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Each season of the hit competition series “America’s Got Talent” brings a fresh batch of new talent and surprising acts. Whether it’s singing, dancing, performing stand-up comedy or putting on a magic show, acts are encouraged to come and showcase their talents in front of the judges and a live audience, whatever that talent may be. Over the years, many stars have been discovered in the competition series, and each new season of the show has proved to be better than the last.
The current judges are Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Sofia Vergara and Heidi Klum. With so many acts striving to make it through to the next round and receive at least three yeses from the judges — or better yet, earn the golden buzzer — the pressure is definitely on for each act to perform.
For 11-year-old Madison Taylor Baez, performing is something that has always come naturally. Despite her young age, she has a voice of someone with years and years of experience as well as an incredibly impressive range and vocal tone. The talented young girl has already made a remarkable impression on Hollywood as she has been an up-and-coming star for several years. Madison even played the younger version of “Queen of Tejano Music” Selena on the Netflix series “Selena: The Series” from 2020 through 2021.
In June 2022, she shocked the world — and the “America’s Got Talent” judges — with her beautiful voice as she sang from the audience during what was supposed to be a commercial break. Cowell quickly invited Madison up to the stage to share even more of her story and her undeniable talent with everyone and hopefully earn her spot in the next round of the competition.
Unbeknownst to the judges, Madison was already set to audition for “America’s Got Talent.” However, the 11-year-old had “dreamed” of this moment since she was 4, and worked hard to earn her place in the audition round. Surprising the judges with her talent from the audience, Madison was invited on stage and sang “Amazing Grace” a capella.
After she finished performing, the 11-year-old cried as she received a resounding standing ovation. Everyone was blown away by the sheer power her voice held despite being so small and so young. No one was as surprised as Cowell, though, as he said:
“Wow. I’m not kidding, in all the years we’ve ever done this, this has never actually happened before. I mean, I normally leave during the break because people do sing. So this is actually the opposite; it actually brought me back into the room.”
Mandel added, “Your life has just changed.”
Madison explained how winning the grand prize of $1 million would mean she would get to help her dad — who had stage 4 colon cancer for nine years — with cancer research. It was an emotional moment for the young girl, and the judges and audience members could see that. Thankfully for Madison, her journey is just beginning, as Mandel said, “From the audience seat right to the live show,” and hit the golden buzzer!
Madison moved on to the live round of the competition and made it all the way to the semi-finals. On June 11, 2022, the 11-year-old uploaded a heartfelt Instagram post with the caption: