How much do people love 'American Idol'? About 1.5 million times

Following the news this week that new "American Idol" David Cook placed a whopping 14 songs on the U.S. digital songs chart comes some staggering sales figures from Nielsen SoundScan. During the week of the finale, the 10 "Idol" finalists sold a total of 1.5 million digital downloads, led by Cook, who moved 924,000 of them.

"Idol" runner-up David Archuleta sold 323,000 downloads, and Jason Castro was a distant third with 64,000 copies. Two things to note: The sales figures represent multiple tracks from the artists, and fans were encouraged to download the songs this week, as most of them disappeared from Apple's iTunes store Wednesday night. So if you were wondering why America seemed a little brighter -- perhaps just a little happier -- on Thursday, there was your reason (sorry, boss).

The kind kids at Show Tracker noted that songs from Cook and Archuleta would still be available after the Wednesday night deadline, but an iTunes search for "Archuleta" did not reveal any songs. It appears that his soullessly professional version of John Lennon's "Imagine" can no longer (legally) infect MP3 players.

So here's the complete breakdown:

Cook: 942,000 downloads

Archuleta: 323,000 downloads

Castro: 64,000 downloads

Brooke White: 47,000 downloads

Michael Johns: 40,000 downloads

Carly Smithson: 33,000 downloads

Syesha Mercado: 18,000 downloads

Kristy Lee Cook: 10,000 downloads

Chikezie: 5,000 downloads

Ramiele Malubay: 3,000 downloads

Artists who appeared on the "Idol" finale also saw a nice benefit. Carrie Underwood's "Last Name" went from 22,000 downloads to 64,000, and OneRepublic's sappy "Apologize" rocketed from 6,000 downloads to 40,000.

So while execs at Fox ponder how to reinject some life into the competition, they can rest assured that the show still has a tight grip on the music marketplace.

Update from the A.M.: The post was changed to include sales figures from Ramiele Malubay.

Photo: Fox

Comments

[Jack]

I like Archie, but his version of Imagine really bugs me. He totally misses the point of the song! It's not an uplifting song, it's a subversive song. From all appearances, Archie is very religious and put his heart into an very anti-religious song. Bizarre.

[LEAH]

JACK
YOU HAVE YOUR OPINION BUT I THINK HE SINGS BEAUTIFUL AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS SO BIZZARE ABOUT IT THAT HE IS A NICE KID?

[Tom]

American voted for him to win, because they can all relate to him. No taste in clothes, bathing is not part of his daily routine, a loser at 26 bartending at a local bar, CDs and bands he failed with. Now superstar. A reflection of who you are as people. Losers vote for Losers and they make them winners. So Sad for all of us in the US.

[Marcia]

David Cook is the male version of Amy Winehouse. We needed a male FREAK and we got one. Here you are the new American Idol. And please stop bashing Archuleta. You are freaking clueless anyway. Your taste of music does not get Archuleta. So stay with the loud rocker, you can relate more to losers becoming winners on a reality show. There are so many other talented singers. But hey Cowell pimped a rocker, his ego could not stand that he lost out on Daughtry sales. Winning AI does not guarantee you long term success in the rock business.

[Missy]

The David's sales represent a full week of sales as far as their finale songs go, so naturally they are far ahead of the others. The other contestants sales figures only represent from Sunday to Wednesday at midnight, because they were all taken off of itunes at that point. That is why it seems the David's did so much better. I would like to see sales figures from some other weeks of the competition.

[Tanya]

Archuleta's version of Imagine bugs you people? Well of course, your taste of music is very different, but again I am sure most of you are not smart enough to figure that out anyway.
But think of this morons, a 17 year old young talented artist came very close to beating the loud rocker who at 26 years old was still not successful with his CDs and musical talent. You just prefered LOUDER music. End of story. Go buy Cook's CD, if you can afford to buy it at full price. Anybody can download a .99 cent tune. Also are you smart enough to figure out that none of the other idols' songs are available for downloads including Archuleta's. Hmmm? Like running a one man race. Of course at the end you will be the winner. David Cook is the Amy Winehouse look alike.

