An Amazing Two Days With David Archuleta (July 25 − 26, 2011)

by FanScene’s International Author Alicia (aka Ally)

This particular story of meeting David Archuleta first began a few months ago, when David announced that he was coming to Malaysia, and really took off a few weeks ago, when I got a text from my Dad saying that I was going to be able to meet him! You see, he has a close friend who is a senior person in the music industry, who linked us with Sony. Before I start, I want to say thank you to them for this opportunity and the amazing experience.

We (my parents and I) got to the hotel that we were supposed to meet David in around 4pm, and there, we bumped into @salamahafifi and @hannaluvsmusic, which was fun. They’re sweet people, haha.

We waited in the lounge for a while, then an organizer from Sony came… I was wondering if I could interview David, so my Dad asked her then, and she said that I could ask a few questions, which got me really excited. She did say, however, that it would be quick, and meeting him would be a hi and bye thing.

At around 5pm, we went up to wait for David, and I met a really nice girl there, and we talked for a while until the bodyguards started to come in. A few seconds later David arrived, clad in a dark blue plaid shirt, sandy-colored pants, and dark shoes. He said hi to me as he walked past! I was really excited to see that he remembered me, then he said, “I guess I’ll see you later!” He walked away to one of the conference rooms then, but then, he hesitated then stopped and turn around!

First, he shook my dad’s hand, then mine… I thought he was going to leave then, but right after I shook his hand (or while), he gave me a hug! After that, he said that he’ll see us later, and went into the room.

I was really touched that not only stopped to say hi, but also turned back. It was – and still is – such an amazing feeling.

We followed David in just after that, and that’s when I got to interview him! I asked him how he was and he said he was doing great, and then he asked me so I said the same thing, haha. Then I asked him if it was okay to (audio) record it, and he said it was okay so I recorded it from then.

I asked him first what he was looking forward to most here, and he said, “Well, seeing the fans again here in Malaysia, and also seeing some of the people I’ve worked with before.”

Next, I asked him which his favorite song to perform was, and he said that it’s Heaven, and that he realized how much he loves to sing it. After that, I asked him why he chose to play the piano and he said that, “It’s an instrument I feel most comfortable with, and I feel like I’m able to control the instrument of the piano in a way that I would like to when I’m singing for the shows.” He also said that he would like to play other instruments in the future, and added, “Maybe next time I come I’ll play another instrument.” I told him that we’re all very sure that he would do well on another instrument, and I can’t wait to see if he does play another instrument! Well, he did, actually, when he played the drums at the very end of the concert…

Then I asked him about his talk with Michael Jackson (he said he spoke to him during an interview in Indonesia), and he said that he sang a song for him, and he said that he’s an inspiration to him!

When I asked him the last question, which was, “Why do you think Asian fans love you so much?” he said he didn’t know why, but that it means a lot to him that we like his music.

After that, the interview was over, and I gave him the present from us. It had some clothes, and a letter too. I hope they fit him, and that he enjoyed reading the letter! Then I asked him for a hug, and he said, “Sure,” but before that, someone (from Sony, I think), called for a picture! David posed for a picture with me, and here it is below. This picture is from Sony’s official photographer, and it’s the best I’ve ever gotten with David, so a big thank you to Sony!!

I got a hug from David then, and we had to leave after that. As we were leaving, David said that hoped we had a good time. The very last thing he said was, “Take care!”

He was really sweet, and his eyes were absolutely beautiful… I’m still sort of in shock (in a good way) that I got to meet and interview him. It was so amazing!

My mom passed my Chords of Strength and Asian Tour Edition to one of the ladies from Sony for David to sign, and I was wondering if and when I would get them back, and I briefly wondered would have my name on it, because I don’t think the person who handed them to him knew my name, but I didn’t think too much about that because I was happy enough to have met him. I did get them back, though, just a minute later, and they did have my name! I was really surprised and touched that he remembered.

David was having a press conference right after that, so we went down to the floor that it was going to be held in, and waited for him in the conference room. Hunny Madu (a DJ from FlyFM) was there talking, and introduced Adrian, who then said what we had all been waiting for – “Without further ado, it gives us great pleasure to welcome, all the way from the United States, Mr. David James Archuleta!”

They presented him with a wau first, which is a Malaysian kite, and was supposed to represent their wish for him to fly higher. The exciting part of the presentations was when they gave him the plaque for going platinum six times in total!

When the presentations were over, the Q and A session commenced. I won’t go into detail about the questions asked because I’m sure the media is going to cover that, but I have to say that David handled all of the questions very well, and I’m very happy to have been able to watch him in action answering them.

I actually got to ask the second last question of the night! I asked him why it is that we’ve been seeing more of him lately, and he thought for a while, then asked if I meant here in Asia, or elsewhere, and I said even in the United States too (compared to the periods of Archu-drought we’ve had).

