Nervous singer surprises “AGT” jury with “retro” singing

July 9, 2024

A young singer named Alex Sampson surprised the AGT Jury with his unique “retro” talent as a singer and songwriter.

The 20-year-old contestant flew from Ontario, Canada to try to secure a spot on the LA-based series with his original song Pretty babyWhen he first took the stage, his nervousness was obvious to Heidi Klum, Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel and Sofía Vergara. They calmed him down a bit but doubted whether he would give his best. To their surprise, Alex threw himself into the lyrics with ease and confidence.

Alex’s song was reminiscent of hits from the ’50s – something Simon said he would have expected in “a Martin Scorsese film.” Howie mentioned that he was initially surprised because Alex sounded like Tony Young from “Herman’s Hermits.”

“I could hear how nervous you were,” Heidi said. “It made you more real somehow. We can hear that you can sing, so it doesn’t bother me. I love the vibe too and I’m here for it.”

Simon Cowell praises Alex Sampson for his ‘clever’ ‘AGT’ audition

The four judges agreed that Alex Sampson’s old-school style was something for the music industry, and Simon urged him to fully embrace the genre.

“To me, that song could have been written in the ’50s or ’60s, which I actually thought was very clever,” Simon said. “…It was very authentic. It was very different. If you want to go down that path, I think that’s very clever because it sets you apart from what everyone else is doing. So I really, really, really like this audition.”

All four judges voted the singer into the live AGT rounds in which he has a chance to win the grand prize of $1 million.

Regard America’s Got Talent on NBC every Tuesday at 7/8 C.

The source of the cover image of this story can be found here.