Current:Home > News'America's Got Talent' recap: Simon Cowell breaks Golden Buzzer rule for 'epic' audition--DB Wealth Institute B2 Reviews Insights
'America's Got Talent' recap: Simon Cowell breaks Golden Buzzer rule for 'epic' audition
View Date:2025-01-20 00:07:37
Rules? What rules?
Simon Cowell flouted the "America's Got Talent" bylaws on Tuesday's episode to issue his second golden buzzer of the season for an "epic" (Howie Mandel's description) and "breathtaking" (per Sofía Vergara) drone show by Sky Elements.
It's a new season with new rules, apparently: Cowell, who created the show, paved the way for all of the judges (as well as host Terry Crews and the audience) to have two Golden Buzzers to dole out in Season 19.
Episode 2 had more goofs than last week's premiere — which featured a creepy child contortionist, a gravity-defying ballerina and a singing janitor who's gone viral — as the judges (including Heidi Klum), gave out near-immediate buzzers to some acts to boot them off the "AGT" stage ASAP.
Among the singers, synchronized dancers, musicians and circus talents of varying abilities was powerhouse vocalist Liv Warfield, who has shared a stage with Prince and gave an impressive showing with a full jazz band. The energetic performance earned Cowell's first Golden Buzzer.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
Meanwhile, the other singing act, North Carolina country rock band Ashes & Arrows, divided the judges with their song (“This was a great song in a pub” Mandel said to massive boos), though they ultimately made it through.
Here are the highlights from "AGT" Episode 2.
Catch up on last week:Beyoncé collaborator earns Simon Cowell's praise
Sofia Vergara begs 'Make it stop' as performer swallows huge scissors
"Asia's Got Talent" alum Bao Cuong showed off a stomach-churning — yet awe-striking — routine involving a massive pair of scissors, knives and a pair of drums attached to his throat and eyelids.
The performance was not for the faint of heart, and one point Vergara walked away from the table before begging Cowell to "Make it stop." Cuong first drove a knife into each of his nostrils as a warm-up. After this appetizer for the horrified crowd, he removed them and attached clips to his eyes before swallowing a comically massive pair of scissors.
He capped off his performance by lifting what seemed to be three decorative pots with chains attached to his eyes and throat. "I do this every day, like eating rice," he told the judges in Vietnamese, via a translator, once the sharp objects had been safely removed from his facial orifices.
Cowell had the opposite reaction from his colleagues: It was "one of my favorite acts tonight," he said.
"I hope that your mother never sees you doing this," Vergara told Cuong. He replied: "My mother approved this."
Despite some reluctance on Vergara's part, the judges awarded the performer four yeses.
Tanzanian acrobats balance on each other's heads, shoulders: 'Heart-stopping'
Tanzania's Hakuna Matata Acrobatic also tempted fate Tuesday night with a "heart-stopping" routine that had the four members doing gravity-defying moves to make various human pyramids.
As one acrobat balanced on a small platform atop a rolling cylinder, he held his teammates aloft while they climbed on top of his shoulders. One move, which seemingly had one performer upside-down and balancing with his head atop another man's as he balanced on the rolling platform, appeared to evade the acrobats.
They fell (safely) several times, causing a stressed-out Vergara to seek comfort from Klum. In their peak pose, one man held himself aloft with just one arm on the head of his colleague, who was standing on the shoulders of two men balanced on the precarious board.
Despite the earlier hiccup, four stuck the landing on their other moves, earning a "yes" from each judge.
"I was on the edge of my seat. I was so nervous for the four of you," Klum said. "It was incredible to watch."
"It's acts like this that give me one word, and that is: Unbelievable," Mandel said.
veryGood! (65)
Related
- Is Veterans Day a federal holiday? Here's what to know for November 11
- North Carolina GOP leaders reach spending deal to clear private school voucher waitlist
- Jennifer Lopez Rocks Revenge Dress at TIFF Premiere of Her and Ben Affleck’s Film Amid Divorce
- A man who attacked a Nevada judge in court pleads guilty but mentally ill
- Martha Stewart playfully pushes Drew Barrymore away in touchy interview
- Investigators say Wisconsin inmate killed his cellmate for being Black and gay
- Police have upped their use of Maine’s ‘yellow flag’ law since the state’s deadliest mass shooting
- Apple juice sold at Walmart, Aldi, Walgreens, BJ's, more recalled over arsenic levels
- Louisiana man kills himself and his 1-year-old daughter after a pursuit
- Which late-night talk show is the last to drop a fifth night?
Ranking
- Crews battle 'rapid spread' conditions against Jennings Creek fire in Northeast
- Cheeseheads in Brazil: Feeling connected to the Packers as Sao Paulo hosts game
- Dolphins All-Pro CB Jalen Ramsey gets 3-year extension worth $24.1 million per year, AP source says
- Nebraska is evolving with immigration spurring growth in many rural counties
- Mississippi Valley State football player Ryan Quinney dies in car accident
- Police have upped their use of Maine’s ‘yellow flag’ law since the state’s deadliest mass shooting
- New Hampshire Democratic candidates for governor target Republican Kelly Ayotte in final debate
- Was Abraham Lincoln gay? A new documentary suggests he was a 'lover of men'
Recommendation
-
Former North Carolina labor commissioner becomes hospital group’s CEO
-
A US mother accused of killing 2 of her children fights extradition in London
-
Michael Keaton recalls his favorite 'Beetlejuice' scenes ahead of new movie
-
Kate Middleton Shares Rare Statement Amid Cancer Diagnosis
-
Sofia Richie Reveals 5-Month-Old Daughter Eloise Has a Real Phone
-
Man arrested in the 1993 cold case killing of 19-year-old Carmen Van Huss
-
Noah Cyrus Channels Sister Miley Cyrus With Must-See New Look
-
A small plane from Iowa crashed in an Indiana cornfield, killing everyone onboard