American Idol’s David Archuleta to suspend singing career for 2 years

David Archuleta

MANILA, Philippines—“American Idol” season 7 runner-up David Archuleta is taking a break from music to devote time to religious work, according to rollingstone.com.

The 20-year-old pop singer reportedly told his audience at a concert last Dec. 19 in Salt Lake City, Utah, about his decision to “stop recording or performing music for two years to become a full-time Mormon missionary.”

Archuleta explained: “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.”

Breaking into tears, he added: “It’s the same feeling that I’ve always tried to follow in my life. It’s the feeling that’s allowed me to have the opportunities I’ve had, the challenges I’ve had to overcome, and the blessings, too. I’ve learned that to trust that feeling. I’m aware that I need to answer when He calls, and that’s the reason that I know I need to do this in my life.”

Archuleta has released three albums: his 2008 self-titled debut; 2009’s “Christmas from the Heart”; and 2010’s “The Other Side of Down.”

He performed in Manila twice –first with Idol champ David Cook in 2009 at the SM Mall of Asia grounds, the second in July this year at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.