But American Idol In the season 21 premiere, a soft-spoken Hawaiian singer-songwriter named Im Tongi barely made it through her emotional audition. The 18-year-old’s biggest supporter and inspiration, his musician father, had passed away just two months earlier, and the staggering loss made Iam consider giving up music altogether – until his mother signed him up. Did statue, when i’m sweet and sincere Sings “Monsters” by James Blunt (which Blunt wrote to his own gravely ill father in 2019) In the face of that pivotal day, it was a moment Lionel Richie said had the potential to “stir some souls”.
That raw performance, which aired in February, became the most viral moment of season 21, garnering a combined 45 million views on YouTube and Facebook, and established Iam as this year’s frontrunner and fan favorite. Iam keeping that position till sunday statue finale, when after a live coast-to-coast vote, he defeated country singers Megan Daniels and Colin Stuff to become the show’s newly crowned champion.
And in a full-circle moment that was arguably even more memorable than the finale’s actual winning announcement, on Sunday, Iam and James Blunt teamed up for a truly soul-wrenching “Monsters” duet. I’m in tears once again. James wept as did the judges, and even Blunt’s fellow final guest star, country rebel Jelly Roll’s face tattooed on, sobbed as he watched.
Given Iam’s massive and unstoppable popularity, his victory was hardly a shock. On last week’s Top Five show, judge Katy Perry boldly predicted that Iam going to be the next American Idol. Throughout the season, the judges have been amazed by the screams of the studio audience week after week, and this week, during a trip to their hometown of Kahuka, Hawaii, they put on a truly tremendous performance. 14,000 Fans at Turtle Bay Resort. (It should be noted that I am now the first contestant from Hawaii to win the show. Born in Hawaii statue Alumni Jasmine Trias, who made it to third place in Season 3, was also in Sunday’s final audience to cheer her on.)
However, given how well male country singers usually perform statueThis Was Little wonder then that, after a first round of 13 million real-time votes, Colin Stuff placed third, When all three finalists performed songs from guest mentor Keith Urban plus Hometown Dedication on Sunday, Young and Colin Green began to buckle under the pressure of finale night. Megan’s Urban presentation “God whispers your name” And “loyalty” of travel Earned a standing ovation for what Lionel called her “natural BBQ-sauce abilities” and I.A.M. “Making Our Memories” (which judge Luke Bryan declared “one of my favorite performances of the year”) and the cover of “Cool Down” by Kolohe Kai Of course the audience chanted his name wildly. In contrast, Colin was nervous and on the pitch Keith’s “Stupid Boy,” Although he was more solid on his second song, Chris Stapleton’s “Air Way”. Regardless, Colin had no professional experience prior to trying out for statue, so he should be very proud of his third place finish. “Glad to see how you’ve grown. You’ve come so far,” Luke told Colin.
Iam and Megan then performed their potential coronation singles: Megan’s “Dream Girl”, which was co-written by season 17 finalist Lacy Kay Booth, and Iam’s “I’ll Be Seeing You”, which was co-written by season 18 finalist Lacy Kay Booth. Written by Francisco Martin. Of the two, Iam got the better song, but at this point, it was clear that Iam could have said “No Boundaries” or “This Is My Now” and he still would have easily prevailed.
Packed with Sunday’s performances, other highlights of the three-hour finale included the Top 12 Divas Natsya duets with international pop sensation Kylie Minoguetotally robbed We’re Joining Fierce Forces With Annie Jazmine Sullivan, Zachariah Smith Teaming Up With REO Speedwagon’s Kevin CroninLucy is joining T-Boz and Chili for Love Lively TLC Hits MedleyMegan reunion with lauren daigle (which surprised Megan during her audition), and Katy generously duets with Haven Madison on Heaven’s own excellent original, “I Still Need You”. But the most heartwarming duet of the night — aside from Iam and James Blunt’s “Monsters” — had to be “The Impossible Dream” by beloved alumni Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken.
Exactly 20 years ago, 38 million viewers tuned in to see Ruben’s victory American Idol Season 2, on the highest rated single episode statue History, and both Reuben and Clay achieved enormous success. obviously, statue doesn’t pull those 2003 numbers anymore (no television show does in this streaming age), but it’s quite possible that Iam and Megan could become another iconic statue pairing, with record deals and radio hits of their own. Just before Tom dims the lights and host Ryan Seacrest announces Im’s victory, Katy imagines Im’s father, as well as Megan’s beloved late grandfather “Paw-Paw” (whose presence and influence throughout season 21). was also felt), holding hands in Heaven watching the Sunday finale together. And whatever happens next, both contestants definitely made their late fathers proud tonight.
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