After the song is over, you can compare your score to national scores and even compare to your region. The phone uses your location to compare your score to others around you. I have only done one song and my score is weak compared to the nationals but much higher than the locals. Hmmm…gotta work on that. If you choose a higher level of difficulty little things happen, like Davidʼs voice suddenly disappearing so that you are on your own! Shake your iPhone and snowflakes appear! (In the phone, not outside…haha!)

The best part… the video instruction by Mr. Archuleta himself!! I could watch videos of him instructing on vocal technique for days….!! He gives a brief “how to” for the game and then goes into a few vocal tips. Just that little snippet of him and his technique makes you crave more of him talking about singing! For anyone in to singing, this is a very fun and ingenious concept. I hope he comes out with more versions targeting hisother works… both holiday and non holiday. Now if only David would start doing personal vocal coaching in his spare time… He doesnʼt need to sleep does he??

Go on line and buy the David app! Youʼll love it!

~mikesd

Before I get to the VOICE, I must say that being a seat filler has its ups and downs (pun intended!). After moving around a couple of times I eventually settled into a seventh row center aisle seat, about twenty feet from the stage with a magnificent view. The announcer said at the commercial break “When we return you are going to hear a very special performance by David Archuleta, just amazing”… or words very similar to that. As we went back to taping, the presenters came out and announced the music category pointing out the various artists. Unlike many other award shows since this was already announced they didnʼt pan the audience for other nominees, some of whom were not there.

As they were introducing David they brought just two stools out on stage. My first thought?? OK, this is going to be major. An acoustic guitarist and the most handsome human being in my world right now… Contigo en la Distancia. Perfect. Emotional. Perfect. Emotional. I honestly donʼt know that I can find the words to describe what a moment it was. The audience spontaneously erupted in applause and cheers a few times during the number. At the end of the song, in the front row, Selma Hayek bolted out of her chair to her feet in wild applause. She was the first one in the theater ON HER FEET, followed by most everyone else. David smiled, took his bow and graciously left the stage.

What a moment. To have heard a full and beautiful rendition of this song in Spanish from David Archuleta is something that will never leave my mind. I have to also add this. David sometimes mentions that he doesnʼt speak Spanish or maybe isnʼt fluent. Others have said how can he say that when he sings in Spanish so perfectly? I believe that as foreign languages go, pronunciation in particular, you either have it or you donʼt. In other words, you can pick up the CORRECT pronunciation of almost any language because you have an ear for it. Doesnʼt mean you have to know the language. David clearly has that ability, especially with his musical talent and how he performs his songs. I am always aware of that when I listen to music in other languages. I think you all know how this one went last night…perfecto.

David Archuleta and Eva Longoria at the 2009 ALMA's

I waited for David to emerge from the venue but finally gave up when we were told that he had left the stage area and would not be leaving through the same exit as some of the other celebs.  The rest of the evening was great and there were stars to be seen. Selma Hayek, Rita Moreno, Oscar de la Hoya, Antonio Banderas, George Lopez (and no Mario wasnʼt there…darn!)  Eva Longoria-Parker, Christian del la Fuente (muy caliente), Wilson Cruz (across the aisle from me), Wizards of Waverly Place cast (some in front of me), Ricardo Chavira from Desperate Housewives (thanks for leaving early in the show ʻcuz I sat in his seat for 90% of the show!), Jimmy Smits, John Leguizamo and more! Nelly Furtado was great, Pitbull was awesome and Sean Kingston rocked it!

It is amazing how a two hour drive at 11:30 at night can sometimes seem like it took 10 minutes. Muchas gracias, mi David Archuleta…       Contigo en la Distancia…

~mikesd

Note: Mikesd’s feature below is part of a two-part series on our relationships with each other as David fans. Mikesd’s and Freofan’s posts each have a different take on fan relationships, but both features invite us to think about how and why these relationships are meaningful to us.

I have never participated in a blog…until now. I have never followed a performer around the country…until now. I have never played a CD a monumental number of times…until now. This whole fan experience has been an amazing one and, in my eyes, has produced a phenomenon that is becoming more fascinating as it plays out. I’m talking about the fans themselves, those characters who visit the blog and write on a regular basis. I’m talking about the screen name vs. the real person. As I have participated in the multi-level drama, comedy and mystery of blogging, I have found myself forming opinions about people based on their screen name and their avatar as well as their comments. Admit it. You are doing the same thing. We become characters in the play, actors on the stage. You can’t help but think as you log on: What is this scene about? Who is starring in it…at least for this moment?

This drama continues day after day…and then you meet some of the players in real life. I will be the first to admit that after having met several of the “cast,” my opinions have changed in a subtle yet noticeable way. Being able to put a real person to the screen name and really learn more about them enhances your experience on the blog. It doesn’t matter that maybe we are not seeing this best seller of a fan experience in the same light, or that we have different plot twists or even are reading different chapters. What matters is that we are all doing it together, and that there are common threads amongst us. Meeting up with fans from the sites after the concerts is an opportunity to analyze every last move and note of our beloved main character. This is a conversation that can open up your perception of your fellow fans. Sometimes just hearing a voice and how something is said can change the tone of the comment. On a blog you just don’t get the intonation! Not to mention that a glass of wine or three can change the whole direction of the conversation! As my partner of nearly thirty years said to me after hearing about my after-show debriefs, “How can you possibly talk about David for hours on end?” My answer? “I have no idea. It just happens.”

David has given us another gift: the ability to meet others from around the country, no the WORLD, who have a common cause. I am forming friendships that I expect will last a long time. And maybe, just maybe, we may discuss something that we disagree upon, and come to some common understanding. Even better, we may come to an AWARENESS of each other and why they feel the way they do. My next venture will be to the East Coast where I know I will meet some new characters in our ongoing “play.” I can’t wait because it will broaden my knowledge of them and what they are really like, and I know it will influence how I read their comments from now on. When you go to your next concert, and I know you will, make sure you seek out those screen names you see every day. Then you can decide: “Which did I like better – the book or the movie?”

~mikesd