(Photo by Joseph Adivari)
If you missed David Archuleta performing at EPCOT this month, you’re in luck. There are more ways than ever to enjoy the pop star’s fun and flirty work.
Watermark Out News spoke with the LGBTQ+ icon before he headlined the International Food & Wine Festival’s Eat to the Beat concert series Nov. 7-8, where he sang everything from his first hit single “Crush” to crowd-pleasing Disney classics like “I Can Go The Distance.”
He said he was eager to return. Archuleta performed at EPCOT last year before the release of “Earthly Delights,” his EP that dropped in August. A deluxe edition followed Sept. 12.
“Getting to bring ‘Earthly Delights’ to EPCOT will be really fun,” Archuleta teased. “This time I’ll have dancers and it will be a different show … the new songs that I’ve released will be really fun to share with everybody.”
Audiences thought so, moving and singing along to instant fan favorites like “Crème Brulée.”
“I’m in my indulgence mode when it comes to giving into my sensuality,” Archuleta shared when “Earthly Delights” was released. “Something I always villainized before. There’s something sweet about being naughty. And it’s actually helped me to get in touch with more tender vulnerable parts of myself.”
Archuleta’s cross-country “Earthly Delights Tour” followed the EP. He says connecting with audiences at the height of his “flirty era” has been a blast.
“I’ve loved seeing how fans have enjoyed seeing a more sultry side of me. I’m still David, there’s still a sweet wholesomeness to the sexiness,” he says with a laugh, “but the fact that there is a sexy side to David Archuleta is really fun to play with. I feel like I’ve been allowing myself to grow up and mature.
“On tour it was really fun. There were some really sexy moments in it and I loved hearing the crowd react,” he continues. “I always felt really pre-calculated and reserved, with a need to hold back those feelings of sensuality — and now I get to be a sensual being, explore that and see what it feels like and what kind of music that results in.”
It’s all given Archuleta “more attitude as a performer and songwriter,” he says, something fans have embraced. Though he does admit to feeling more at home in the studio than on a stage.
“There, I’m not really worried about performing and being an entertainer,” he says. “I enjoy being a performer on stage, but you can get stuck in a people-pleasing mindset, where it’s like, ‘are people having a good time? Do I need to do more?’ In the studio, you’re just having fun and you’re more experimental … it’s less pressure and I feel like more creativity comes out.”
The Miami-born artist first found international fame at 17 years old, when he became the runner-up on “American Idol” in 2008. His debut album followed that year, his first of eight studio releases. He’s also competed on shows like “The Masked Singer,” becoming the competition’s runner-up in 2023.
Archuleta’s personal life has also made headlines in recent years. He publicly came out in 2021 and left the Mormon church in 2022.
It’s something the songwriter chronicled in last year’s “Hell Together,” a piece he wrote after coming out that was inspired by his mother.
“I didn’t hear from my mom for a few days … and I was worried she was upset with me, because she was very devout and always saw the church as a place of healing,” he shared after its release.
“But when we finally talked my mother said that she was stepping away from the church as well,” he continued. “She told me, ‘I don’t want to be somewhere that my children don’t feel loved and welcomed. If you go to Hell, we’re all going to Hell with you.’”
His new music showcases Archuleta’s growth as an artist and as an advocate. He’s said “Earthly Delights” is about “taking in the pleasures of what I always thought would keep me out of heaven,” a response to “the belief I always had of the hell and unhappiness I would experience for giving into my ‘carnal nature’ of sexuality.”
Using his platform to showcase his authenticity led GLAAD to recognize him with their Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist Award in 2024. He also received the Human Rights Campaign’s Visibility Award earlier this year.
It recognizes LGBTQ+ individuals “who are living open and honest lives at home, at work and in their greater community,” aligning with HRC’s mission to create “a country that inspires and engages all Americans to work toward ending discrimination against LGBTQ+ citizens and realizing a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.”
“We don’t always choose to be visible in our lives, but sometimes it’s needed if we want to make a significant leap forward, be it in our personal lives or in society,” he said while accepting the award in August. “When it comes to human rights and equality, we don’t always have the power to choose what direction political and cultural winds blow, but we can adjust our sails to shift perspective.
