Lights! Camera! PERFORM! America’s Got Talent has returned for a twentieth season and is better than ever. Hundreds of acts from all over the United States come together to showcase their talents and compete for a chance to win one million dollars. If performers develop an act that shocks viewers, then they have a shot of getting a Golden Buzzer from one of the judges or the show’s host, Terry Crews. It is the second year in history where all four judges and host Terry Crews are allowed two golden buzzers to hit on their favorite acts. Let’s recap what happened in the auditions.
Audition Highlights
Nobody knows what to expect when performers come on the AGT stage, the act will either be absolutely shocking or incredibly disappointing. Judge Howie Mandel started by hitting the first golden buzzer of the season to street musician Jourdan Blue. Blue performed a cover of The Script’s “Breakeven,” which gave everyone goosebumps and turned him into an icon. During the same set of auditions, multimedia dance group “Lightwire” came on and performed a mind-blowing act that left Simon Cowell so speechless, he hit his golden buzzer on them.
Not much happened in the 2nd auditions. However, there was an unexpected reappearance by the Messoudi Brothers, who were on season 14 of AGT. Back then, they were a three-person group. Now there are two, as the third one decided to take a break and be a full-time dad. The Messoudi Brothers performed a jaw-dropping act where they juggled swords while stripping. It was so dangerous, yet so perfect, that judge Mel B hit her golden buzzer on them.
The third set of auditions had a surprising twist, as singer Charity Lockhart, who used to live in a car with her children, performed “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” She was unfortunately stopped by Cowell, who believed Lockhart’s rendition didn’t go correctly. She was able to switch to a different song, which was her cover of Golden Slumbers. It was much better than the last one, with Mel using her final golden buzzer on the act.
The fourth set of auditions started with a bang when the Funkateer Dancers took the stage. The group has been performing together for 45 years, starting the year they won their high school talent show. The act had the whole audience hyped up, with Cowell intending to hit the golden buzzer on them, but host Terry Crews snuck up from behind and stole the buzzer from him. Cowell was jokingly annoyed, but accepted the golden buzzer for Crews.
The fifth set of auditions had a lot of controversy as Mel B said no to multiple acts in a row. There was a surprise appearance by Wes P, a previous participant on AGT in 2017 and then AGT: Fantasy League in 2024. Mel hit her red buzzer on him during the first two appearances, and her opinion of him did not change at all.
In the sixth set of auditions, Cowell used his second golden buzzer on Birmingham Youth Fellowship Choir, where Alabama students of all ages joined together and sang as a whole for audiences. They’ve been a choir for 10 years and continue to expand with more students who want to sing.
The seventh set of auditions was filled with suspense. For example, a surprise appearance was made by singer and songwriter Jessica Sanchez. She was on the first season of AGT and got eliminated in the semi-finals. After that, she performed on American Idol and finished second. Now she is back on the AGT stage and performed her cover of Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” while pregnant. It was one of the most unexpected moments on AGT that season, and judge Sofia Vergara used her second golden buzzer on her. Another great act performing on stage was Canadian pop duo, Crash Adams. They performed their original song, “Optimist” and it got the audience on their feet. They got four yeses from all the judges and were sent through.
Forty-four acts were sent through to the live shows this year, now it’s up to the audience to choose their winner.
Quarter-Final Highlights
Like last year, each of the judges gets to hit a single golden buzzer in the quarter-finals for their favorite act and send them straight to the finals. In the first quarter-final, Vergara had control of the golden buzzer and used it on country artist Steve Ray Ladson with his original song, “Boots Like Mine.” The results started off with rock band Def Leppard performing “Pour Some Sugar on Me” as a guest. Three people, by audience vote, advanced to the semifinals. Lightwire performed their greatest special effects act, blowing everyone away. Sirca Marea performed a risky aerial act that had the whole audience in awe and suspense. Jourdan Blue performed a rendition of Calum Scott’s “Biblical.” However, after his performance, Simon Cowell stated that the performer had had food poisoning before performing, and that he could have either failed or not performed at all.
There was much hype in the second quarter-finals. Mel had control of the golden buzzer and used it on rapper Mama Duke, with her original rap song, “Welcome to the Mama Duke Show.” The people who advanced to the semi-finals were Unreal Crew, Leo High School Choir and Bay Melnick Virgolino. Unreal Crew, after getting Howie Mandel’s second golden buzzer in the auditions, performed a sci-fi dance routine that hyped up the audience. Leo High School Choir blew the audience away by singing “Believer” by Imagine Dragons. Bay Melnick Virgolino energizes his audience with his song, “I Love to Rock’ n Roll.”
The third quarter-final had so many inspirational acts. Cowell was in control of the golden buzzer and used it on rapper Micah Palace, who performed his song, “Rodeo.” The people who advanced were Mastermind, Chris Turner and Jessica Sanchez. Mastermind combined technology and magic to create a crazy, unexpected moment. However, it was later announced that Mastermind withdrew from the competition due to football participation at his college along with a battle with COVID-19, keeping him from moving forward. Turner freestyled on the spot with the Judges’ suggestions on what to put in his song and created an iconic rap song. Sanchez, 8 months pregnant, sang her rendition of “Ordinary” by Alex Warren.
They saved the best for last on the 4th and the last quarterfinal. Team Recycled performed an explosive dance performance and got Mandel’s live golden buzzer. The acts that took the final three spots in the semi-finals were Zak Mirz, the TT Boys and Birmingham Youth Fellowship Choir. Mirz performed an interactive card trick that involved the judges, the whole audience and everyone watching at home. Howie initially hit the red buzzer on him, but then retracted it after the conclusion of Mirz’s act. The TT boys performed a high-stakes flipping act while balancing on each other’s feet, which left the audience standing in shock. The Birmingham Youth Fellowship Choir cheered up the audience with their cover of Praising You.
Semi-Final Highlights
The rounds went from 44 participants to 11 semi-finalists and 4 finalists. Since there are usually ten finalists, there are six spots to go through. The six semi-finalists who went through were freestyle rapper Chris Turner, aerialist duo Sirca Marea, Leo High School Choir, multimedia group Lightwire and singers Jessica Sanchez and Jourdan Blue. Their guest performer in the Semi-final results show was Portuguese quick-change artist Solange Kardinaly, who finished in fourth place on AGT in 2024.
Finale Highlights
From 44 different original acts, to just 10 acts that have been considered to be the most talented in America. The Finale results will have guest performers in the finalists’ second performance. Their main guest performer is AGT 2024 winner Richard Goodall. One act went home and took $1 million. The AGT 2025 winner is singer Jessica Sanchez, who made history as the first solo adult woman to win the show. AGT in 2025 had its exciting moments, its unexpected moments, its controversial moments and, in the end, it was another season with new and amazing acts.
