6 Months...A Milestone for Both David Archuleta & His Fanbase

Today marks 6 months to the day David left on his LDS mission. He has spent the last few months serving his religion in Chile, gaining unforgettable, once in a lifetime experiences along the way while also developing his Spanish skills. David, as of today, is 25% done with his service, and who knows how many more people this amazing man has already inspired and will continue to inspire through this journey!

However, this milestone is not David's alone, but all the patiently awaiting fans', his Archies, ArchAngels, Go-Getters, whichever each fan prefers. Although we understand how important this was for him to do, we already can't wait for his return! Many are already planning for his comeback concert (me included!). I know I probably speak for many as I say this, but I miss him everyday. When everyday occurrences remind me of him, I feel simultaneously happy and slightly sad. Some fans probably think it's going against David's wishes to look at pictures of him on his mission because he doesn't want attention on him. But for me, I feel like I need to look at them, just so that they can reassure me that he is happy and doing well. I don't purposefully go looking for blog posts and pictures from his fellow missionaries, but I do look at and read the ones that have surfaced over twitter and been made more public. I think he mostly just doesn't want fans to be all over him while he is there and drawing attention away from the goal of his mission; I don't think he wants to completely cut us off. It seems obvious that the pictures that have surfaced were taken with his knowledge, and therefore, I do not feel guilty looking at them. 

This waiting has felt simultaneously long and fleeting. Emotionally, it's felt like years, but time wise, it's already been 6 months when it feels like he just left! Sorry if I'm not really making any sense haha, just rambling here. It's funny and strange how someone I've never even met could be such a huge part of, and have such a huge impact on, my life. Let us and enjoy and celebrate this milestone by listening to BEGIN.!

~Rinnie

p.s. today is kind of a special day for me also because exactly 1 year ago today was when I started college!

Supporting David Archuleta's New Album BEGIN.

Hey everyone! BEGIN. is coming out in 5 days! So exciting! I was going to put this with the last post, seeing as that one was all information on BEGIN., but I'm sure it would make that post way too big and hard to navigate. So I guess, branching off of that...

First:
Just wanted to remind you all to support David by legally obtaining BEGIN.! I know it might not be possible for everyone to afford one, since I myself could just manage to pre-order 1 copy! However, this does not make illegal downloading the answer. This is a very wonderful fanbase (more like a huge family!), and there are many generous fans out there who have extra copies or can afford to buy more and are delighted to help you out! So ask around on Twitter, Facebook, fan sites, etc. Here's a list of fan sites, just to name a few:
Fans of David*
FanScene*
The Voice
David Beyond Borders
SnowAngelz (Canada)
Archuleta Philippines
And don't worry if you don't live in the same country as your donor! Many fans are willing to gift anyway! They can also gift through iTunes if your iTunes accounts are from the same country. So depending on where your donor is from, getting an account from that country if you can is probably a good idea. If you want to be a donor, even if it's just 1 copy, e-mail Fans of David at fodfrontpage@gmail.com or FanScene at janeySA79@gmail.com.
*known gifting program available

Second:
In addition to getting a legal copy of the album, there are additional ways you can help! As you know, Broken is already available on the U.S. iTunes store and people have already posted it on YouTube. Though some posts might say "do not download," that would not stop anyone determined enough. So please leave a comment and message these users by politely asking them to remove their video or replace it with an incomplete version. If people want the song, they have to go buy it! The same goes for all the other songs when the album comes out, since there will surely be videos of those as well!
UPDATE:  Some even have posted download links for the entire album on their YouTube videos, and those need to be removed! Please ask them to do so politely and explain why. They need to understand!  

Third:
PROMOTION! This is an essential part of sales. I know David doesn't really care too much, but he really deserves all the success and more. Remember when The Other Side of Down came out and half the fans didn't even know about it until a year later? Let's make sure that doesn't happen again! Deseret Book and Kari have already done an amazing job with the promotion, but we can do our part too. Post about the album on social networking sites, work it into a conversation with someone (I did!), and if you have a twitter account...twibbon! It adds a little logo to your avatar to show off your support. Click here to add one created by AnnieDAFG!

That's all for now and thank you all for reading! Can't wait for to hear the full album after August 7!! This post will be updated regularly.

~Rinnie