America’s Got Talent returned to NBC on Tuesday, September 9. During the final quarterfinals, Howie Mandel got to pick the Golden Buzzer. The judge waited until last minute choosing Team Recycled as his Golden Buzzer recipient.
Magician Brings Audience, At-Home Viewers into Act
Tuesday night’s AGT episode began with Canadian pop duo Crash Adams. The pair sang another original song on the stage. This act unfortunately didn’t impress the judges. Mandel admitted that their audition was much better than their quarterfinal performance, while Simon Cowell admitted a live performance is much harder.
Up next was magician Zak Mirz. Before the act, Terry Crews instructed the audience to write down four animals on four separate pieces of paper. Zak had the judges, audience, and viewers at home (including me!) perform a series of shuffling, until everyone picked a card and sat on it. Mandel hit his red buzzer for the act, because it took too long to get to the point. At the end, the cards all lined up, except Mandels. He had a mis-match of animals, the magician then produced a stuffed animal of Mandel’s animal.
Howie Mandel ALMOST Hits Golden Buzzer for Acrobat Group
The first fake out of the night was for acrobat group, TT Boys. The pair returned to the stage with another incredible act. They once again performed a flipping act where one of the men laid down while the other got flipped by his legs. The pair then brought up the danger for the quarterfinals by putting a blindfold on the man that’s getting spun. He then stopped spinning and landed on the other man’s feet. It was absolutely incredible.
Mandel couldn’t decide whether he was going to give the group a Golden Buzzer or not. The audience went wild, but Mandel couldn’t do it.
After the excitement of TT Boys, Cole Swenson and his mother Judy brought the energy down with a somber rendition of “Birds of a Feather” by Billie Eilish. Although this performance was solid, Mandel said it was “weird” for Cole to sing a love song with his mother sitting right next to him.
Following this act was fellow singer, Chuck Adams who returned to the stage singing “Wonderwall” by Oasis. The audience and judges loved the way Chuck made this rendition unique to himself. Mandel called Chuck the “whole package” saying he has a “good look.” Once again, Mandel chose to not hit his Golden Buzzer.
Later, Mike Munz returned in place of Astrid Jorgensen. The bodybuilder showed off his muscles to LMFAO’s “Sexy And I Know It.” Cowell and Mandel hit their red buzzers for this act, saying it wasn’t really an act.
Terry Crews’ Golden Buzzers Win Over Audiences’ Heart, not Mandels
It seemed like Terry Crews’ Golden Buzzers were set to be the stars of this episode, but both fell a little flat. The Funkateer Dancers, returned to the stage with yet another funky dance routine. Mandel called this act “pure joy” saying that they give him a good feeling, but that was about it.
Later, Terry’s second Golden Buzzer, The Boykinz performed another original song. The judges admitted that the group’s harmonies are really great, but otherwise, their act didn’t really step it up. Mandel admitted that their act didn’t step it up enough for him.
Mandel Finally Hits Golden Buzzer for Dance Group
At this point, it felt like Mandel wasn’t going to hit the Golden Buzzer at all. Dancer Gendai took the stage performing dance with a mix of both routine and lazers. After the act, judges admitted that it wasn’t a step up from his audition, this performance was not as impressive.
After Gendai, German dance group, Team Recycled returned to the stage with an intense and intricate dance. The dance group was very reminiscent of Murmuration (with one single person in the middle with members surrounding, repeating motions to the song’s beat). Mandel was the first judge to speak about this act, saying that he’s been looking for an act to step up their game. He then hit the Golden Buzzer for the act.
Simon Cowell’s Golden Buzzer, Birmingham Youth Choir was the final act of the night. The choir performed an energetic gospel song. The judges admitted that the group “did not disappoint” after their amazing Golden Buzzer audition. Cowell was thrilled to see them succeed in the live shows.
Voting for the final AGT quarterfinal ends tomorrow, Wednesday, September 10 at 7 a.m. ET. Be sure to tune into Wednesday’s show to see who will be continuing on into the finale.
Words by:
Corey Cesare Corey Cesare is Talent Recap's Managing Editor and featured YouTube Host. She has a love of all things pop culture and an unhealthy obsession with celebrities. Corey earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Cinema/Screen Studies from the State University of New York at Oswego in 2021. She spends her spare time shooting astro, nature, and portrait photography, and coming up with movie ideas that she hopes to make into a film someday.
