Early life
David Archuleta was born to Jeff Archuleta and Lupe Marie, a salsa singer and dancer from Honduras. Archuleta has four siblings. Archuleta's family moved to the Salt Lake Valley, to the city of Sandy, Utah, when Archuleta was six. He was raised in Murray, Utah after moving there when he was 6 years old.
Archuleta started singing at age six, inspired by a Les Misérables video. "That musical is what started all of this," he said. He started performing publicly at age 10 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.
Archuleta was inspired by watching both Tamyra Gray and Kelly Clarkson to "see what performing and really getting into a song was like" during the beginning weeks of the premiere season of American Idol. He later made his television debut, at eleven years old, singing "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" on a Jenny Jones show for future Latino stars alongside season one finalist A.J. Gil. Through A.J. Gil he was able to meet and sing for Gray who had sung the song on American Idol as well as Clarkson (that year's winner) and Justin Guarini (the runner up).
Musical influences
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. She also "was big on dancing" according to Archuleta, and would "make" him dance to traditional music with his older sister. He also listened to jazz music, he said, from his father's collection as well as gospel, pop, rock and "soulful music." In a later interview, he revealed that his father was a jazz musician. Archuleta also said he enjoys Broadway musicals.
On his American Idol "Fast Facts" page, Archuleta cites his musical influences as Natalie Cole, Stevie Wonder, Kirk Franklin and Bryan Adams. When asked to list his top pop artists, he cited Natasha Bedingfield, Natalie Cole, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Bryan Adams, Kirk Franklin, and Robbie Williams. Like Elliot Yamin and another singer he admires, John Mayer, Archuleta tries to infuse his pop selections with a soulful vibe.
Star Search
In 2003, at age 12, Archuleta sang on several episodes of the television show Star Search. He ended up as the Junior Vocal Champion on Star Search 2. On one episode, he sang against then-11-year-old Alexandréa Lushington, who also became a "top 20" semi-finalist on American Idol alongside Archuleta. 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".
Archuleta's competing on Star Search led to appearances on The Jenny Jones Show and CBS' The Early Show, and 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, and received enthusiastic praise from Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson. 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. He limited his singing for specific occasions like Stadium of Fire, the Independence Day celebration at Brigham Young University Stadium.
American Idol
Archuleta won his ticket to the Hollywood final auditions (with a performance of John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change") with the help of idol judge, Randy Jackson, who sang the background "waiting" in the song. (at the San Diego tryouts held at Qualcomm Stadium July 30 and July 31, 2007) He was 16 during the Hollywood auditions (where he sang Bryan Adams' "Heaven" and Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" to unanimous praise) and because he was not yet 18, had to attend school while a part of American Idol's seventh season. His parents were there because he was a minor. Archuleta also took advantage of the decision to allow contestants to play musical instruments when he accompanied himself on piano for his performances of "Another Day in Paradise" and "Angels."
A Los Angeles Times article speculated why Archuleta avoided singing the first verse of "Imagine": because "of his religion (Mormonism), he's unlikely to espouse the song's agnostic ideal . . . with the line about 'no religion too.'" Archuleta did, however, sing the entire song on Good Things Utah when he was 13. During his first performance of Imagine on American Idol, 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."
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. In the final tally, Archuleta received 44 percent of the votes. During the finale show, both Archuleta and fellow finalist Cook appeared in separate but nearly identical commercials for the game franchise Guitar Hero, mimicking a Tom Cruise scene from Risky Business.
True Colors
David Archuleta Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't be discouraged
Oh I realize
It's hard to take courage
In a world full of people
You can lose sight of it all
And the darkness, inside you
Can make you feel so small
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
Show me a smile then,
Don't be unhappy, can't remember
When I last saw you laughing
If this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there
And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
So sad eyes
Discouraged now
Realize
When this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there
And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors, true colors
'Cause there's a shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Beautiful, like a rainbow
The lyrics of the song True Colors, performed by David Archuleta, speak to someone who is struggling with their feelings of sadness and discouragement in a world that can be overwhelming and difficult to navigate. The singer acknowledges the challenges that the person is facing, acknowledging that it is hard to find the courage to keep going in the face of such adversity. The song is an encouragement to be true to oneself, to let one's inner light and beauty shine through, even when the world around us is dark and difficult. The idea of "true colors" is used as a metaphor for this inner light, which is beautiful and shines like a rainbow.
The singer of the song offers their support to the person who is struggling, telling them that they are not alone and that they will be there to help them through their difficulties. The song provides a message of hope, reminding us that even when things seem bleak and we feel small and helpless, there are people who love us and who see the beauty and value in us.
Overall, the lyrics of True Colors are a poignant and uplifting reminder to be true to ourselves and to let our inner beauty shine through, even in the face of adversity and darkness.
Line by Line Meaning
You with the sad eyes
Addressing someone with gloomy or low-spirited eyes.
Don't be discouraged
Encouragement not to lose spirit or hope.
Oh I realize
Acknowledgment of how tough it can be.
It's hard to take courage
Acknowledging internal strife caused by external influences.
In a world full of people
Referring to the sheer quantity of humanity on the planet.
You can lose sight of it all
Acknowledgment that one can get lost or overwhelmed by all there is.
And the darkness, inside you
Acknowledgment of the suffocating thoughts within.
Can make you feel so small
The feeling of insignificance can overcome oneself.
But I see your true colors
The acknowledgement of a person’s sincere self.
Shining through
The manifestation of one's genuine self.
And that's why I love you
Gratitude for the sincerity of a person.
So don't be afraid to let them show
Encouragement to not hide one's genuine self.
Your true colors
The real, true self of a person.
True colors are beautiful,
Recognition of the beauty of a person's authentic self.
Like a rainbow
A metaphorical reference to the colors that make up an authentic person.
Show me a smile then,
Request for a smile to brighten the mood.
Don't be unhappy, can't remember
A question of the last true moment of happiness.
When I last saw you laughing
Asking when the last time the other person was genuinely happy.
If this world makes you crazy
An acknowledgement of the difficult world we live in today.
And you've taken all you can bear
The sentiment of feeling helpless among insurmountable odds.
You call me up
The assurance of being there for someone else in their time of need.
Because you know I'll be there
Assurance and direct promise of support for others when they require it.
So sad eyes
An allusion to the first verse, again addressing the gloomy eyes.
Discouraged now
The continued feeling of being disheartened.
Realize
A statement of discovering the true cause of struggle.
And I'll see your true colors
A reaffirmation of the acknowledgment of someone’s sincere self.
True colors, true colors
A repetitive, reassuring statement encouraging the revealing of one's genuine self.
'Cause there's a shining through
Reiteration of the colors emerging within them.
True colors are beautiful,
A repetition of the idea that authenticity is appreciated.
Beautiful, like a rainbow
A rephrasing of the earlier metaphorical reference to illustrate the vast array of colors that make up each person.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind