Voices echoed through the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City as young adults sang along to songs by “American Idol” Season 21 winner Iam Tongi on Aug. 14.
Tongi, a 21-year-old Latter-day Saint from Hawaii, headlined the 2026 Utah Area Young Single Adult Conference concerts on both Friday and Saturday, Aug. 14-15. He performed several of his own songs and shared his mother’s favorite gospel song, “Consider the Lilies.”
“I love this song because it talks about the beauty of God’s creations,” Tongi said before performing the song. “The birds, the bees, the trees and the mountains.”
Throughout the night, Tongi used his music to share his testimony of Jesus Christ and connect with the conference theme, “Together in Christ.”
He was joined throughout the evening by several guest artists, each bringing a different sound and message to the stage.
Interfaith musical group the King will come opened the concert, adding a different musical style to the evening. Reggae artist Junior Maile brought an upbeat island sound, while Nela Otuafi performed “How Can I Be,” sharing his testimony of the Book of Mormon through song.
“Listen to the words,” Otuafi said to the audience. “This is my testimony of the Book of Mormon.”
Together, the performances created an atmosphere of faith and worship throughout the convention center.
“The Spirit is here today,” said Lizzy Lang, a YSA attending from St. George, Utah.
Lang drove to Salt Lake City with her institute peers, seeking a weekend filled with the Spirit. As she is currently working on paperwork to serve as a missionary, Lang said she hoped being edified by the Spirit throughout the conference would help her decide if she was ready to submit the papers.
Lang said her favorite part of the weekend was the breakout classes, where she felt the Spirit teach her.
“They are all just mini testimony meetings and opportunities for the Spirit to teach me what I need to learn,” she said. “I am not only learning from the teachers horizontally, but also vertically. I am receiving revelations and inspiration of what I need to hear prompted by the speakers and the discussions.”
For Lang and other young adults, the concert was just one part of a weekend designed to incorporate worship, learning, service and social activities.
Young adults gathered for service projects, devotionals, classes, family history activities and opportunities to meet and connect with one another. With activities ranging from karaoke and line dancing to speed dating, the conference offered young adults opportunities to build friendships and gather with others who share their values.
Joseph Christiansen, a YSA from Alpine, Utah, said the conference exceeded his expectations.
“I didn’t entirely know what to expect, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised coming here,” he said. “It’s all been really good.”
