‘America’s Got Talent’ season 18 episode 18 performances ranked: ‘Qualifiers 4’ acts from worst to best
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On September 12, 2023, the fourth set of season 18 qualifiers took the stage on “America’s Got Talent.” Host Terry Crews welcomed viewers back to the show along with judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara. But who were the best acts from this episode? And who deserves to advance to the next round of the competition? Below we rank the 11 acts that performed. Do any of Tuesday’s acts have what it takes to win the million dollars this year?
SEE ‘America’s Got Talent’: Who was your favorite live act from ‘AGT’ Qualifiers 4? [POLL]
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Season 18 Episode 16 Rankings:
11. Zion Clark: In complete honesty, none of the acts from this qualifier blew my mind. They either remained on par with their audition or were not as impressive. Saying that, Zion Clark belongs in the latter category. I am not sure how this would be a headline show in Las Vegas despite his ability to do things people without a physical impediment would fail miserably at doing. The addition of the drums were cool but this act is so out of the norm for the show that I cannot quite gage the probability of advancing to the next round as many viewers seemed to be equally as conflicted as I am.
10. Kylie Frey: I would be remiss not to note that this singer featured her buddy, popular AGT alum Drake Milligan on Instagram and if his fan base votes for her, well let’s just say that she could easily make the finals. Saying that, this song was indeed more memorable than her audition but it was not exactly my cup of tea either. In terms of energy, she was on point and the outfit was very Dolly Parton, which is a compliment.
9. Freedom Singers: I love this act and everything that it stands for, but this performance was not nearly as impressive as their audition. The performance was a fan favorite on social media as well as with the judges, but I found it to be a bit boring. Do they have a chance to advance to the finals? Never say never. Part of me wants them to based upon their audition.
8. Shadow Ace: When reading through the reactions to this act, I quickly realized that there are two distinct yet similar camps on social media. The first is the “Not for me but to each their own even if it is silly” group and the second is the “this is genius” group. Count me in the second group as this was super amusing. As much as I liked it, I cannot help but wonder if it was enough to advance to the finals. Either way, this was on par with his audition, which I also was iffy about. I love watching the creativity and hope this leads to him meeting Beyoncé.
7. Roland Abante: After a stellar audition, the sky was the limit for Roland. The choice of a Whitney Houston song was brave and overall it was mostly well-executed. Not all of the notes were on point, even if the judges chose to ignore that. Sorry to say this, but his audition was much more impressive to me and if he advances to the finals, I need him to be smarter with song choices as his higher register is definitely not up to par with the song.
6. Orlando Leyba: A comedian is only as strong as his material, and when a comedian like Orlando is so quickly recognized by many, including myself, for past television appearances…it is extra tricky. He was very much aware of this and new material was born. Was it as good as his audition? No, but it was on par and that is all that matters on a week where some acts were not on par with past performances. Do I think he will advance? No, but fingers crossed he will get a sitcom. Bonus points for defending Sofia as well.
5. Mariandrea: First and foremost, happy birthday! Secondly, choosing that song for the performance was not a great one. It did not read as disturbing enough for me if she wanted to scare the heck out of the viewers. The performance itself was solid and she definitely gave herself a fighting chance to advance to the finals, but it did not look like much of an improvement over the audition to me.
4. Anna DeGuzman: One of my favorite acts of the season is Anna DeGuzman, the magician that seemed shocked that she nailed her audition. The good news is that the same energy of that audition was present in this live performance and she gave herself a fighting chance to advance to the finals. On the opposite side of the coin, the trick was not nearly as impressive as the audition illusion and continues the trend of tricks I have seen done before. Bonus points for the inclusion of all four judges in the act, though, as they seemingly cannot remember their cards.
3. Puppet Simon & the Cow Belles: Call me crazy, but this act was pretty funny in the video package and the performance itself was just so strange yet saccharine to me. Sofia wasted no time to hit her buzzer, which I expected, but then we got a second Sofia in the form of a puppet singing a Jennifer Lopez classic. Simon also buzzed the act and in no way will this act advance to the finals, but the sheer absurdity of this performance makes it a must see for viewers of all ages even if the judges were not feeling it besides Howie.
2. D’Corey Johnson: On a night where the singing acts left much to be desired in terms of memorability and showmanship, D’Corey Johnson turned that trend upside down and owned the stage. His worry that his song choice would not translate well had some legs though. In my opinion, the song was a solid choice but did not showcase the skills that he exhibited in his audition. I still think that it was enough for him to advance to the finals though.
1. Chibi Unity: This performance was striking and showed off the technical prowess of the group, even if their audition was more impressive to me. The judges and crowd were unanimous in their praise, but the reaction on social media was even more impressive. On a night where there were not a lot of standout moments, this was one that I will still remember by the end of the week.
Which season 18 act is YOUR favorite at this point in the competition? Do you think they can snag the $1 million prize? Sound off in the comments below and with other fans in our reality TV forum. Also be sure to make your predictions to influence our reality TV racetrack odds.
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