David Archuleta Powered Through Mormon Shame

David Archuleta shot to fame while competing on American Idol when he was just 17 years old. During his time on the show he was a poster boy for his Mormon faith, but behind the scenes he was forced to hide his sexuality and queerness. He describes all of this in his memoir Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself. David talks to Sam about learning to accept himself, why his time on American Idol was terrifying, and the surprising ways he’s found community after leaving his religion. David Archuleta’s new holiday album Warm Me Up is out this fall. Check out his website for tour dates. Sign up for Sam’s Newsletter to get behind the scenes stuff from every interview each week. The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.