Iam Tongi Hawaii native wins American Idol 2023 season 21 Only 19 years old

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Iam Tongi Hawaii native wins American Idol 2023 season 21 Only 19 years old
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Transcript

00:00 Who is E.M. Tanji?

00:01 Hawaii Native wins American Idol 2023.

00:04 Back in February, American Idol fans saw Hawaiian resident E.M. Tanji being crowned as the winner

00:09 of Season 21.

00:11 Only 19 years old, Tanji had already broken multiple show records and impressed fans worldwide

00:16 to go all the way.

00:17 His first ever performance on the show, a rendition of "Monsters" by James Blunt,

00:22 became American Idol's most-watched performance on YouTube.

00:25 With over 16 million views, Tanji quickly became a star.

00:28 Taking inspiration from his father, his journey on American Idol resulted from his dad's

00:33 motivation and support.

00:34 The American Idol 2021 winner recently released his first single and is on his way to becoming

00:39 a bonafide household name.

00:40 Originally from Hawaii, E.M. Tanji belongs to Kuhuku, a small town in the Oahu region

00:45 of Hawaii.

00:46 Winner of the 21st season of the show, Tanji's performances were followed closely by his

00:50 father, who attended each of them.

00:52 The Hawaiian also has traces of the Tongan, Samoan, and Irish heritage.

00:57 His original brand of music also takes inspiration from the regions he belongs to.

01:01 E.M.

01:02 Tanji is originally a classical singer.

01:03 His family relocated in 2020 due to a high cost of living in Hawaii.

01:07 This is also something he shared during his journey on the show.

01:10 Tanji's attempt to enter a previous season of the show failed after he could not qualify

01:14 past the initial screening.

01:15 Regardless, he returned for Season 21 after having consistently worked to improve his

01:20 music, something his father supported all along the way.

01:23 This included creating a routine involving wearing a warm scarf around his neck for hours

01:27 daily.

01:28 Tanji revealed on the show that he had to overcome various challenges and had issues

01:31 with his throat.

01:32 Regardless, his victory on the show broke multiple records.

01:35 E.M.

01:36 Tanji became the first person from Hawaii to win the American Idol competition.

01:40 He was also the first Pacific Islander to win the title, which works well with the kind

01:44 of diversity his original singing and music style possesses.

01:47 E.M. Tanji sang "Monsters" with James Blunt back in August.

01:50 "Monsters" was the song that Tanji sang during his audition.

01:53 However, life changes quickly.

01:55 In August, a few months after his American Idol success, Tanji released a cover of the

02:00 song featuring Blunt.

02:01 The collaboration marked a proud moment in his career and represented a bonafide full

02:05 circle.

02:06 The last few months have been highly eventful for Tanji in a positive sense.

02:09 He recently released his new original single "Waikiki" and has recently been involved

02:14 in raising awareness for the Maui wildfires.

02:16 Tanji has become a bigger success and has recently been on his first ever tour.

02:20 He initially planned limited destinations and recently expanded the tour to the East

02:24 Coast.

02:25 Still aged only 19, Tanji has a range of musical talents.

02:29 Apart from being a singer, he plays the acoustic guitar and the ukulele.

02:32 Tanji's initial attempt at American Idol season 20 failed.

02:36 He attended the Federal Way High School and graduated from the Decatur High School in

02:39 Washington.

02:40 Tanji is now a full-time musician and has found a lot of success in recent months.

02:45 Other recent initiatives he has participated in include headlining the MLB 2023 Home Run

02:49 Derby.

02:50 His career has grown consistently after being announced as the winner of American Idol 21

02:54 in May.

02:55 Tanji sang his original song "I'll Be Seeing You In The Final" and impressed fans by adding

02:59 an original classical twist to the three-hour finale.

Iam Tongi Hawaii native wins American Idol 2023 season 21 Only 19 years old

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Transcript

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