On July 23, 2024, the eighth episode of “America’s Got Talent” season 19 aired with a the last group of auditions and the announcement of yet another Golden Buzzer. Host Terry Crews welcomed back judges Heidi Klum, Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, and Sofia Vergara, with performances from this diverse group as well as some memorable acts that failed to move forward.
But who were the best acts from this episode? And did any move forward that shouldn’t have? Below we rank the 11 acts who advanced from worst to best. Do any of Tuesday’s acts have what it takes to win the million dollars this year?
SEE ‘America’s Got Talent’ season 19: Who was your favorite act from ‘AGT’ Auditions 8? [POLL]
Season 19 Episode 8 Rankings:
11. Hayley Viloria: A major part of the puzzle on any reality TV competition is to be memorable. Personality wise, she is an A+. The performance itself was just ok though. We have seen these tricks before on past seasons. I agreed with Howie, but loved that she is now on a mission to win over Mr. Mandel.
10. Black Peppers: Good news is that he was memorable and unique. On the opposite side of the coin, this was easily the worst act of the night. Social media was very conflicted on this one, but Simon was the most surprised to see the other members of the act. Also, a good reason to watch “Alien” this week. I want to see them in the live rounds just to see what else they have up their sleeves.
9. Kelsey Jane: In terms of memorability, this audition was not a home run. Where she was better than her direct competition in this episode was presentation and song choice. She clearly knows that it’s a giant puzzle and everything needs to fit perfectly. Once more, we have seen these tricks before, so I am still iffy on how far she will go if she were to advance to the live rounds.
8. Journeyy: The award for most adorable act of the night goes to Journeyy, who was visibly nervous. Yet, once he started singing, the nerves melted away. I am not a fan of original songs, but this one was good. He is going to be amazing the older he gets. Might I suggest a John Legend song next time?
7. Prilepin Quartet: This act is a perfect example of a diamond in the rough. Their talent is undeniable and quite honestly, blew me away. Where this act needs to improve is not in the talent itself, but the presentation. Firstly, they needs to dress more comfortably for this since the outfits were giving “Borat” meets “The Oneders”. Secondly, they also need to choose more exciting music than an Elton John ballad for this. Outside of that, I was impressed.
6. Brooke Bailey: Brooke had no signs of nerves and delivered a killer vocal of an Aretha Franklin classic. More importantly, she is insanely likable and reminded me of Jordin Sparks meets Etta James. She might be the singer to beat.
5. Corkey Miller: This stand-up comedian was the biggest surprise of the night for me. I also loved that she runs an animal rescue. Her material was perfect for a sitcom in all honesty. NBC are you listening? Her likability is going to be a major asset in the competition.
4. Jonathan Burns: This audition was perfection in my mind. A+ for the involvement of the judges and the comedy as well. The trick itself was insanely creative too. This performance blew my mind…even if Simon is not on board.
3. Alejandro Licea Pellon: This audition blew my mind. For a man that claimed to be nervous, Alejandro did not show it whatsoever. We might have just seen the biggest dark horse of the season so far! I cannot wait to see what he does next.
2. Xpogo Stunt Team: Kicking off the night, this group wanted to not only to save the sport of the pogo stick, but somehow made it look cool. I was expecting a train wreck and got the most satisfying audition of the night in terms of remembering not to judge a book by its cover. I could watch them all day. I truly hope they make the live rounds and include even riskier tricks the next time around.
1. Airfootworks: Mentored by Kenichi Ebina, an AGT winner just might give them a leg up on the competition. This performance was perfection. I could watch this performance all day. You can just tell that they have even more up their sleeves and love to entertain. They just also might be my new frontrunners to win the entire season.
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