'America's Got Talent': Week 9, Part 1
On "America's Got Talent," 12 contestants competed for America's votes on Tuesday in the hopes of making it to the top 20.
Nick Cannon, host, kicked off the show by welcoming judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff to the stage before they took their seats at the panel.
The first act to perform was FootworKINGz, a dance group that showed off its footwork to Black Eyed Peas' "Boom Boom Pow" while wearing glow-in-the-dark shoes. Morgan said the dancers performed a lot better than he remembered. Osbourne said they are "the kings" of what they do.
Next on stage were Marcus Terell & the Serenades who sang Duffy's "Mercy." They previously faced criticism for the backup singers' off-key vocals, and the judges suggested Terell ditch them. In the end, they were all given another chance, and it paid off: The performers definitely impressed the judges.
Pixie Mystere, a group of kid gymnasts, performed flips and other tricks on the stage. Morgan joked that he was disappointed about not getting the chance to hit the buzzer on any act yet, while Hasselhoff and Osbourne said the group did a great job.
The first wildcard act, Jay Mattioli, performed. The magician gave basic appearing acts with scarves, women and a dog, but they bored the judges.
BRI, a 17-year-old singer and piano player, gave her unique version of Lady Gaga's "Poker Face." The judges acknowledged her for taking the risk of singing the very popular song.
Next, the second wildcard act arrived on stage. U4RIA Dance Crew performed unique footwork to Rihanna's "Please Don't Stop the Music" in an asylum-like setting. Hasselhoff called it "very cool and very sexy in a strange way," and Morgan said the group's performance contributed to one of the best quarterfinals ever on the show.
After singing a tribute to Hasselhoff during the auditions, Dave Johnson returned to the stage to sing about the four main cast members of "The Golden Girls." However, his performance got cut off when all three judges hit their buzzers. It turned out his song was not funny enough for them.
Hairo Torres, dancer, showed off some moves that no other dancing contestant has given on the show, including doing the splits and dancing on his hands. Hasselhoff called him "a Silly Putty and Jell-O all in one," and the other judges agreed that he has given weird yet entertaining performances.
G-Force, three kid musicians and sisters who like to call themselves a female version of the Jonas Brothers, rocked out on stage to Katy Perry's "Hot and Cold." Hasselhoff said the trio is one of his favorite acts in the competition, but the judges said the young rockers should work on their vocal skills.
Piano player Jeffrey Ou, whom Osbourne had said he has a "God-given gift," played the classical song, "Canon," and switched over to "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting." The audience could not hear the second song after one of the backup dancers accidentally kicked a cable. The judges said he should consider playing better songs if he comes back.
Mario and Jenny, who gave a risky act with chainsaws in the audition, returned with a similar act that involved juggling guitars that were lit on fire. The judges said the couple deserves to perform in Las Vegas.
Lastly, Lawrrence Beamen sang Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful" and received a standing ovation from Morgan. Osbourne said his voice is "smooth like velvet," Hasselhoff thinks Beamen can win the competition, and Morgan called the singer, "the new Barry White."
"America's Got Talent" will return with the results of America's votes on Wednesday when only five acts will make it to the semifinals. Additionally, Ashley Tisdale and Daughtry will appear on the show that night.