David Roland Cook was born December 20, 1982 in Houston, Texas. He was raised in Blue Springs, Missouri with his two brothers. Owning his first guitar at age 2, Cook has had a life filled with music. He performed often in school plays, having solos and leads since second grade. He attended Blue Springs South High School where he performed in musicals including, The Music Man, West Side Story, and Singin’ in the Rain. He earned a theater scholarship to the University of Central Missouri, but only attended two semesters before switching to Graphic Design and graduating in 2006. After college, he re-located to Tulsa Oklahoma to pursue music and his life-long dream.

David Cook auditioned for Idol in Omaha, Nebraska, and performed “Livin on a Prayer” as his audition piece. He originally went to the show as moral support for his younger brother, but decided to audition himself. He made it to Hollywood where he took advantage of a new rule allowing contestants to play instruments along with singing.

David Cook’s Musical Background

From 1999-2006, lead singer and guitarist of the band Axium. He firmed Axium in his junior year of high school with a friend, Bobby Kerr. They received a series of awards and small breaks, being picked up to run in AMC theaters before movies, and winning independent band and Kansas City titles. In 2006, following the breakup of Axium, Cook joined the band Midwest Kings, a regional touring band in Tulsa. He played guitar, bass, and sung back-up vocals. He also worked as a bartender at several Tulsa clubs, including Blank Slate and Rehab Lounge.

In 2006 Cook released his first solo independent album, Analog Heart, in which he wrote the songs and designed the cover art. The album was chosen as fourth-best CD in 2006 by Music Equals Life, a website. Cook also received numerous over awards for his first CD.

Orange Bracelet, Do Whatcha Gotta Do

What does it mean? Why did David Cook wear it during American Idol? On March 11, David Cook was sporting the now famous orange bracelet for Lindsey Rose, a cancer patient. The orange bracelet has the saying, do whatcha gotta do written on it, and her name on the other side. We aren’t sure, but from the looks of things, these bracelets will be for sale soon. Stay tuned…