What happened to ‘American Idol’ winner Iam Tongi’s dad?

Season 21 of American Idol was arguably the fiercest in recent memory thanks to stiff competition between finalists Megan Danielle, Colin Stough, and Iam Tongi. From the outset, Tongi’s emotional backstory combined with his vocal chops made him a frontrunner, and on May 21, he sealed the deal as that season’s winner. 

When we met him at his audition, Tongi, 18, moved judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan to tears with his rendition of James Blunt’s emotional “Monsters,” a tribute to the singer’s father, who struggled with chronic kidney failure. Like Blunt, Tongi’s father also struggled with a chronic illness; he passed away months before Tongi’s Idol journey. 

Throughout the season, Tongi dedicated a number of performances to his father. During the latter half of the season, the young Hawaiian performer finally opened up about the illness that took his father’s life. In doing so, it brought context to why Blunt’s “Monsters” was so emotional in the first place. 

What happened to Iam Tongi’s dad?

Ahead of his “I’ll Be Seeing You” performance, Tongi shed light on his father’s fateful ailment. Although he didn’t specifically name the illness that took his life, he alluded to kidney failure as the ultimate reason, similar to Blunt’s father.

“The meaning of this song to me is when you lose someone you love, everything that you used to do with them reminds you of them. My dad had kidney failure and he used to go to dialysis. Every single time we pass a dialysis place. Oh look, it’s Dad. I just want people to understand where I’m coming from and to hopefully love the music.”

Tongi’s mother revealed earlier in the season that his father’s death almost caused him to quit singing. “When Iam’s dad passed away, he didn’t want to sing anymore,” she said. “He kept saying that every time he sings, he can hear his dad back him up. After talking with him, [I shared] with him that it’s a beautiful thing that he could hear his dad.”

In the season finale, Tongi experienced a full-circle moment when he got the opportunity to sing “Monsters” live alongside Blunt. Whereas he kept it together in his audition, this time around, the deeply personal lyrics proved too much to handle; Tongi barely made it through, moving us (and the rest of the world) to tears in the process. 

In his audition, Tongi shared that his father always wanted him to audition for American Idol. Now that he’s won, it goes without saying that his dad is undoubtedly beaming with pride.