cites Sara Bareilles as a clever singer-songwriter whom he looks up to.^[87]

Discography[link]

• David Archuleta (2008)
• Christmas from the Heart (2009)
• The Other Side of Down (2010)
• Forevermore (Philippines release) (2012)
• Begin (2012)^[88]

Filmography[link]

Tours[link]

As main act

• American Idols LIVE! Tour 2008 (2008)
• David Archuleta Live In Concert (2009)
• Christmas from the Heart Tour (2009)
• The Other Side of Down Asian Tour (2011)
• My Kind of Christmas Tour (2011)

As supporting act

• McFly Up Close and This Time It's Personal Tour (2009)
• Demi Lovato Summer Tour 2009 (2009)

Awards and nominations[link]