David has been known to participate in charity concerts in the past to raise awareness and money for a certain cause. But this time around, he’s letting his legs do the talking – rather than his voice.

That’s right, he announced earlier this month that he’ll be running in the 2012 Honda LA Marathon. Not only that, but he’ll be running in behalf of the Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure Foundation (ABC).

In Memory of His Brother

If you don’t know much about David’s past, his desire to support brain cancer research may sound somewhat random. But in fact, he has a very good reason for supporting this cause. That’s because his brother died just two years ago from brain cancer.

By running 26.2 miles, David hopes that he can help others avoid the experience that he, his brother, and his family had to go through. Of course, laboring through 26.2 miles won’t be an easy task for someone who doesn’t train that often either.

He’ll need all the help he can get in terms of donations. So if you’re interested in donating to ABC, click on this link for further information.

Not His First Charity Run

Lastly, if you’re worried that David won’t be fit enough to finish an entire marathon, you should at least know that he’s been in similar situations before. Over the past several years, he’s ran in various charity races in support of brain cancer research.

That being said, this will be Cook’s first marathon ever. Still, we doubt motivation will be a factor for David…he’ll make it across the finish line – whether that be in 5 or 15 hours.

Here’s what he had to say about his participation in the 2012 Honda La Marthon: “Running a full marathon has always been a goal of mine. I’m looking forward to pushing myself physically, and to use the Marathon as an opprtunity to raise money for a cause that is close to my heart.”

So far, Cook has been able to raise $13,426 in behalf of ABC. Again, if you would like to donate, find the link above and it’ll take you to the page where you can donate (just look for the orange button on the upper, right hand corner of the page.)

This past May, the residents of Joplin, Missouri had their lives turned upside down -quite literally. The tornado that struck the town was so devastating that it reached an entire mile in width, killed at least a 162 people, and is considered one of the worst tornado’s ever witnessed in our country.

Needless to say, its been a hard 5 months for Joplin residents as they’ve tried to rebuild their homes and lives. But what they didn’t know, was that someone very special – ahem, David Cook – has been paying attention to their heartache and needs.

David Performs at Homecoming Dance

Cook, who hails from Blue Springs, Missouri, has kept close tabs on Joplin and its rebuilding process. Recently Joplin’s Wal-Mart invited him to play at the local high school’s Homecoming Dance which occurred this past weekend.

Without much thought, Cook accepted the invitation and hoped that his guest appearance would come as a special surprise for the students and faculty of Joplin High School. Alas, he’s become too popular for his own good.

The night before the dance occurred, Cook was spotted eating at the local Olive Garden. From there, the message that Cook was in town, spread like wildfire. By the time Cook stepped on stage at the dance, there wasn’t one surprised soul in the audience — just a whole bunch of excited and enthusiastic teenagers ready to hear an Idol winner who hailed from their state.

Boost in Morale

The concert must have been great, but more important than the music was simply Cook’s appearance in the tornado-ravaged city as he boosted the morale and spirits of students and teachers alike.

According to one news report, Cook really wanted to do something special for the community of Joplin, which he firmly accomplished according to the principal of Joplin High School.

JHS Principal Kerry Sachetta, made this comment to a local Joplin news reporter, saying, “It just makes you feel how much people really care, and how much people want to make sure the kids feel good about what’s going on and getting back to school.”

What made Cook’s sacrifice even more special, was the fact that he had a concert with Gavin Degraw on Penn State campus that very same evening! After finishing in Joplin, Cook caught a plane to the “kick-off” concert for he and Degraw’s nationwide tour.

That being said, his concert in Joplin was probably just as important, if not more.

The much anticipated fall tour that will feature David and Gavin DeGraw, and band ‘Caroline Liar’ who will open for the two, has been finalized – at last!

One Month of Fun

The nationwide tour will feature 22 concerts and will run from October 9-November 10, with the opening concert scheduled in State College, PA, on the campus of Penn State.

The tour will start out in the east, head west, then head back east, before turning south for its final few performances.

Both musicians will most likely litter their performances with selections from their latest albums. Cook’s latest record, “This Loud Morning,” was released on June 28, while DeGraw’s “Sweeter,” just came out yesterday, September 20.

Ticket sales for the tour opened on September 16 in most locations, and it seems as if prices are falling between $25-$50 dollars in order to get inside the door of most of the venues.

If you would like to view ticket prices for a location near you, you can check out Gavin’s website for more information.

On a Side Note…

Also, if you’re wondering why David and Gavin are not performing in New York, it may stem from the fact that DeGraw was attacked in The Big Apple on August 8 while touring with ‘Maroon 5’ and ‘Train.’

After the attack, DeGraw took a two-week hiatus before rejoining the tour for its last few performances, but it seems as if he’s taken a permanent hiatus from performing in New York for now.

Itinerary

And lastly, here is the schedule for the fall tour for those of you who are dying to take a glance at it.

October 9: State College, PA @ Pennsylvania State University
October 10: Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
October 11: St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
October 13: Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom
October 15: Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
October 17: Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory Concert House
October 18: Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
October 20: Santa Rosa, CA @ Wells Fargo Center for the Arts
October 21: Reno, NV @ Silver Legacy Resort Casino
October 23: Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona State Fair
October 24: San Diego, CA @ Humphrey’s Concerts by the Bay
October 26: Pomona, CA @ Fox Theater Pomona
October 29: Houston, TX @ Arena Theatre
October 30: Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater
November 1: Grand Prairie, TX @ Verizon Theatre
November 2: Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall
November 4: Winston-Salem, NC @ Wake Forest University
November 5: York, PA @ Pullo Center at Penn State
November 6: Cleveland, OH @ Palace Theatre
November 7: Cincinnati, OH @ Taft Theatre
November 9: Greenville, SC @ Peace Center Concert Hall
November 10: Athens, GA @ Classic Center

Good luck landing tickets to one of these concerts!

Submit! Now!! Submit your questions for our favorite singer to answer when he guests on VH1 forBig Morning Buzz live at 9.30 am this Friday. Maybe you will get lucky?

So far questions include one from a Venezuelian fan who wants to know if our Dave is off to her country soon. What is your favorite movie? Momradgag congratulates our Dave on his ability to “change up” any of the songs he performed on American Idol and then asks if he will be recording any of those songs on a future album. ChinaLovesCookie wonders if David will be going back to Montana on his tour, and would he grow long hair to donate to a charity, (he would raise more by auctioning his hair and he does make a tremendous contribution to Race for Hope already) and if there will be more bonus tracks for the new album.

So there you have a few examples of what is being asked. Now ask yourself if these are the type of questions that will get a response; a personal reply from David. If you are wishing and hoping that your question will be selected then it better be a screamin question. You gottabe creative. You can choose serious or you can choose funny, but don’t choose boring. Favorite this or favorite that? The only way to win with that one is to learn as much as you can about David. His life and likes. Then ask a really pertinent question that gets him thinking about some of those things that truly interest him. Think up a really crazy question like if you were the current President of the USA who would you fire right now because the advice you are getting has led this country into such a mess it will be hard to dig out. If you were stranded on Mars after buying a spot on the first spacecraft to fly there how long would you last without going completely mad (allowing for unlimited supplies of food, water, and oxygen) and what would you miss most?  If you could only eat one brand of candy bar for the rest of your life and no other food, what would you choose?

You have just about 18 hours to get it right.