“Don’t let the elements that we can’t control fool you to believe that the course is not in your hands,” he continued. “It very much is … I’m glad I can be more fully myself thanks to others who sailed those harsh waves and winds before me, to give me a clearer path to navigate forward. I hope I can keep the momentum moving forward for the LGBTQ+ community.”
Navigating his faith as a public figure and queer man has been “tricky,” Archuleta says.
“I had to give myself space. I loved my religion, but it was too much and I just needed a break, because I was tired of everyone’s different opinions,” he explains. “I know what I think and how I feel, and I don’t want to be around people who are constantly going to disagree and argue with me, because I just don’t have the energy for it. I don’t have the time and attention to give it; it was a lot.”
It’s something Archuleta will chronicle at length in “Devout,” his memoir publishing Feb. 26, 2026. Simon & Schuster calls it “a raw and powerful coming-out story from the beloved ‘American Idol’ finalist.”
The memoir traces his “journey from closeted Mormon teen to global pop star to openly queer man, revealing the hidden pressures of fame, the weight of religious expectations and the courage it takes to live authentically.” They call it a must-read for fans of pop culture and anyone “who’s ever wrestled with who they are versus who they’re told to be.”
When asked what message he has for members of the LGBTQ+ community who may also be struggling to reconcile their own identity and faith, Archuleta says he knows “it’s a really complex thing to have to go through.”
“Give yourself time to reflect and see how you feel, because whatever you’re feeling and what your heart tells you and what gives you peace and what helps you feel loved, I believe that’s what God is,” he notes. “And even if other people disagree with you … still trust your instincts, because your relationship with a higher power is personal and it’s going to be different for everybody.”
He also says not to compare your journey with anyone else’s.
“We’re all different people, so regardless of what other people say, trust in you,” Archuleta stresses. “Just because other people don’t understand you, it doesn’t make you bad. That’s why giving yourself a break to get to know yourself — away from what other people say about you — is so important.
“I think when you feel love and you feel belonging and a sense of peace, and vitality to live your life and an excitement to be alive … that is God. That is the higher being that made you into existence, allowing you to thrive and to fulfill your purpose of creation.”
Ahead of his book, which discusses that and more, Archuleta is marking the holiday season. He released “My Only Wish” Nov. 14, his latest holiday offering.
“I feel like I’m finding my rhythm with Christmas, because Christmas shows were a really big thing for me all throughout my career,” Archuleta says. “Christmas is a different vibe for me now and I’m trying to feel my way through what it’s going to look like.”
That’s because his religious beliefs “really influenced how I approached my shows and my song releases at the time, and now that I’ve moved in a different direction.”
Still, “Christmas is such a big part of what I’ve built as a part of my career with my fans, and I feel like I’ve found a really sweet spot and I’m really excited to share that,” Archuleta continues. He co-wrote three new songs for “My Only Wish,” which also features two remastered tracks from his previous “Winter in The Air” release.
“I wanted to write holiday music that was more in the space of where I’m at in life. I wanted it to be fun and flirty and to make people just feel good,” Archuleta announced Nov. 14. “I’m really, really happy with how these new songs turned out and I feel like it will be a whole new yet familiar experience for fans who have always enjoyed my Christmas music and shows.”
Fans will have the opportunity to experience “My Only Wish” in person next month. He’ll play live holiday shows on select dates Dec. 9-19 in New York City and Los Angeles.
As for what’s next, fans can expect Archuleta’s trademark blend of naughty and nice.
“Growing up in the church, I was taught to stand up for my beliefs and share them with the world, which is exactly what I’m trying to do with my music,” he’s said of his new direction. “Even though I stand for something else now, I still have that same level of conviction in what I do.
“I believe in being bold in my vulnerability and speaking the truth of who I am so that hopefully people can come away from my songs feeling like they understand themselves, or others, or just life in general a little better than they did before.”
David Archuleta’s “Earthly Delights” and “My Only Wish” are now available wherever music is streamed or sold. For more information about his music and shows, visit DavidArchuleta.com.
