Just like her “Golden Buzzer” performance during the “Judge Cuts” episode of America’s Got Talent in July, 10-year-old singer Angelica Hale is definitely on fire when she got enough votes to advance into the grand finals of the hit reality singing show.
If she wins tomorrow (Sept. 20 in the US), Angelica will be the youngest grand winner of AGT and the seventh singer to walk home with the coveted prize. Last year’s winner was singer-songwriter Grace VanderWaal, 12, and the first season winner was singer Bianca Ryan, who was only 11 when she won.
Last week, approximately 11.59 million viewers watched the live semifinals result night when the young Filipino American singer was announced part of the final round of the competition. Angelica is the youngest in the top 10 competing against five other singers, a dog act, a stand-up comedian, and two dance groups for a chance to bring home $1 million.
In the semifinal round, the young powerhouse singer blew the judges away as she stood confidently on the stage and flawlessly sang Usher and David Guetta’s 2011 chart-topper, “Without You.” Nailing every single note, Angelica shone like a star against the huge sparkling backdrop.
“You deserve to be there next week, you really do,” judge Howie Mandel said while praising the performance. “Another wow moment, for years, and that range, and the control you have with that voice. You made tonight tougher than it could ever be. What a great closing to our show.”
Angelica has impressed the judges since her auditions for the show in June. During her first appearance, the then nine-year-old belted out the emotional lyrics of Andra Day’s “Rise Up.” The Atlanta, Georgia native, who said she wanted to be the next Whitney Houston, showed a vocal range and talent far beyond her age that simply stunned everyone in the room.
“This shouldn’t happen. You’re tiny. Your voice is huge,” Simon Cowell told the young singer after her performance. “You are absolutely brilliant. I predict that all of your dreams are going to come true.”
The video of Angelica’s audition immediately went viral, with over two million views garnered on America’s Got Talent’s YouTube channel less than 24 hours after the show’s broadcast. As of this writing, the video has been viewed more than eight million times and the full audition already has more than 21 million views.
As the momentum continued for the talented young singer in the show’s 12th season, she received the “Golden Buzzer” from guest judge and comedian Chris Hardwick after singing Alicia Keys’s “Girl on Fire.” For the second time, she concluded her performance with a well-deserved standing ovation from the crowd and the judges.
Meanwhile, Angelica’s spot in America’s Got Talent revealed a touching backstory. Prior to Angelica’s audition, her parents opened up to Tyra Banks, the show’s presenter, how they never thought she would be on the AGT stage, as she needed a life-saving kidney transplant when she was only four years old. In 2013, Angelica was on life support. It was only until discovering that her Filipina mother, Eva Bolando, was a match and the two went into surgery for a transplant.
Since her recovery, Angelica has been touring around the US through her participation in fundraisers to help young patients in children’s hospitals.