Iam Tongi

Iam Tongi had America tearing up from the moment he started singing, "Monster" by James Blunt. An emotional tribute to his father who'd encouraged him to audition for Idol but passed away before he made it in front of the judges, the performance instantly became a viral sensation. The quiet yet powerful maturity in this 19-year-old Samoan, Tongan from Hawaii's voice, is unparalleled. An old soul, his beautiful rasp, with a light island influence permeates every note in every song he sings, invariably taking listeners on an emotional journey. Although Iam himself is rarely serious, preferring to approach life with a laugh and a joke, his musical taste and styling shows a depth of range far beyond his years. In his current single, "I'll Be Seeing You", Iam gorgeously laments about the loss of his father.

His formidable vocal ability brings a yearning to those moments when, although you’ve lost someone, you realize they are never truly gone; you see them everywhere you look. Iam said, “This song is very beautiful, and it resonates with me, it means a lot to me. It is about my father and if you think about it, this song talks about “I’ll be seeing you wherever I go” because when a loved one passes away you are going to remember them in everyday life. My dad had to go to dialysis and every time we drive past the place, he had to get it done we always point and say, 'Oh, look, dad.' We never say, 'Oh look that’s where he used to get it done' we always just say 'dad.'”