Upon founding his own recording studio, Juda Music Productions, Gil began a career in R&B, which culminated with the 2011 release of his first mixtape, Love Me Later.
[3][8][9] Initially unsure whether he would have a means of transportation, he was one of the last people to try out that day, and as he did not have a song prepared ahead of time, he chose "The Star-Spangled Banner", due to his familiarity with singing it in school.
"[24] Writing for the Boston Herald, Monica Collins considered Gil and fellow contestant EJay Day to be "'indistinguishable N Sync-ish names and faces".
[25] In an article for The Plain Dealer, Clint O'Connor wrote that Gil hailed from the "Backstreet Boys-'N Sync-wannabe collection.
"[29] Gil's vocals on the series and its accompanying album, American Idol: Greatest Moments, were deemed underwhelming by various publications[28][30][31][32][33] and his stage presence during the competition was called "stiff" by Macias.
[28] Conversely, in an assessment of the top eight finalists for the Contra Costa Times, Deirdre McGruder wrote that Gil's vocals were almost comparable to those of Justin Timberlake.
Maura Johnston of Vulture voiced appreciation for Gil's decision to give the original's "French a slight Latin spin",[31] but Derogatis was dismissive, writing that the song "doesn't work with a salsa beat".
[37] Johnston ultimately felt that Gil struggled in the competition due to American Idol's restrictive weekly themes.
[18] About a month after being voted off American Idol, Gil opened the first ever concert at Seattle's then-new Seahawks Stadium, by singing the national anthem.
Shortly after being eliminated from American Idol, Gil met an eleven-year-old David Archuleta, when the two were guests on The Jenny Jones Show.
[52][53] Gil and Day sang "Calling All Angels",[52] a song which had been specifically written for the Give Kids the World charity organization.
[54] The two later performed "Calling All Angels" at an Orlando, Florida fundraising gala in June[54][55] and released this duet as a single through Give Kids the World.
[52][54][56] Following his participation on American Idol, Gil recorded a version of "My Cherie Amour" that was featured on a compilation album of all the season one finalists.
[60] By March, Gil had moved to Orlando, and that month, he performed in "A Magical Night of Entertainment" by Radio Disney as part of New Port Richey, Florida's 81st annual Chasco Fiesta.
In April, he performed in at least three benefit concerts – one for the American Diabetes Association, which was held with 3rd Wish at Wet 'n Wild Orlando;[63] one for Intervention Services Foster Children and HOPE Worldwide, which was held with Ronnie McDowell in the "Rally for America" festival at Orlando Festival Park;[64] and one for the families of those killed in the Station nightclub fire, which was held with Blackhawk, Blue Öyster Cult, Billy Gilman, Justincase, Lennon Murphy, Rick Derringer, the Southern Rock Allstars, and Vanessa Olivarez, among others, at the Providence Performing Arts Center.
[4][70] First-time director Paul DeAngelo produced Destination Fame through his film production and music recording studio, Big Hit Entertainment.
[73][74][75] In December 2003, The News Tribune reported that Gil had recorded about thirty tracks for an album that was scheduled to be released the following year.
Over the summer of 2004, Gil held a benefit concert at Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa, for Drake University's Institute for Character Development.
[76][77] The following year, in May, Family Feud ran a span of episodes featuring Gil and various other American Idol finalists as the competitors.
[81] Destination Fame held its official premiere on October 27, 2005, in Bayonne, after screening one month earlier at the Temecula Valley International Film and Music Festival.
[84] In March of that year, USA Today reported that he was using his middle name Juda and studying music production at Los Angeles Recording School.
[94][95][96] In 2010, the official website for American Idol announced that Gil's new mixtape, Love Me Later, was scheduled to be released on July 20 of that year.
[112] Gil closed out 2011 by headlining the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra's Middleton Holiday Pops Concert, which was held on November 27 and 28.
[113] Gil subsequently switched genres to Christian music, and on July 26, 2013, he released a mixtape titled Life, Death & Resurrection.