[Ann]

Jack, I agree with your assessment of Archie's version of "Imagine." He totally misses the point, and no one can capture the same essence of that song except for John Lennon. He was a true artist and very idealistic.

As for others calling David Cook a loser and freak, he is anything but. The fact he has sold so many downloads shows how much America really does like his music. Sour grapes, anyone?

[Jenn]

Actually, all of the "older" songs are for three days (Monday through Wednesday of finale week). All of the new songs are for four days (from DC and DA) are from Thursday through Sunday. So, none of the songs are for an entire week.

[robert]

DAVID COOK MAKES KANSAS CITY PROUD!!

[AI Exec]

DAVID COOK is AMY WINEHOUSE male version? that really made me laugh!!! no wonder i plug my two ears with ear buds because i cannot stand the loud and screaming loser rocker!!!

[Roderick]

I think the Archuleta fans didn't download as many iTunes as Cook because Archie had so many millions of downloads on YouTube. Also; if you check an earlier version of "Imagine" by Archuleta that he sang on Salt Lake Utah TV at 15 you hear that he sang ALL the verses, even the part about NO RELIGION. Idol makes the singers shorten their songs, so they have to cut something.

[Betsy]

Oh the David Cook idol and fanatics. People you all really need a life. Taylor Hicks won too and so did Ruben. Hmmm. And SO IT GOES. :)

[DavidAFan]

I LOVE DAVID ARCHULETA AND MANY FANS AND FAMILY OF MINE WOULD OF BOUGHT HIS SONGS BUT THEY DOWNLOADED IT OFF LIMEWIRE SAD BUT TRUE AND MY LIL COUSINS COULDN'T DO ITUNES CUZ THEIR ONLY 12 AND 15 YEARS OLD W NO CREDIT CARD !!

WE LOVE DAVID ARCHULETA AND WE WILL BUY HIS CD'S !!!! TALENTED KID !!!!

[alyse]

david archuleta is an AMAZING singer. it really irks me that you called his performances of "Imagine" "soullessly professionally". sorry but that's YOUR opinion. i thought it was very very moving, & the vocals were stunning.

i also think the reason cook's ratings are so much higher in this last week are because people who may not have followed AI went to download his new single, and when they liked it, they bought his other stuff. but archie didn't HAVE a single they could buy, & they might not have bothered to download shortened, live performances & therefore weren't introduced to his music / perfect voice.

i'm 22 and while some of my friends love david cook because he's "sexy" (note the quotations), i am obsessed with archey because he is truly one of the best singers i have ever heard. so stop putting him down!!

[paula]

Come people "David Bashers"...these 2 guys are BOTH great singers. The only difference is one is a Rocker and the other a Balladeer. Both will be successful in the coming years as artists. Both are nice guys, both are talented. They aren't hating each other, so why are all of you going at each other? Be glad BOTH of the talents were in the finals. I am anxious to purchase an Archie CD, and NOT a Cook CD...cuz I'm not into Rock...but many people are.

[benzcool]

Archie is the best vocal and very talented. I'm a baladeer and I love his voice so much..Cook is fine since Im not into rock that much but he too has a talent..so goodluck to both...GO ARCHIE, ONCE YOU'RE CDS ARE RELEASED I WILL BUY ALL OF THEM...I just want one copy of David Cook CD for remembrance of Season & AI...so i will remember he won over the BEST Vocal in the competition...PEACE OUT!

[tom]

why are none of david archuletas songs on itunes or microsofts zume??? clearly idol execs had this all figured out.

[jackryan]

There has been a lot of complaints across the board and in almost all blogs my friends, colleagues and I visited (note: DC & DA fans alike), re the lack of downloadable songs from Archuleta.

Is anyone from AI or iTunes listening to the market?

I for one would love to see/hear DA's audition of Crazy by Gnarles Barkley. Too bad the latter didn't clear it for showing.

