{"id":595772,"date":"2026-08-17T07:02:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T07:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/595772\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T07:02:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T07:02:12","slug":"american-idol-winner-iam-tongi-just-performed-in-utah-deseret-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/595772\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018American Idol\u2019 winner Iam Tongi just performed in Utah \u2013 Deseret News"},"content":{"rendered":"

It only took one performance on \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d for Iam Tongi<\/a> to become a star. <\/p>\n

The then-18-year-old singer from Hawaii had \u201cIdol\u201d judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan in tears with his rendition of James Blunt\u2019s \u201cMonsters,\u201d a performance dedicated to his father, Rodney Tongi, who died not long before the audition.<\/p>\n

Tongi\u2019s emotional delivery of that song quickly went viral and became one of the most-viewed auditions in the show\u2019s history \u2014 to date, it has more than 50 million views on the \u201cIdol\u201d YouTube channel alone.<\/p>\n

After that audition, to his genuine surprise, Tongi continued to advance each week in the competition. He performed song after song, keeping up with a rigorous filming and rehearsal schedule that continued all the way through to the finale, where he was ultimately declared the Season 21 winner. <\/p>\n

But amid his busy \u201cIdol\u201d schedule, Tongi continued to sing behind the scenes. <\/p>\n

At one point during his \u201cIdol\u201d run, he shared a video that showed him with some of his fellow contestants in a hotel room singing the hymn \u201cI Need Thee Every Hour.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n

Tongi, who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, would also share general conference talks online. And thanks to some gentle nudging from his mom, he also made it a point to read his scriptures regularly throughout the busy filming schedule for \u201cIdol.\u201d<\/p>\n

Being open about his faith, he said, came with a cost \u2014 \u201cI remember losing a lot of followers at the time,\u201d he told the Deseret News during a recent interview. <\/p>\n

But Tongi\u2019s faith is a part of who he is, he said, and he didn\u2019t want to subdue it \u2014 especially during an intense and sometimes stressful situation like competing on \u201cIdol.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201dI made sure everybody knows,” he said. \u201cI\u2019ve always just been me. I never try to be something I\u2019m not. So I\u2019m not gonna hide my thing. … I just love being a part of the church.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, three years after his \u201cIdol\u201d win, Tongi is continuing to share his faith. This past Friday and Saturday, he performed gospel music for thousands of people at the Utah Area YSA Conference \u2014 including singing his mom\u2019s favorite hymn that he had learned just the day before.<\/p>\n

\u2018I can kind of, sort of, sing\u2019: Iam Tongi shares faith through music\"IamIam Tongi sings at the 2026 Utah Area Young Single Adult Conference at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Friday, August 14, 2026. | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not really good with words, but I can kind of, sort of, sing,\u201d Tongi said with an understated tone during his Saturday night concert at the Salt Palace Convention Center. <\/p>\n

So the 21-year-old singer let his music do most of the talking. During a 75-minute set, he shared his testimony through gospel songs \u2014 including his favorite, Jeff Goodrich\u2019s \u201cOh Lord, My Redeemer\u201d \u2014 and showed off his original music with \u201cWhy Kiki<\/a>\u201d and \u201cGood For My Soul<\/a>\u201d (which the artist, who is getting married in three weeks, wrote for his fiancee).<\/p>\n

He also sang island classics like \u201cFish and Poi,\u201d and played a few songs from his time on \u201cIdol\u201d \u2014 including Sam Cooke\u2019s \u201cBring It On Home<\/a>,\u201d Lionel Richie\u2019s \u201cStuck On You<\/a>,\u201d and, of course, the song that started it all for him: \u201cMonsters.\u201d <\/p>\n

Tonight at the Utah Area YSA concert, Iam Tongi performed the song that launched him to fame: James Blunt\u2019s \u201cMonsters.\u201d His \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d audition of the song has 50 million views on YouTube. pic.twitter.com\/OQtfHhjUNZ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Lottie Johnson (@Lotlotej) August 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Since winning \u201cIdol,\u201d Tongi\u2019s high-profile projects have included recording a song for the \u201cLilo and Stitch\u201d live-action film and writing a song with Dwayne \u201cThe Rock\u201d Johnson<\/a> for a \u201cMoana\u201d-inspired album. Amid his stardom, Tongi has credited his tight-knit family with keeping him grounded. <\/p>\n

While performing Saturday night, he had a massive crew of support, including from his mom and his fiancee. <\/p>\n

At one point during the show, Tongi said his mom had been encouraging him for a while to learn her favorite hymn, \u201cConsider the Lilies.\u201d He revealed that he had finally learned it \u2014 the day before the concert.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmerican Idol\u201d winner Iam Tongi said his mom has wanted him to learn her favorite hymn, \u201cConsider the Lilies,\u201d for a while. He learned it yesterday for his shows at the Utah Area YSA Conference. pic.twitter.com\/T3V1m1fcE3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Lottie Johnson (@Lotlotej) August 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Backed by a fairly stripped-down accompaniment, Tongi\u2019s voice rang clear throughout the large hall as he performed the song \u2014 with his mom beaming (and recording it) from the audience.<\/p>\n

Tongi also performed Nela Otuafi\u2019s \u201cHow Can I Be?\u201d\u2014 the first gospel song he ever learned on the ukulele \u2014 and The Tonga Sisters\u2019 \u201cCourage<\/a>,\u201d which was his late aunt\u2019s favorite gospel song. His aunt could hardly move or talk near the end of her life, Tongi said. But every time he sang \u201cCourage,\u201d she would still sing along.<\/p>\n

It was clear on \u201cIdol,\u201d and clear Saturday night, that the love and support of Tongi\u2019s family has been pivotal to his success.<\/p>\n

For the singer \u2014 who said he was never very good at school or sports growing up<\/a> \u2014 music has always been a source of comfort. But it was his family who helped him realize there was real talent in what he was doing. His dad would always tell him music is how he would make it in life.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s my dad, he\u2019s supposed to tell me I\u2019m talented when I\u2019m not, so I was kind of like not really believing him,\u201d Tongi told the Deseret News<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut hey, he told me that I\u2019m gonna win \u2018American Idol\u2019 one day, and I did.\u201d<\/p>\n