America's Got Talent Season Four Premiere

The fourth season of the hit reality show "America's Got Talent" premiered on Tuesday on NBC. Introducing the show was the new host, Nick Cannon, who replaced Jerry Springer.

Some familiar faces have returned: the judges. Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff took to their seats at the panel after receiving a standing ovation from the audience.

The premiere brought new talent from New York, Chicago and Seattle. The first audition of the show was 26-year-old Ray Schwarz. He sang and danced to "A Little Less Conversation" but was rejected by all the judges. Also turned away was Andy Lopata who rapped about Chuck Norris, while a woman, who was fire dancing with her male partner, fell and caught her hair on fire.

After a while, viewers finally caught a glimpse of contestants who wowed the crowd. A dancing group known as the FootworKINGZ of Chicago made it through to the Vegas round after showing off their fancy footwork to music from Black Eyed Peas. Pete Peterkin, an impersonator who walked onstage as Barack Obama, then performed as James Brown, received "yes" votes from all three judges.

The show would not have been complete without animals. Tony Hoard brought his dog Rockin' Rory to the stage and had him perform tricks with multiple flying discs. This had Morgan smiling widely and clapping before saying, "That's the most incredible thing I've ever seen. That dog flies."

The shock factor was definitely apparent, as Brad Byers proved. He pretended he was on a "fishing trip gone horribly wrong" by putting a fishing hook up his nose and through his mouth. If that was not enough to cause the crowd to squirm (and it was), he turned on a drill and inserted it through his nose. The judges' responses: "Without any doubt, you are the most disgusting man in America; however, I loved every second of it," Morgan said, while David added, "Didn't watch any of it."

Before the final audition, contestants continued to impress. The EriAm Sisters, a pre-teen/early teen singing trio, sang "I Want You Back" by Jackson Five and had Hasselhoff call them "the most talented kids I have seen on the show since the beginning." A married dancing couple also surprised the judges by lifting each other in the air.

Closing the show was a singing trio of three siblings who amazed the judges and audience with "God Bless America." They also had a story to tell. Their mother suffered from a head-on collision that put her in a coma for eight months. Her three children sang at her bedside and to other patients at the hospital. The mother, still alive today, supported her kids backstage.

"America's Got Talent" will return on Wednesday to highlight auditions from Miami. The narrator promised the viewers shock and awesomeness.