Reviewed by: Liv George
Montgomery teen sings his way to a Golden Buzzer on America’s Got Talent
Reading time: 3 minutes
If you audition for America’s Got Talent, you’re hoping to get just enough yes votes to make it through to the next round. But 14-year-old Reid Wilson got much more than that when he got on stage.
The Montgomery teen battled through the nerves before singing and bringing the crowd to their feet. The performance inspired one judge to use the Golden Buzzer, sending Wilson straight to the live shows.
Keep reading to find out more about Wilson’s performances + how you can keep up with the teen moving forward.
‘You Don’t Own Me’
For his performance, Reid Wilson selected a song that is nearly five decades older than him. There were certainly some early nerves to fight through but once he hit the chorus, it was like the song was made for him.
Reid sang “You Don’t Own Me” by Lesley Gore from 1963. After the slow start to the song, Wilson hit all of his big notes and got a genuine reaction from the crowd + the judges.
After the performance ended, Simon Cowell said he was not expecting that kind of performance. The other judges said they could hear the nerves at the beginning but he turned things around and had one of the best performances of the competition.
Howie Mandel was impressed enough to give out one of his two passes to the live shows by pressing the Golden Buzzer.
“I was bowled over because I was surprised. I was surprised because first of all, you’re just a 14-year-old kid from Alabama so I would imagine, if i put myself in your position, you were very nervous. You did come off incredibly nervous so that was a surprise. That stage is where dreams come true.”
~ Howie Mandel, judge of America’s Got Talent
Wilson’s audition already had more than 2 million views on the America’s Got Talent YouTube page in less than 48 hours. Watch the full performance below.
What’s next for Reid Wilson?
The auditions will continue to air through July 23 but the live shows will not begin until August 13. The live shows will span over seven weeks with performances happening on Tuesday night and result shows airing on Wednesdays.
The finale of America’s Got Talent Season 19 is slated for Tuesday, September 24. It airs on NBC with next-day streaming available on Peacock.
Make sure to check out some other Alabamians who have recently been on TV competitions:
- Pair of Alabama chefs competing in MasterChef: Generations
- Selma’s Asher HaVon wins it all on The Voice
- Opelika’s Bryson McGlynn wins MasterChef Junior
- McIntosh native eliminated just before American Idol finale
What did you think about Reid Wilson’s performance? Let us know by tagging The Bama Buzz on Instagram, X, Facebook + LinkedIn.
