American Idol Runner up David Archuleta has just revealed that he is going to put a halt to his music career to serve the Mormon Church.
Archuleta was only 16 when he took part in American Idol in 2007. He went a long way and even made it to the finals. He had not only finished as runner up but received an impressive 44% of the 97 million votes casted that season. He has released three albums to date which includes David Archuleta (2008), Christmas from the Heart (2009) and The Other Side of Down (2010).
During a performance in Salt Lake City in Utah last night, Archuleta, 20, announced that he was going stop recording or performing music for about two years to serve a higher, divine purpose as a Mormon missionary.
Archuleta mentioned that “It’s not because someone told me that I was supposed to do it, not because I no longer want to do music anymore, but it’s because it’s the feeling that I felt that I need to do next in my life.” His loyal fans applauded his noble intentions and by the looks of it, they are still going to be sticking around to support the American Idol star even after he serves two years.
Reports show that the Mormon Church has approximately 52 200 members. About 75 percent of the missionaries are males aged between 19 and 21. Single women above the age of 21 as well as retired Mormon couples make up the other 25 percent. While single men take up about two years to serve the Church, women and couples serve for about 18 months. The Mormon Church has approximately 350 missions around the world. It is very rare that a superstar of Archuleta’s standard would decide to press pause in the music field for religion. Rare, but noble indeed.
Hob Knocker- David Archuleta