Tongi Made The Judges Cry With His Emotional Story And Song - American Idol 2023
Tongi's audition is unforgettable. Can't believe it's almost the one year anniversary of the world hearing his story!
Tongi's audition is unforgettable. Can't believe it's almost the one year anniversary of the world hearing his story!
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FunTranscript
00:00Hi.
00:01Hello.
00:02Hello.
00:03How are you?
00:04I'm good.
00:05I'm good.
00:06How are you guys?
00:07Very well.
00:08So, tell us who you are and where you're from.
00:09My name is Ian Tongi, and I'm from Kahuku, Hawaii.
00:12Ian Tongi.
00:13Tongi.
00:14Tongi.
00:15You pronounce the T's like a D in the Tongan culture.
00:16Oh, Tongi.
00:17Yeah.
00:18Tongi.
00:19So, tell us about your journey.
00:20How did you get here?
00:21Well, I grew up in Kahuku, which is on Oahu, and I recently, like, well, not recently,
00:27like three years ago, I moved to Seattle.
00:29Hey.
00:30It's not the same, but it's still all right.
00:31It's definitely different weather.
00:32It's not the same, but it's all right.
00:35Yeah.
00:36Why on earth would you leave Hawaii?
00:37Price Out of Paradise.
00:38That's what it is.
00:39Ah.
00:40Ah.
00:41Yeah, Price Out of Paradise.
00:42I get it.
00:43Got to move to a cheaper state.
00:44We're fixing to get you priced back in Hawaii.
00:46Yeah.
00:47You're going to go back in.
00:48Any chance.
00:49Move back.
00:50I think you should buy a house.
00:51Is your family there, or where's your family?
00:52Most of my mom's siblings, she has 12 siblings.
00:55I have family in Hawaii, but my mom, we all live in Seattle.
00:58So how come?
00:59And your dad?
01:00My dad passed away, like, a couple months ago.
01:04Sorry, buddy.
01:06So who got you into music?
01:09My dad.
01:10Ah.
01:11He taught me.
01:12He's the reason for all this, huh?
01:13Yeah.
01:14Okay.
01:15What's his name?
01:16Rodney.
01:17Rodney.
01:18Rodney, yeah.
01:19I could tell he meant a lot to you.
01:21Yeah.
01:22Yeah.
01:23Sorry, buddy.
01:24I got it, man.
01:25What are you going to do for us?
01:26Um, song.
01:30Take your time.
01:31Take your time.
01:32It's okay, man.
01:33You know, when you love so deeply, you feel so deeply.
01:36Yeah.
01:37And so what you're just giving us right now is the fact
01:39that you love that man so much, okay?
01:41Yeah.
01:42We're there with you.
01:43The song I'll be singing is a song,
01:46it's called Monsters by James Blunt.
01:48Monsters, okay.
01:49Yeah, it's a song I'm dedicating to my dad.
01:52All right.
01:53You want to take a moment?
01:54You all right?
01:55Yeah.
01:56I'm good, I'm good.
01:58You got to relax a little.
02:02laughs
02:04acoustic guitar plays
02:13Oh, before they turn off all the lights
02:21I won't read you your wrongs or your rights
02:26Time is gone
02:29Oh, I'll tell you goodnight, close the door
02:36I'll tell you I love you once more
02:40Time is gone
02:42So here it is
02:44I'm not your son
02:47You're not my father
02:49We're just two grown men saying goodbye
02:54No need to forget
02:57No need to forget
02:59I know your mistakes and you know mine
03:05While you're sleeping
03:07I'll try to make you proud
03:09So Daddy, won't you just close your eyes
03:13Don't be afraid
03:16It's my turn to chase the monsters away
03:22Sleep a lifetime
03:26Yes, and breathe a last word
03:31You can feel my hand on your own
03:39I'm not your son
03:41You're not my father
03:44We're just two grown men saying goodbye
03:49No need to forget
03:51No need to forget
03:53I know your mistakes and you know mine
03:59While you're sleeping
04:01I'll try to make you proud
04:03So Daddy, won't you just close your eyes
04:07Don't be afraid
04:10It's my turn to chase the monsters away
04:16Oh, sorry.
04:17That's all right, man.
04:18That's all right, man.
04:19Whoo!
04:21Whew!
04:23Hmm.
04:25I was not worried about
04:27whether you were gonna make it through the song.
04:31I was worried about whether
04:32we were gonna make it through the song.
04:34Your daddy's very proud.
04:35Thank you so much.
04:36I mean, what a fantastic song to pick.
04:40Oh, thank God for telling me.
04:41I feel like you could have written this song.
04:45I mean, you sang it, you delivered it,
04:47and you're making these grown men cry.
04:50You hit a nerve.
04:53And that's what great storytellers do.
04:55That's what great artists do,
04:56and your voice is just so magnificent.
04:59It really is.
05:01I cannot handle your heart breaking
05:03about your dad,
05:04because, you know, my nephew lost his dad,
05:07and he came to live with me,
05:08and just seeing you missing your dad just sucks.
05:14And gosh, man, you just got a great voice.
05:18You got a great voice.
05:21You just did everything perfect,
05:22and I love you, and I want to just want to see you
05:26have fun in this whole thing, man.
05:29It's just awesome.
05:32Awesome what you just did.
05:33I mean, you're 18 years old.
05:35Oh, yeah, yeah.
05:36Let me just tell you something.
05:38The story is one thing.
05:40Your delivery of your story was phenomenal.
05:46Luke, what's your vote?
05:47Obviously, I'm a yes.
05:48You're gonna be all right, Luke.
05:49I'm a yes.
05:51This one's for Rodney.
05:53Yeah.
05:54I'm a yes.
05:55Thank you so much.
05:56Thank you so much.
05:57It's a yes for me,
05:58and young man, you take this into the world,
06:03and you're gonna fracture some souls.
06:07Thank you so much.
06:08The greatest thing we can say to you at this moment...
06:13You're going to Hollywood, man.
06:15Okay?
06:18Oh, I got to give him a hug.
06:19I know.
06:20No, man, that was awesome, buddy.
06:22Thank you, man.
06:23Great job.
06:24Thank you, man.
06:25Great job.
06:26All my life, my dad told me that singing is the only thing
06:28that was meant for me.
06:30Whoo-hoo!
06:33The main reason why I did music is because of my dad.
06:36That's how me and my dad bonded,
06:38but ever since he passed away, you know, it's been hard.
06:42This one's for Rodney.
06:44Yeah.
06:45Oh, my dad.
06:47Yeah.
06:49♪♪♪
06:56People thought I cried, you know, because I miss him,
06:58but it's because I hear him singing.
07:00I can hear his harmony.
07:02I can hear, like, how he would harmonize with me in that song.
07:07He always wanted me to come to American Idol.
07:10See, so I'm trying to make him proud of me.
07:15I know, I know he's with me through our music.
07:17He'll always be with me.
07:19I love you, Dad.
07:21♪♪♪