On the June 25 episode of “America’s Got Talent,” the judges will meet L6, a Filipino family singing group who flew to the United States in order to fulfill their “late mother’s dream” of performing on NBC’s reality TV show. In this week’s “AGT” sneak peek video (watch above), the family explains how they sell garments for a living, but that singing is their true passion. They then deliver a version of “All By Myself” by Celine Dion that prompts Simon Cowell to stop them mid-performance … and he’s immediately booed by the studio audience.
First things first, the singers explain how, if they end up winning the $1 million prize, “We will buy a big, big house for the family, because in the Philippines we rent a small house.” Their family currently consists of 10 adult siblings and four children, so there’s understandably not a lot of space.
After L6 sings for about a minute, Simon holds up his hand and stops them. The other judges — Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara — are left to wonder what’s going on, as the loud boos continue sounding out from the crowd.
“I want to say something,” Simon declares. “There are a lot of singing groups. I’m gonna do something which I think is gonna help you. Lose the track. Okay? Because, in my opinion, the track was terrible. There aren’t that many great a cappella groups, and I think you’ve got the potential to be a great a cappella group.”
As the family regroups and begins their second “AGT” performance — this time without any music — Heidi quietly wonders aloud, “How do they keep the tempo? That’s gonna be hard for them.” Luckily, the singers have nothing to worry about in that regard.
At the conclusion of the a cappella version of “All By Myself,” the tears begin flowing, both on-stage and off. “You could tell instantly, this is a great singing group,” notes Simon. “How you just took on everything without the track? You were more unique, it was more special, it was more memorable. You just absolutely nailed that.”
All four judges give the singers a “yes” vote, sending them through to the next round. Do YOU think L6 is on their way to the winner’s circle? Sound off down in the comments section.
“America’s Got Talent” will continue to air throughout the summer on NBC and the finale of Season 19 will likely air in mid-September, when the next winner will be crowned. Refresh your memory on all of the former champs by scrolling through our “AGT” winners list. The program is such a monumental success that it’s spawned countless versions around the globe, plus four spin-offs in the U.S. alone: “America’s Got Talent: The Champions,” “America’s Got Talent: Extreme,” “America’s Got Talent: All-Stars” and “America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League.”