This inkblot has a connection to David Archuleta, believe it or not. (No, it’s not pad thai splattered on the dashboard during a stick-shift driving lesson, but good guess!)
What do you see when you look at it? Does it represent David’s passion for music, as strong as ever? Or exploding and fading away? Do you see him working hard for his fans leaving little time to tweet or blog? Or do you see him pulling away from his fans, tweeting less because he’s moving on? Do you see someone growing and maturing, focused on putting one foot in front of the other toward his dream? Standing still? Taking two steps back?
Just like the ink blot above, all of us can look at the same set of circumstances, read the same tweets, listen to the same songs and get completely different meanings from them. I see a David who’s doing exactly what he’s said in interviews, writing, working on developing his sound so he can present material to a label and take it to the next level. Others see the opposite, think he’s disillusioned with the music industry and is pulling back, way back.
Even during Idol, I remember David had that affect on audiences. After I first heard “Shop Around,” I used to visit the Entertainment Weekly and other media sites to read recaps of the show and I couldn’t believe what I read in both the articles and the comments *shudders*. The adorkable David who I found refreshingly real and honest and genuine, others described as “robotic” and “plastic.” What???? Were they watching the same guy??? I couldn’t understand how we could be looking at the same person, listening to the same songs and “seeing” something — someone — so completely different.
Just like the ink blot tests, I guess what we see in David (or anyone else, for that matter) is based on who we are. Do we project what we want to see? What we need him to be? Or what we’re most afraid of? None of us can really “know” the guy, of course. But what we can do is listen to what he tells us and sings to us and writes for us and enjoy the ride.
As a wise dude once sang, “Bless your soul… You really think you’re in control?”
So who do you, who do you, who do you see? 🙂
SnowAngelz: Canadian fans of David Archuleta 
My first impression was to go and search for my Lysol spray or pop a few antibiotics! Is that a bad sign??? LOL
I love this post. It’s so true. I’ve come to realize that our interpretation of what’s going on with David and his career has a lot more to do with ourselves than it does with David. We are the product of all the experiences we have had as individuals and that influences our perception of what we believe we see.
Turns out that David had taught me yet ANOTHER thing…he has taught me about myself.
That little stinker.
The inkblot. I am taking this literally and going with a combination spider/fly, lol.
Poor David. It appears he misses tweeting for one day and he is barraged with tweets begging him to say something, anything. Then it turns out that he DID and it just didn’t go through.
It sounds to me like David is working on music and living life.
He’s writing, learning car repair, in cereal heaven, going to concerts, road tripping, creating magic and preparing for a tour. 🙂
He’s not pulling away, just growing up.
And we have stopped living our own lives and have become dependent and are living life thru David! HaHa!
The Dr is INNNNNNNNN!
Are you gonna charge 5¢ per person like Charlie Brown’s Lucy?? I’d pay for your wisdom, that is for sure.
I don’t read David’s tweets daily but when I saw he missed a day I stayed away from Twitter. Tweet-steria is a new ICD-10 diagnosis. As is Archu-handwringers-itis! 😉
Wow, TOfan, yet again, I love your posts! I will not tell you what I see in the above inkblot, lest someone think I need help in a major way. LOL. I will, however, say that I read & try to really listen to what David has to say. I sometimes wonder if people just don’t hear/read what he says and that’s why they see things differently than me or as you and Jonerz said, life experiences make us perceive things differently. I agree with Betsy, “He’s not pulling away, just growing up.” Basically, it’s David’s life and I trust him to live it as he sees fit. I’m here to support and not second-guess him. He’s learning from his life, just like we all have done and do. David, “Welcome to your Life”!
Haha I see dancing rhinoceroses. Great post, TOfan 🙂
TOfan you are the VERY BEST at nailing it on the head!!!
“what we see in David (or anyone else, for that matter) is based on who we are. Do we project what we want to see? What we need him to be? Or what we’re most afraid of? None of us can really “know” the guy, of course.”
Some peeps like to speculate on every tweet, every rumour and delve in to his beliefs>>and if that works for them, fine. For me the voice stands alone as what is important for me and in my bones I feel that he will keep doing things HIS WAY.
