Season 21 winner Iam Tongi has been busy since capturing the hearts of American Idol viewers with his emotionally raw performances. The Hawaii native made his Grand Ole Opry debut this summer and opened for Luke Bryan in Florida. Given his music’s prevalent reggae influences, Tongi had reservations about how his performance would be received by a crowd of people who paid to attend the Country Song Came On Tour. As it turns out, however, the 21-year-old needn’t have worried.
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Iam Tongi Got a Warm Welcome From ‘American Idol’ Judge’s Crowd
While excited to take the stage ahead of Luke Bryan’s show in Fort Myers, Florida, Iam Tongi admittedly felt like a fish out of water.
“It was such a weird feeling,” he recently told Taste of Country Nights. “I go out there and I’m like, ‘Man, everybody in the lineup is singing country and I’m going out there singing, Is this love, is this love? I’m singing reggae, man.’”
Fortunately, Tongi managed to overcome his jitters and take the stage. “I just went out there and had some fun, and people were jamming out!” said the American Idol star. “They were all jumping, man. I was like, ‘Oh shoot, they just wanna have fun too!’”
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Country Music is A Part Of His Story
Iam Tongi nearly hung up his guitar for good following the death of his father, Rodney. Music was their shared language, and his dad was a massive country music fan. Some of the 21-year-old’s earliest memories involve watching legends like Garth Brooks, Vince Gill, and Alan Jackson performing at George Jones’ 2013 funeral.
Luke Bryan seemed to sense that connection after watching Tongi’s American Idol audition. The “Why Kiki?” crooner dedicated his performance of James Blunt’s “Monsters” to his late father.
“I cannot handle your heart breaking about your dad,” said the teary-eyed five-time Entertainer of the Year. “Because, you know, my nephew lost his dad, and he came and lived with me. And just seeing you missing your dad just sucks. And gosh, man! You just got a great voice… You just did everything perfect, and I love you. And I just wanna see you have fun in this whole thing.”
Featured image by Michael Hickey/Getty Images
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