[Informed]

To the David Cook bashers: David is definitely NOT a loser, in fact, he's a graduate of Central State Missouri (Graphic Design) and a member of Phi Sigma Kappa. So every time that Ryan Seacrest introduced him as a "bartender" it was definitely misleading. I read elsewhere a breakdown by song of David Cook's itune downloads and it appeared that the sales had been ongoing through the show. The highest volume sales were for "Time of My Life" and "Dream On" - both DC originals from last week. I personally downloaded 17 of DC's songs, but also downloaded "Imagine", "Let it Be", "Hallelujah" and 4 of Carly's songs. I'm looking forward to seeing them in person on the Idol tour. Advice to the bashers: high cortisol levels resulting from misery and anxiety over the results of AI can have detrimental effects on your circulatory system resulting in heart attacks, hyperglycemia, decreased bone density and worse. Love, A word nerd.

[Lukas]

Big deal. So what people downloaded all those songs. It doesn't mean squat. Wait 6, 7, or 8 months after the excitement of the finale dies down and the Idols release their CDs then we can really gauge "how much America loves" Idol.

[Lela]

Paula, well said. You expressed exactly how I feel about the two Davids. I'm into Archie's type of music. I tried to download his music; but, they didn't have them available. Initially, I didn't have the "iTunes" program. By the time I downloaded it, they took Archie's popular songs off. It has been very frustrating. After reading this article, I'm wondering why they didn't keep Archie's song available longer. That explains why Archie has less downloads compared to Cook. I'll definitely buy Archie's CDs as soon as they are released.

[sarah patterson]

heres what i love about the battle of
the davids i think that one of them should
win is david cook. that sarah catherine
patterson love the most. and i bet that david archuletla will make a great soundtrack.i love every single one of the
contestants the people from boise idaho
has faith in american idol.i hope that the contestants will love their supportive fan
sarah catherine patterson as much i loved you

[carmen]

That's just what I think ...they are both super talented people...ans as a non-American I can tell you they both can..if left alone by haters ...and promoted the right way....improve the image of US in many other countries....especially Archuleta ....because he is so different from the so many superficial pop "stars" that have been exported in the last 10-15 years....and Cook if he doesn't go "crazy" like many rockers do he can do a good job too.....not that this is their job ...but they should see it as a great opportunity....

[filipinas]

...i completely agree with alyse. the two davids shouldnt be compared with each other....they are totally worlds apart, coz they are on opposite genres.....i think both excel really well on their respective type of music...im totally into archies music coz its pure and smooth but i have a lot of respect to cook's too coz he has that rough quality in his voice.

[chonette]

well, i dont understand why you people have to say nasty things about the 2 davids. if you are a cook fan so be it or if you prefer archie then stick with it. each of us has our own music taste and let's just respect each other. let the 2 davids do their job. just understand that not all people are the same. it isn't bad to like a rocker or a balladeer, its your choice... that is why there are different types of music in this world, its for people to choose from...

[J9BT]

I'd like to see stats on total downloads throughout the season. The week before the finale there were only two performers left in the competition. Fans of other contestants primarily downloaded songs the week their favorite was voted off. Let's see the real totals. My guess is Jason Castro won't be a "distant" 3rd.

[liz]

Both Davids are a class act. What are you losers commenting on them. Yes I will buy David Cook's albums at whatever price...I also am going to American Idol in St. Louis. Get a life yourself. I love to just listen to the AI songs and Axiom songs which David C. wrote and they are wonderful.

[edna]

Archuletas songs are not available in Itunes and Zune so that there will be no sales for the kid and poeple can only download for Cook. They have to prove that those 12 million that they robbed really belongs to cook. They can only fool the dummies! Cook is saying he is going to make music that will make our hair in our neck stands up. Now why would I want to buy his album and do that to myself? I am not a freak. Only freaks do that to themselves . He is such an arrogant guy! Unbeleivable.

