Tongi emerged as winner of the American Idol Season 21 beating Megan Danielle and Colin Stough on Sunday night.
The three-hour broadcast, which played live on ABC coast-to-coast, saw the last three contestants − Megan Danielle, Colin Stough, and Iam Tongi − take the stage for the last time to seek votes from viewers with Judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie.
The trio each sang two songs: one by guest mentor Keith Urban and another in tribute to their hometowns. Then, host Ryan Seacrest revealed which contestants made the Top 2 – Tongi and Danielle, and the two went head-to-head with original songs.
Tongi got the crowd chanting his name after he sang Urban’s “Making Memories of Us,” Danielle belted to the heavens with a Journey classic and Stough brought his good ‘ol country boy charm to a Chris Stapleton hit.
Tongi will appear for an interview alongside runner-up Danielle, onGood Morning Americaon Tuesday, May 23 at 8 a.m. ET on ABC.
The Hawaii high schooler with the beautiful voice and the tragic story had captured the hearts of Idol fans in recent months with each performance. he got many emotional when he sang a tribute to his own late father, “I’ll Be Seeing You,” and teamed up with James Blunt for a rendition of “Monsters.”
The “American Idol” night saw many performances from many stars; Pitbull and Lil Jon were joined by the Top 12 contestants for “Give Me Everything” and “Jumpin.”
TLC and Lucy Love went back to old hits like “No Scrubs,” “Creep” and “Waterfalls.”
Kevin Cronin from REO Speedwagon and Zachariah Smith performed “Take It On the Run.” Jelly Roll performed “Save Me” with Lainey Wilson” and “Need a Favor” with Oliver Steele.
Kylie Minogue and Nutsa took the stage to perform “Padam Padam” and “I Can’t Get You Out of My Head.”
Lionel Richie met the Top 12 contestants to perform “Sail On” while Keith Urban busted out “Wild Hearts.”
Luke Bryan performed solo “But I got a Beer in My Hand” and was joined by Colin Stough for “Slow Hand.” Jasmine Sullivan and Wé Ani did “Bust Your Windows” and Lainey Wilson, Marybeth Byrd, and Warren Peay performed “Heart Like a Truck.”
Katy Perry took the stage with Haven Madison for “By the Grace of God” and “Still Need You.”
