David Cook

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Cook sings with unbridled conviction.

—American Songwriter

Platinum-selling recording artist, 2008 American Idol winner, and Broadway star David Cook continues to find ways to bring pop elements into rock music and write songs where every sound pushes the narrative forward.

Paul McCartney once sang, “Some people want to fill the world with silly love songs,” but on Cook’s latest EP, Chromance, he isn’t one of them. While he has written his share, he decidedly took a different turn this time out. “I wanted this EP to feel like the darker side of love. I recently found some psychology textbooks from college and read about different forms of love—parental, platonic, romantic, obsessive. When most people, including me, write love songs, it’s usually ‘you and me against the world,’ but I wanted to tap in to the murkier aspects of love people rarely talk about,” he says.

Cook, winner of American Idol’s Seventh Season, certainly knows his way around a good song. His first album, Analog Heart, came out pre-Idol, and his 2015 album, Digital Vein, nicely book-ended that chapter of Cook’s career. With Chromance, he is starting fresh. “I was a ‘rock’ guy, but the further away I’ve gotten from that, the more I’ve opened up and found inspiration in the peripherals. I wouldn’t have had the courage earlier in my career, but now I have the confidence to go after the sound I want,” he says. “I love creative endeavors. I like starting with nothing and then finishing with something that didn’t exist before. That’s my favorite thing about creating new music. I love being able to put something artistic out in the world for people to enjoy.”