[lulu]

i thought ramiele's "alone" charted into itunes??? I'm kinda sad that her songs aren't that popular in the store. of all the female contestants, ramiele has the most beautiful versatile and contemporary voice. It's just her song choices sucks. and ai is being unfair to her, she always has the least exposure. i hope she does have a big future maybe in singing or acting. congrats too david cook.

[edna]

I agree with "lulu" Rameile has least exposure on the show because bad choice in songs, and she is also a filipina . I don't care what poeple will say about this comment but I am saying this that majority of poeple are so stereo type. Rameile has a good vocal also that is why she is in top 10, but she has least attention because of what she is. I am also a filipina and I have been all over the world and sad to say that poeple from different places have always only one set mind towards our race. We always have to work harder to prove what we are in order to be recognize.Rameile didnot create enough drama for the media or simply the media just one of those stereo type.I am very proud of Rameile to be in top 10, but the least exposure didnot surprise me. I expected it!

[edna]

Ramiele malubay didnot get enough attention here but if she goes back to our country she will make it there. We filipinos are always proud of our poeple no matter what kind or how little the acheivements are. We always seek each other doesn't matter what part of the world we are in.that is one thing I am very proud of my poeple . Rameile might not have enough attention but she sure will get it from all of us. Most places unite only when disasters hit or while "stuff is still hot" but after that, they are to each his own.

[Denise]

Of course the Davids stuff were much higher than other idols, they dtopped selling the other idols stuff on Wed. and the Davids stuff was on sale all week. The comparision is flawed.

[Piano Girl]

I downloaded David Archuleta's songs EACH week during the show. So I suppose my sales were not in the figures. Just for the record, I've NEVER downloaded ANY itunes to my IPOD before I heard David Archuleta. Now THAT's the "Wave of the Future"!

[Donna]

Well of course, since he is the only one from American Idol who has his songs available for dowloading. Clever marketing by AI. That is like running a one man race and let's not forget everybody loves to hear a winner and a sob story. He is definitely very talented, so we give him that. I wonder why AI does not release the the top 10 other contestants songs? What is the difference, Cook was declared the winner. Or are they afraid that some of the other contestants will outsell Cook? Hmmm. Good luck to all the top 10 we can't wait to buy some of their CDs. Rockers are not the only musicians that have talent.

[Indyfan]

I clearly saw 7 Archuletta videos and singles available in iTunes for the same days in which Cook's 7 videos and singles were available. I downloaded their duet, which was under Archuletta, so I know it worked. I have no idea where they got figures for other songs by these two or the songs of other contestants, since this was all that could be found. I also would love to see the figures on downloads during the show, as I downloaded all of Cook's as they were released, not during the week in question. I suspect most had much higher figures than this when they first came out.

[Josh]

Uh ... I went on vacation for a week and MISSED MY ONLY OPPORTUNITY to download these songs from iTunes!!! Can anyone share?

[Spring]

I honestly have to say that I cannot believe all of the harsh words towards David and David. Both are very talented singers and will do very well for themselves.

I feel that David A. will mature and find himself and will become even more popular as time goes on. He is not ready for the life style and stress that comes along with this just yet. He needs to finish school and "polish" himself a bit.

David C. is ready for this. He is mature and can handle the pressure better. I don't see how he can be called a loser. He has finished college, he is very educated and speaks well, he not only had one job, but two (bartending and performing), he can write songs, he can sing well, and he had enough knowledge and drive to produce and publish his own album. How many people can say that? His album was not released into the main stream, only locally in his home town. Now that he has the right avenue to promote his talent he will do extremely well.

Try not to hate so much. Of course not everyone will like him, just like everyone will not like Archie. Just think how boring of a World it would be if everyone liked the same thing...

[Jamie]

LEAH, you are a real winner. I disagree with your highly pessimistic attitude. People like you I feel sorry for who have a bad outlook and vibe in life. So sorry for you. David Cook is extremely talented and I look forward to his successes. Archuleta is great as well and is sure to have an amazing career.

[Becca]

I bought an IPOD JUST to download Archie's songs, but where are they?