'AGT' singer earns Golden Buzzer after Simon Cowell calls her 'best singer we've ever had'
It was a Golden Buzzer moment filled with tears.
Simon Cowell was moved by Putri Ariani’s performance during the June 6 episode of “America’s Got Talent.”
The 17-year-old singer who is blind spoke about her dreams of becoming an acclaimed singer like Whitney Houston and hopes of winning a Grammy, before impressing Cowell and fellow judges —Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara — when she sang and played the piano.
“My biggest challenge is people look at me as a blind person, not as a musician,” Putri, who also hopes to attend Juilliard in New York City, told the camera. “But when I’m singing, I feel like a superstar.”
The Indonesian singer-songwriter then sat down to play an original song that got the crowd cheering — and Cowell visibly emotional.
After the performance, Cowell got up from his seat, walked over to Ariani and told her he liked her voice “so much” that he wanted her to sing another song.
“This song is special for you, Simon,” Ariani said, before beginning her second performance.
“My god,” a stunned Cowell said as he, the rest of the judges and audience got on their feet and applauded Ariani.
When Vergara asked Ariani how she was feeling, she replied, “I feel so excited. I can’t believe it,” getting emotional.
“It was amazing. We’re all mesmerized by you. Your voice, you’re an angel,” the “Modern Family” star said, as the judges continued to praise the teen.
“Well, I think we’re all feeling the same thing,” Cowell said. “You know, you’re 17, you write songs, you’ve got an amazing, distinctive voice. And I mean really, really good.”
He then stood up and pushed the Golden Buzzer as the metallic confetti dropped from the ceiling and Ariani jumped up and down.
In a surprising move, Cowell once again made his way onto the stage, hugged the singer and told her she was “incredible.”
“You are, I think, one of the best singers we’ve ever had on our show,” he said, before host Terry Crews asked Cowell why he pushed the Golden Buzzer.
“Because she’s brilliant,” he replied, grabbing gold confetti from the floor and handing the pieces to Ariani. “There’s the gold.”
Backstage, Cowell continued with his praises telling Ariani that he was “blown away and you’re a great songwriter.”
The singer, through tears, replied, “You make my dream come true.”
The 18th season of “AGT” kicked off on May 30. On the premiere episode, South Africa’s Mzansi Youth Choir also received a Golden Buzzer after performing “It’s OK,” a song by Season 16 contestant Nightbirde, who died from cancer in 2022.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com