Whether you measure chart positions or album sales, both David Archuleta and David Cook are off to a good start. What will be the most telling and interesting is to see where these first successes take them. While topping the charts is exciting, longevity as recording artists is the true goal.
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Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Michele
Interesting sales. Seems David Archuleta is the highest selling debut single for a song THAT WAS NOT sang on IDOL. WOW!! Way to go David Archuleta. I wonder how he had so many sales without any promotion. I didn't even know he had a single out. Thats great. WTG little David
2 - GGDOORSFAN
Way to Go David Archuleta! You're off to a fantastic start, and your fans are SO PROUD your dreams are coming true. Keep singing PROUD, and we can't wait to hear your album!
3 - ARCHIE IS #1
Archie is the true winner! without promotion at all, he is beating the winner of the show..
TOML has been promoted like crazy and Cook's fans tried to buy his single the same week to outsell Crush but they couldn't do it..
Archie was always the star of the show, if Cook won was because he sang more popular songs than Archie. Archie instead, he picked unknown and positive songs, because he wasn't competing with no one.He only was competing with himself. Archie was saving his moment till the finals, he wanted to finish the show with a great performance and he did it, he knocked out the competition...
4 - Congratulations Archie!
Congratulations Archie! Crush is a great song! I love it!
5 - jay
No promotion at all? Right, the roll out on the biggest pop station in the country, the weekly radio ads, the "let's all buy it thirty times each" fansite buying campaign....
And TOML is not Cook's debut single. It's the mandatory winner's song. Trust me Cook wouldn't sing that dreck if he didn't have to.
6 - Nancy
Remember this: THE COMPETITION IS OVER! I hope they BOTH do well! They're 2 very different genres. Archie only has to open his mouth, and out pops beautiful music ~ he's not trying to BEAT anybody! Archie is a natural! I'm an older fan, and I love Crush ~ and will probably love anything he sings from here on out! He has me (and millions of others, here and in other countries) for LIFE! GO ARCHIE!!!
7 - Jenn
To the above commenter Jay,
I assure you no Archie bought 30 copies of Crush for themselves. There was a gifting campaign but it was for the younger fans of Archie who had no credit card. Let's not be a hypocrite here, because there's oh so many Cook fans who bought TOML in bulk to boost its itunes ranking even though they claim to hate the song.
Also, radio website ads is NOTHING compared to the level of promotion TOML had (Olympics, SYTYCD, AI 40 mil audience, performing LIVE on talk shows and tour).
The competition is over and I think it's an AMAZING feat for Archie to debut so high. There was a 2 week lag between when Crush first premiered and when it was available for download so many ppl already downloaded the song illegally. TOML was available almost within an hour of the AI finale so of course it would sell more.
8 - joan
Awesome!!! Go Little David !! Way to go!!!
9 - dan
hmmm... I hope it'll be no. 1 next time...
10 - jane
I totally agree with Archie is # 1 and jenn .. I love CRUSH . Archie is soooo wonderful!!!
11 - Leigh
I actually know of not one person who bought TOML in bulk. I am a member of 4 different David Cook fan sites too. I know of quite a few who didn't buy it at all and are waiting for "his" single and not the treacley coronation song. I have been approached by 4 or 5 Archuleta fans, however, who have offered to gift Crush to me.
David Cook might have made #2. It's all dependent on the competition. In his case, he was competing against himself that first week, selling 970,000 downloads total in one week.
12 - Sam
Cook fans always call David A fans the new claymates but how come every article I go to has Cook fans complaining? So hypocritical.
13 - Buck
Jay, yes TOML is the winner's single, but it IS also Cook's debut single. "Mandatory" is an odd choice of word - it is part of the priviledge of winning Idol, a debut single that is almost certain to be a big hit. By your logic, the winner's album is just a madatory requirement as well rather than their debut.
14 - Eric
Leigh, I'm an Archuleta fan but I also bought TOML, like many other Archuleta fans. I think it's nice for Archuleta fans to offer to gift you songs. Be grateful!
15 - iLuvsoccr456
yay! way to go David Archuleta!!!
16 - Vanessa
The most interesting part is that he did this with little or no promo from his record label JIVE & without a Video, just some radio interviews. The song is not even out officially until Sep 2.
To me that is AMAZING. Remember that Cook had 96 million viewers watching AI at the Finale. That's a HUGE promo.
In David's case, it was all by his LOYAL fans, the public in general are still getting a glimpse of what is to come ahead!
Why don't you publish THAT!
17 - Lynnette
Archuleta had just as many viewers at the finale. 96 million viewers?!? I'm sure Fox would have loved that! There were about 35-40 million viewers - still a lot, but not quite 96 million (there were 97 million votes - a good percentage going to Archuleta).
