A 9-year-old girl named Victory Brinker made "America's Got Talent" history Tuesday night when she earned a Golden Buzzer from all four judges and host Terry Crews, sending her straight to the live episodes.
Victory, who hails from Pennsylvania, loves to sing, especially opera, and she took the stage to perform "Juliet's Waltz" from the opera "Roméo et Juliette." After declaring that she was "ex-nervous," a mix between excited and nervous, she revealed that if she won the show's grand prize of $1 million, she'd use the money to buy judge Simon Cowell "a rainbow shirt that has glitter on it."
"You need some color!" she quipped before starting her song.
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Over the course of her rendition, judges Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara and Howie Mandel all appeared to be shocked by the young singer's mastery of her voice as she hit the highest notes. All three gave her a standing ovation as Cowell mysteriously remained seated.
"It was incredible, you are incredible!" Klum gushed.
"You are a star! I think you have a powerful voice," Vergara added.
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Before long, it was clear that Cowell had his own tricks up his sleeve. Beckoning over Crews, he revealed that he wanted to do something that had never been done on the show since it premiered in June 2006.
"Turning up in terms of your career is really important," Cowell told Victory. "However, we're not going to give you a yes today."
Naturally, the crowd booed, but he continued, "We're going to do something else we've never, ever, ever done on the show before. We are all going to give you something special."
After he counted down from five, all the judges and Crews slammed the Golden Buzzer as Victory raised her hands to her face in shock, clearly on the verge of tears. The judges rushed to the stage to congratulate her, and Cowell quietly told her, "You have an amazing voice. Congratulations."
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Victory wasn't the only surprise in Tuesday's episode of "America's Got Talent." Matt Mauser, whose wife, Christina Mauser, died in the same helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant in January 2020, wowed the judges with his emotional performance of "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" by Phil Collins.
"America's Got Talent" airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
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