I am in the “Do you see someone growing and maturing, focused on putting one foot in front of the other toward his dream” camp. I do understand others concerns about his career, but it is his journey>> I will just cheer from the sidelines and feel no need to wring my hands. What ever, where ever, I will be here enjoying “the ride of my life”
As far as pulling back from the fans> I say “yay David”…. he needs his space. We are just one big “fan” to him, and can not be individuals, IMO that is as it should be.
Jonerz, lol that little stinker indeed> he is so wise!!!
I am hopeful that he never sees any of the fan sites……we are “just fans” and he is just David
I see Olympic mitts giving a thumbs up!!
Lol ref. My first thought was “My Hands” with a “thumbs up”
I see David’s beloved Totoro!
TOfan….Once again another brilliant post! Had to laugh at this “(No, it’s not pad thai splattered on the dashboard during a stick-shift driving lesson, but good guess!) Good visual, LOL.
Well I’m not going to focus on the ink blot as a big bullfrog who had the unfortunate experience of being caught up in a rather nasty oil spill !……instead I am going to focus on two worlds coming together (David and those willing to listen) drawn by a powerful force (of good) that will endure and only become stronger. I think David is putting one foot in front of the other, just as you said and allowing his own experiences, creativity and life to unfold as he continually moves forward. I also think he is one very smart and courageous young man, doing it his way, the way that feels right for him, the only way….and it’s all good.
bluebar…..”I see David’s beloved Totoro!” Good one.
refnaf…..’I see Olympic mitts giving a thumbs up!!” Haha, I second that.
🙂
Tofan,
I see my hair dye spilled all over my bathroom sink lol
I don’t know why I feel compelled to support David in all he does I just know I’m supposed to for some reason. But his choices are his and I respect them and him.
You’ll find me cheering with refnaf 🙂
I agree…I think people get carried away..They never said this stuff about Adele, Celine, or any of the great singers that are out there today!! David I guess can be thought of as well trained in his field because he has the gift of being pitch perfect which is really hard to achieve…I am hoping that he meets the right song that will lead him to the fame he deserves soon bc he’s worked so hard for it!! For now I would say that the fans should enjoy the intimate relationship he have with David as a Indie singer^^
Didn’t David respond to a question about what he’s learned of the music industry..that he has learned to find his own voice. I’m still listening 🙂 Great post!!
Truest of the true posts, thank you so much! Yes, we all see the world through the lens of our own experiences, fears, etc. Ask not what David is doing, ask why it means so dang much to you. I learned a lot about myself that way.
Great post! And great, supportive comments! It’s so much more delightful to watch and enjoy David as he follows his own heart, rather than judge or hand-wring or project onto him my expectations or wishes. He probably sings “Everybody wants to rule the world” for more than one reason. It’s a good reminder to love people and let them find their own voice. Life choices and experiences make for wonderful music writing material.
From Mark’s facebook!
Jessica Emily
mark! you’ve been so MIA lately haha. how are you?! what have you been up to? are you going on glee anytime soon?
Like · · 16 hours ago ·
Mark Nilan Jr. yoo! i’m real good thanks, heading to japan tmrw. no more glee for me..i graduated..haha hope u’re good too
2 hours ago · Like
http://www.facebook.com/marknilanjr
“no more glee for me, I graduated” bahahahahaha, thanks, dj! When I look at that ink blot now, I see my brain exploding at the thought of Japan vids in a few days! *hopes* 🙂
Love hearing all your interpretations btw! Very cool.
Glad to hear Mark is going to Japan and hope that means David will have his own band.
Great post! David is growing up and I’m happy he has been having more time to explore,to go camping, touring and making music at his pace independently! Love the support here. Is that Totoro being pulled apart??? Loved Shopping Around etc etc.
Praying for a safe trip and a great time for David,his band, Japenese fans and all new fans. It’s 5:22 a m Oct 13 in Japan (Thursday) Concert very close.
g
Love this post! Actually, I love all your posts.
What do I see here? I see my brain on David. Thanks for letting me have it my way.
TOfan – I love this post to pieces. You are so so right about everything: “Just like the ink blot tests, I guess what we see in David (or anyone else, for that matter) is based on who we are.” <— Never really thought about it quite this way but once I read it, I 100% agree.
To be entirely honest, I did not even notice he didn't tweet for a day. I find that kinda weird because at one point in my fan life I would definitely have noticed that. Maybe just because my life is extra busy right now and I barely have time to tweet myself, lol. But I feel like at some point along the road I have somehow evolved from a kinda needy fan in a more laidback fan. Not that one's better than the other, just different.
