Iam Tongi starts singing just three minutes into our interview.
“So I’ll tell them you moved mountains
“And sailed across the ocean
“To show me and to prove
“There’s nothing I can’t do.”
It’s only about 10 seconds of singing, but the breezy tone that established Tongi as the first Pacific Islander to win “American Idol” easily cuts through.
The 21-year-old singer-songwriter’s voice is somehow both delicate and resonant as he sings the original chorus of his song “My Dad.”
Tongi had initially envisioned “My Dad” as a tribute to his father, Rodney Tongi, who died before his viral audition for “Idol” that would launch him to fame.
“I’m telling my dad I’m gonna tell my future kids that he moved mountains, that he was a superhero, basically,” said Tongi, who is getting married in three weeks.
Tongi was still writing this song when, late one night, he got an unexpected voice message from Dwayne Johnson.
Yes, that Dwayne Johnson.
“The Rock,” who plays the demigod Maui in the “Moana” franchise, was executive producing an album to accompany the new live-action film — a project that would celebrate Polynesian artists.
He was looking for a song to record, and Tongi came to mind (Tongi said Johnson’s first cousin and longtime stunt double, Tanoai Reed, is like an uncle to him).
So at 2 or 3 in the morning in Utah, after attending a cousin’s wedding, Tongi — who was still up and playing the guitar — sent over what he had.
Johnson loved it.
As they messaged back and forth, the actor asked Tongi if it would be OK to rework the song so it came from the perspective of him singing to his own daughters. Johnson got to work tweaking some of the lyrics and sent Tongi his own version one night — at 4 in the morning.
“I always wonder, how does this guy have time? He’s always doing everything. Now I know he just stays up late,” Tongi said with a laugh.
Tongi heard the full new version of the song on July 31 — which happened to be his dad’s birthday. It was “very emotional,” he said, to hear Johnson, a father of three daughters, bring this song to life.
“Now you go move those mountains
“Sail across the oceans
“Go show the world and prove
“There’s nothing you can’t do
“I’ll pray while you’re sleeping
“And watch you while you’re dreaming
“I hope you understand
“Just how proud I am to be your dad.”
“I was imagining this is my dad singing to me,” Tongi said with emotion.
Tongi’s connection to his dad is what first won over millions of viewers on “Idol” — his audition on the “Idol” YouTube channel alone has 50 million views. That emotion and heart has stayed with him in the three years since his audition aired, shining through on his collaboration with “The Rock,” among other projects he’s taken on since winning “Idol.”
While in a hotel room in Salt Lake City, rehearsing for a pair of shows this weekend at the Utah Area Young Single Adult Conference, Tongi, who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, caught up with the Deseret News on his “Idol” run and life beyond the show.
Losing — and rediscovering — a love of music
Hearing Tongi sing and talk about how much music means to him, it’s hard to believe there was ever a time when he wanted to give it up altogether.
But after an unsuccessful “American Idol” audition and his father’s death, that’s exactly how he felt.
Tongi had actually auditioned for “Idol” the season before winning.
He remembers his dad proudly telling everyone how his son had made it past the first preliminary round. Tongi didn’t end up making it to the big audition, though. The show’s producers told him to try again the following year.
“It kind of put my confidence down a lot,” the singer said.
Tongi lost even more of a desire to pursue music following his father’s death from Stage 4 kidney disease on Dec. 28, 2021.
A few months later, his mom asked him why he wasn’t singing anymore.
“I told her that I can hear my dad when I sing, because he always harmonizes with me,” Tongi said. “I could hear what he would sing, and I just told her that it was hard for me, because I would cry.
“And she was like, ‘Well, isn’t that beautiful that you can hear him? Even now that he’s gone, you can still hear him.’”
Tongi recognized that truth, so he pulled out his guitar and started playing “Teu Hiki ‘A Hoku Le’o,” a Tongan gospel hymn about “crying out to the Lord” that he would often sing with his dad.
“I sang that song and I cried, and I told my mom, ‘I’m gonna start doing music again,’” he said.
“And then she said, ‘Good, because I signed you up to audition in three days.’”
So once again, Tongi found himself in the preliminary rounds of “American Idol.” He didn’t think he’d make it. Even as he kept moving further along in the process, he didn’t dare get his hopes up.
Eventually, he was invited to join a Zoom call where he learned that he’d made it to the big audition — the televised one in front of judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Katy Perry.
Tongi said he jumped up in excitement. He then immediately started calling his cousins and sharing the news. A few hours later, he got a message from the show saying not to tell anyone.
“I have like 74 first cousins,” he said with a big laugh. “... So about 400 people knew.”
Tongi had a lot of people rooting for him before “Idol” — and a whole lot more after his emotional audition aired on national TV.
Winning ‘American Idol’ and beyond
For his audition, Tongi performed James Blunt’s “Monsters.” He’d first heard the song while his dad was in the hospital, and it moved him to tears.
Tongi’s longing for his dad rang out with every note of his performance. The singer choked up on his last note, but by then he had already done more than enough to convince the judges he would be a strong contender in the “Idol” competition.
“You hit a nerve, and that’s what great storytellers do,” Perry told him as Bryan and Richie wiped away tears. “That’s what great artists do, and your voice is just so magnificent.”
Despite that high praise, Tongi said he still had to work through a lot of self-doubt during his time on the show. He couldn’t hit the high notes or do impressive vocal runs like many of his fellow competitors. He would just do his best to sing his heart out, and was always grateful to get voted through another round.
To his genuine surprise, he kept advancing in the competition. And then, ultimately, he was declared the Season 21 winner.
For Tongi, it was an important reminder to be confident in himself rather than comparing his voice to others. Now, three years later, it’s the friendships with his competitors that he values the most from his time on the show.
Post-“Idol,” Tongi initially got into touring and putting on shows. He later became involved in high-profile projects like the “Moana” album and recording “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” for the “Lilo and Stitch” live-action film.
Originally from Kahuku, a small town on the North Shore of O‘ahu, Hawaii, Tongi said he’s proud to have his name attached to these movies.
He was actually invited to audition for the live-action “Moana” but says he failed to impress (he had to pretend like a fish was slipping out of his hand without actually having a fish in his hand).
“It was a little awkward,” he said with a laugh. “I was so terrible. ... But I still got to be a part of it somehow. It means the world to be able to represent myself, my family and my culture.”
With all of these projects and collaborations, though, Tongi’s time to sit down and write his own music became somewhat limited.
Earlier this year, he finally released his long-awaited debut album, “Good For My Soul,” and now he’s starting to get back into writing more music, touring and playing shows.
“I forgot how much I love it,” he said. “I’m just super excited to have a piece of me out there in the world, and I hope people enjoy it.”
Amid his stardom, Tongi credits his tight-knit family with keeping him grounded. He says he has family everywhere, so whenever he goes on tour, he opts to sleep at a relative’s house rather than isolate himself in a hotel.
For Tongi — who said he was never very good at school or sports growing up — 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.
“He’s my dad, he’s supposed to tell me I’m talented when I’m not,” Tongi recalled thinking. “So I was kind of like not really believing him.
“But hey, he told me that I’m gonna win ‘American Idol’ one day, and I did.”