Family members, friends and neighbors cheered and screamed Sunday when “American Idol” show emcee Ryan Seacrest announced that 18-year-old, Kahuku-born-and-raised Iam Tongi was one of the three contestants who will go for the title this Sunday.

After the first two finalists — Colin Stough and Megan Danielle — were announced in what seemed to be short order, Seacrest took his time announcing the final spot. All it took was the word “Kahuku” and the hometown crowd went wild while watching the TV under a tent at a Windward Oahu home.

The theme of the week had been songs with ties to Disney projects, and from that lengthy list Tongi chose two that drew on his cultural identity as a Polynesian American and on his personal experiences. For the first round he sang “Lava,” the title song of the 2014 Pixar Animation Studios computer-animated musical short film about a lonely Pacific island volcano; the song had been recorded for the film by Na Hoku Hanohano Awards winners Kuana Torres Kahele and Napua Greig. The second song was “Father and Son,” by Yusuf/Cat Stevens, which was on the soundtrack of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.”

To celebrate Tongi making it to the finale, an “American Idol” crew will be on Oahu to cover the action Tuesday when he returns for a local performance. Tongi, his ohana and the senior class of Kahuku High School will leave the Polynesian Cultural Center at 4 p.m. and travel in a trolley convoy on Kamehameha Highway to the Turtle Bay Resort, where he will headline a free concert that starts at 5:15 p.m. Parking is limited to 3,000 vehicles; gates open at 3:30 p.m. For more information, go to teamtongi.com.

The show’s season finale airs live at 2 p.m. Sunday on ABC (re-airs at 7 p.m.).

Visit abc.com/shows/american-idol.