David Archuleta continues to feel “so much relief” nearly two weeks after publicly opening up about his sexuality for the first time.
The “American Idol” veteran revealed on Instagram June 12 that he’d come out as gay to his family in 2014, but has since “had similar feelings for both genders.” Later in the post, he added that he doesn’t experience as many “sexual desires and urges as most people,” and therefore identified with some aspects of asexuality.
In an emotional interview with “Good Morning America” this week, Archuleta shared some of the challenges he said he’s faced in attempting to reconcile his sexuality with his Mormon faith. The 30-year-old clarified that he sees himself as “some form of bisexual,” but has never been in a relationship with a man.
After noting that he plans on “saving myself for marriage,” the singer also said he’s shared his truth with leaders of his church, and thus far has not felt rejected.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ― widely known as the Mormon church ― opposes same-sex marriage, and though leaders maintain that same-sex attraction is not a sin, members are expected not to act on such feelings.
Archuleta, a Utah native, rose to fame on “American Idol” in 2008, placing second behind Season 7 winner David Cook. Since then, he’s released eight studio albums, the most recent being 2020’s “Therapy Sessions.” This fall, he’ll venture into children’s publishing with his first book, “My Little Prayer.”
In his initial Instagram post, Archuleta urged fans to “consider making room to be more understanding and compassionate” toward members of the LGBTQ community who are also people of faith ― a point he reiterated in his his “Good Morning America” chat.
“I’ve had to learn how to love myself even when I don’t understand why I am the way that I am, but to learn that that’s how God has created me and I have to discover that,” he said. “And there are so many millions of other people who’ve gone through the same thing as me, where they try to change who they are.”