Also I saw a giant spider about to pounce, lol
TOfan, such a great post I spent too much of the night thinking about what you said instead of sleeping! It is so true what we see in life, and how we perceive it, is due to the experiences we have had, as well as our innate personalities. Is the cup half full, have empty. For me, David sees the world half full. He doesn’t seem to be as buffetted by other’s views as most of us, just knows what is right. David takes a cup that is half full and fills it to the top! Now he is teaching us to do that too. Thanks for your thoughtful post.
Love the post TOfan! ~thought provoking to be sure…
I have no idea what to expect from David regarding his aspirations for his future ~the only thing that I can be sure of is how he has touched my life with his music & his upbeat spirit for the past three years & how I long to hear that voice for as long as I’m on this earth…oh~ and one more thing I’m sure of is how thrilled I am for him that he is taking his time to figure out this thing called “life” ..it can be tricky but he’s got plenty of time ~that’s a blessing. ❤
Oh BTW..been staring at the inkblot & finally decided it looks like Katsu (David’s sister’s cat) haha!
..remembering his vlog when she was playing in the snow while he was talking about food…all kinds of food! He cracks me up!
…oops….just watched the vlog again & it seems Katsu is a boy! *my bad* Too pretty to be a boy IMO. lolol
Full disclosure here: While reading your article, I was listening to Crazy, Greenville SC.
Full disclosure here too … I was looking for any random image of an inkblot test and came across the original music video for Crazy (that blot is a screen cap). Listening to it made me appreciate where David took the song (what else is knew, right? lol).
I found the background for “Crazy” really interesting too:
“Musically, ‘Crazy’ was inspired by film scores of 1960s’ spaghetti Westerns, in particular by the works of Ennio Morricone … but more specifically the song “Last Man Standing” by Gian Piero Reverberi and Gianfranco Reverberi … “Crazy” not only samples the song, but utilizes the parts of the main melody and chord structure. The original songwriters for “Last Man Standing” are credited by Gnarls Barkley for this song alongside their own credits.
“The lyrics for the song developed out of a conversation between Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo. According to Danger Mouse, ‘I somehow got off on this tangent about how people won’t take an artist seriously unless they’re insane… So we started jokingly discussing ways in which we could make people think we were crazy… Cee-Lo took that conversation and made it into Crazy, which we recorded in one take.'”
🙂
And TOfan, while I am airing my laundry,,,, you now have me addicted to GBA from the Constitution Fair. Thanks a lot!!!! yep,,, thanks a lot 🙂
hahaha, poof, don’t say I didn’t warn you! 🙂 … although after David’s last blog with Berkley, I can’t help singing it as “God bwess amewicaaaa!” 😆
Tofan
I am seeing myself in the mirror – looking ruinously frenzied and completely splattered both in brain and
senses. You have a brilliant mind, Tofan, to have come up with a post like this! And I love it!
LOL, thx, trace! I think I see the same thing! 😆
I’m going to date myself… not as David’s age, but as someone w/ kids David’s age.
I see Pikachu in full attack mode. I spent waaay too much of my life watching that show with my kids.
hahahaha, too funny barbs!
Just saw this tweet from Deseret Books … they don’t say what he’ll be signing, but I’m assuming MoTab CDs/DVDs? Yay for Utah folks!
@DeseretBook @DavidArchie will sign at 3 Utah Deseret Book stores -11/21 U-Village @ 4pm, 11/22 Ft Union @4pm, and 11/25 downtown SLC store @7:30pm.
Okinawa set list:
Stomping The Roses
The Other Side of Down
ALTNOY
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
A 1000 miles
Something Bout Love
Stand By Me
Touch My Hand
GGTT – Message In A Bottle
Happy Birthday / WFM
Falling Stars
My Kind of Perfect
Elevator
Heaven
Zero Gravity
Crazy
Crush
(thx. @taoin717!)
…aaaaaaand, David’s performing in Singapore November 17! (Details HERE.)
(random aside: When I just now told Mr. TO that David just did a show in Japan & he’s going to Singapore next, he said “So why can’t he come to Toronto???” then proceeded to sing “Down Down… Down Down” *dying*)
Partial vid of STR:
New Japan post/thread!
🙂