‘AGT’ poll results: Viewers say Drake Milligan and Mayyas BOTH deserved to win ‘America’s Got Talent’
The Season 17 finale of “America’s Got Talent” aired Wednesday night on NBC, and viewers are mostly happy with the outcome. To recap, Lebanese dance group Mayyas (Sofia Vergara‘s Golden Buzzer) won the $1 million prize, while pole dancer/animator Kristy Sellars came in second place and country singer Drake Milligan finished third. But in our overnight poll that asked fans to vote on who REALLY deserved to win, their results were essentially tied between two acts: Drake nabbed 29% and Mayyas scored 28%. No other contestant received double digits. Here are the complete “AGT” poll results:
29% — Drake Milligan
28% — Mayyas
9% — Chapel Hart
9% — Kristy Sellars
8% — Sara James
7% — Metaphysic
5% — Avery Dixon
Less than 2% — Celia Munoz, Yu Hojin, Mike E. Winfield, Nicolas RIBS
SEE All Golden Buzzers on ‘AGT’ through the years
Heading into the final episode, Gold Derby users had given Drake the best odds to win, thanks no doubt to his songs topping the iTunes charts every time he performed. He also would have followed a long line of male singers to prevail, such as Neal E. Boyd, Kevin Skinner, Michael Grimm, Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. and Kodi Lee. Drake closed out the “AGT” live show on Tuesday night with his original hit “Sounds Like Something I’d Do,” the same song that dominated the charts after his original audition. Howie Mandel noted how the country crooner “brought it home.”
Mayyas were predicted to be the runner-up of the season, per our odds-makers, with their intricate dance movements wowing the world each week. The judges seemed to favor Mayyas in the final performance show, with Heidi Klum raving that the dancers are “what a million dollar act looks like” and Simon Cowell declaring, “I’m beginning to feel a buzz beyond the show.” They now become only the second dance act in “AGT” history to prevail after soloist Kenichi Ebina.
As the winners of NBC’s reality TV show, Mayyas have earned a $1 million cash prize and will headline the “America’s Got Talent” Las Vegas residency at the Luxor Hotel & Casino. That’s where former “AGT” superstars like Kodi Lee, Light Balance, Deadly Games, Duo Transcend, Silhouettes and The Clairvoyants make a living on a nightly basis.
In addition to our Top 11 finalists, the following A-list celebrities also performed live on Wednesday night: Black Eyed Peas, Darius Rucker, Trombone Shorty, Jeff Ross, Henry Winkler, Terry Fator, Light Balance, Shin Lim, Darci Lynne and Jon Pardi. In addition, former contestants/comedians Don McMillan, Mr. Pants and Lace Larrabee returned to roast Simon.