He thought for a while, then said that he wasn’t doing it consciously, but he just “goes with the flow” – ‘til you get your feet back on the ground… haha – and sees “where life takes you… Sometimes you just can’t help it.”

With the last question, they wrapped up the press conference and invited all the photographers downstairs, where he was going to have a photoshoot. We left after that, and went downstairs too.

I was really surprised when I found out where the photoshoot was being held, because it was my favorite restaurant, and we had, in fact, planned to eat there that night. We didn’t have to wait long for David, because he soon walked through the door! He said “hey” to me as he walked by, which made me grin even wider, as if that was possible. I couldn’t see David once he actually got in, but I think he took some pictures with the wau because I saw someone taking it in.

That was it for meeting David that day, but seeing him wasn’t quite over, because when we left, we passed the main entrance and David was just getting into the van, and for some reason, I was laughing. It was just such a coincidence!

We had planned to arrive at the concert venue, Stadium Negara, at around 7pm, but then, I got a dm from Elicia offering me a soundcheck pass (thank you, Elicia!)! I said yes, of course, so we went out earlier… The thing was that when we were almost there at around 4pm, which was the time we were supposed to be there, we missed the turn. Then, we accidentally went to Stadium Merdeka instead of Negara (raise your hand if you did too, haha), but thankfully, the correct stadium was just around the corner.

There, I met up with Kim, who gave me the pass, and I talked to some awesome Archies until it was time to go in, which was (I think) around 5:20pm.

The stadium is indoors, and after much navigating, I finally got a good spot to watch haha. The band came in through the middle of the stage (the backdrop; not the floor), and David came out after that. The first song he sang was Love Don’t Hate, which was amazing. I had it stuck in my head for the rest of the night… He asked us what we wanted him to sing next, so I shouted Everything And More. He looked over and asked, “What?” but someone else shouted another song, so he looked away. I just found out that he sang it before, so I guess that’s why he didn’t sing it… We actually heard him singing it when we drove in, which is why I was worried that we were late. In the end, he sang Touch My Hand, and my favorite part was when he sang, “Only me, only you, and the band,” because he looked turned around and sort of showed us the band at the last part, which was adorable! The last song was Crazy, and he was crazily good… I was speechless, and completely absorbed into that one. It was absolutely beautiful.

He asked us if we wanted to hear something else, and apparently somebody said to sing his favorite song. He thought for a while, then said he’s been liking Adele’s Someone Like You. He played it a little on the piano, but then said he could sing it acapella. He was interrupted though, so we didn’t get to hear that… Hopefully he’ll sing it in a vlog for us sometime soon!

The Q&A session started then (a lady from Sony collected questions from people with soundcheck passes earlier). I don’t remember how many questions were asked, but I remember David singing Happy Birthday to Sanjana! It was really special.

When the soundcheck was over, the made everyone leave, but we managed to stay indoors – not in the stadium with all the seats and everything, but still indoors. We waited for quite a while, but time isn’t very relevant when you know that you’re going to hear David Archuleta sing live. While we were waiting there, Mark came out, and I got a picture with him, which was awesome!

They eventually let us back in, and we found our seats. I was at the very back of the VIP area smack in the middle in front of the sound booth, and my parents were beside me. I had a relatively good view, provided that no one got up, but as you can tell, that didn’t happen, haha.

I’m not sure what time the opener, Hua Ren, who opened for David in 2009, came on, but I have to mention that the choreography was pretty good. He only sang one song, and almost immediately after that, everyone began moving their chairs forward. It was odd because it was so uniformed… At that point, I was halfway between the front and the back of the VIP section (there was a gate of sorts to separate the sections). David had come on with Stomping The Roses, and was already singing The Other Side of Down then, and I had to decide between going back to my original seat, which was pretty much guaranteed to be clear, or going straight to the front, because I could only snatch glimpses from where I was. I decided to go in front partially because I couldn’t really go anywhere else then. Thankfully, I did make it to the very front, and got quite a good view of David from there!

Something I felt about all of his performances was that even though there were thousands of people, David still really connected to the audience. I think he pointed at me during Elevator… Hehe. The rest of his performances were really energetic, and, in the cases of My Kind of Perfect, A Thousand Miles, Falling Stars, and Crazy, were positively beautiful.

David left after Zero Gravity, but the crowd continued cheering, and he came back for the encores! The set list only had two songs in the encore, but David added one for us when he sang Crazy.

The very last song he sang on his first Asian Tour was Crush, which left the crowd screaming for more as he bowed and left the stage. The band played some awesome tunes, and then, he came out for a while and played on the drums before heading off backstage again.

These past two days have been some of the most fantastic days of my life, and meeting David was spectacular.

With all that said, you have reached the end of reading what I did from the 25th to the 26th of July, and I hope that you enjoyed coming along for the ride with me.

Reposted from my blog.