David Archuleta Addresses Fans Leaving His Christmas Show

Archuleta, who is openly gay, is currently traveling for his The More The Merrier Christmas tour. Over the weekend, the former American Idolcontestant shared screenshots on Instagram of an email sent to his manager from what appears to be an employee of the concert venue he performed at in Delta, Utah. The email alleges that fans walked out mid-way through the concert due to Archuleta's candid comments about being queer.

"[Concertgoers] got an incredible experience but they did not pay for David to take 15 minutes and ruin that Christmas experience they just had," said the employee, acknowledging that Archuleta's performance was strong but saying they took offense to his comments. "I do not believe that concert was a setting for that to happen. We have some very upset patrons that I will be dealing with today."

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In his caption response, Archuleta explains that being open has been a way for him to find peace. "This tour hasn’t been the easiest for me to do," the 31-year-old explains. "A way for me to find peace with it is by being open about my journey. I am sharing something that I’ve felt I had to keep hidden nearly all my life. Because you believe your existence is unacceptable. That mindset is not healthy. So I am choosing to not hide that anymore."

Archuleta continued by pushing back against the notion that opening up about his queerness ruined the Christmas spirit, adding, "Even if it’s a journey that you may not fully understand, it means the world to me that you still were willing to listen. No, I don’t think sharing my journey ruins any Christmas spirit unless you allow your own misconceptions to ruin it yourself."

After a Twitter user named Cathy doubled down on criticism of the singer, Archuleta retweeted her comments with his own response, noting that he talks about his identity in all of his shows. "If people want to leave, they can," he wrote. "I'm not opposed to that. I don't say anything disrespectful. People who come to my shows know every concert, I share my journey regardless of where that is."

Archuleta grew up in a conservative family in Utah, where he was raised as a member of the Church of the Latter Day Saints — which officially condemns homosexuality. The singer first publicly came out as LGBTQ+ in 2021 via an Instagram post, saying at the time that he had already come out privately to his family back in 2014. The "Crush" singer was notably engaged three times — to three different women — before he came out.

In an interview last month with People, he revealed he would be stepping back from the Mormon church. His Christmas tour will continue this month with more stops in Utah, as well as Nevada, Texas, and Arizona. Read the full e-mail and post below.

Photo via Getty Images / John Wolfsohn