There has been quite a bit of promotion for Crush. There will be more. And the single is officially available otherwise it couldn't have charted yet, and you couldn't download it on iTunes. His album is out Sept 6th, the single has already been released.
Cook and Archuleta are both doing well. As someone already said - THE COMPETITION IS OVER!
18 - jan
I didn't really like Crush when I first heard it but it has really grown on me, and the reason for that is Archuleta's voice - it doesn't matter what he sings, there is just something about the sound of his voice that gives me chills. I'm an older fan who is absolutely hooked and will buy whatever this kid puts out there.
19 - val
Congratulations David Archuleta. Some people here not accepting this young man's success sound like sour grapes to me. Yes, it is correct that his label has not promoted him yet. It is David Archuleta's fans that have been promoting him. So maybe you want to get your facts straight and yes TOML is DC's first single, so there. Whether you liked the song or not that was the winner's songs, life the other Idol winners they are comparing him to. So stop thinking that DC is the only one out there that has just discovered the music world. Both Davids are very talented and will have a successful career. I hope DC's fans support him as much as we Archuleta fans supported our David. So let David Archuleta enjoy his successful ride and don't get so jealous. The voting and judging was over in May, 2008. Only time will tell who is more successful. Winning AI does not guarantee DC success. Go David ARchuleta your fans of ALL AGES absolutely adore you. And I a woman in my 40's.
20 - Keith
After 2 weeks for being number 1 on itunes and about one week for being number 2 on billboards , i still have not heard "Crush" on any radio station here in Los ANgeles , especially KIIS FM (ryan seacrest)..SHAME ON Ryan Seacrest and his team....So Jay, the statement you made "the roll out on the biggest pop station in the country, the weekly radio ads..." is absolutely False.
21 - Whatever
"Crush" did roll out on the biggest pop station in the country. Z100 in New York. Keep in mind that Archuleta is touring right now. He hasn't had time to make the appearnaces on talk shows to sing the song. He probably will be doing that when he can.
That being said, he is doing very well with the minimal promotion and few public appearances outside of the tour.
There hasn't been alot, but there hasn't been none - as far as publicity goes. Just being on tour is publicity.
22 - GGDOORSFAN
Archie's success will be the sweetest and the most acknowledged success story of this season and beyond… Why? Lest we forget, he was all but written off by some AI judges, music critics, MSM and bloggers as not having “mainstream appeal”… something his fans knew all along was ludicrous, and deeply insulting to the intelligence of the average music listener and buyer… we believed in him nonetheless, and knew he was tough and had a resiliency that would overcome these negative and erroneous assessments of his appeal. He’s triumphed with dignity against a whole lotta odds - vocal paralysis, negative media backlash in the run up to the finale et al… Speaks to an inner strength, a grit and determination that drives him to be the best he can be… back that up with THE VOICE, and you have a winner - not solely in the context of a singing competition, but for life…
23 - central80
Can’t think of anything else to say about the way I,and millions of David’s fans, feel about him and his success... This quote, from an interview David gave earlier this month in a Spanish language magazine pretty much sums it up:
“This show was not easy for him, he just made it look easy,” says Michael Orland, pianist and musical director for American Idol, about Archuleta, who will graduate from high school next year. “He came as a genius and left as a genius. All the participants aspired to reach his level.”
24 - CRUSH_IS_A_SMASH
For a new artist, CRUSH it is what it had to be in order to gain the attention of the buying and listening public outside of the AI fanbases and bubble... CRUSH is the calling card to the industry and the public that his appeal is larger than the AI bubble, and that he has the ability/versatility to appeal to a wider demographic. And CRUSH more than delivers... It has an appeal across a very broad spectrum of listeners, and should effectively silence the detractors and critics who didn't believe he had mainstream appeal. CRUSH is the catapult for David to continue his growth and evolution as an artist - I ANTICIPATE MANY MANY YEARS OF OUTSTANDING MUSIC FROM HIM. TAKE A BOW DAVID. YOU'VE ARRIVED.
25 - Mitzi
The only way I knew Crush was coming soon, was because I frequently checked the AI sites, and googled David A's name a few times. A little obsessive, maybe...lol...but mostly I just knew AI wouldn't let the chance to make a big hit off of lil David slip by, so I researched, and waited until Crush finally came out. I heard it the first time on YouTube, and not such a great version,either. But now, 2 weeks later, I am beginning to hear it on the local radio and I love it, just like everyone else does...INCLUDING Cook's fans! Admit it! I always liked Cook, but was disappointed when he won, but I have grown to be a huge fan cause he has been so sweet to David. And he really can perform! I think when the whole AI thing is really over, they should go on tour together. Oh, and I like Cook's single...no comparison to Archie's though.