NO STOPPING THEM
America’s Got Talent contestants who became more famous than winners after being eliminated including Jackie Evancho
One contestant revealed that their embarrassment about getting eliminated nearly kept them away from the stage
SEVERAL America's Got Talent contestants have become more famous than the season winners they competed against despite losing the televised competition.
From the youngest platinum-selling solo artist Jackie Evancho to YouTube musical sensation Lindsey Stirling, the contestants were too talented to be denied.
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America's Got Talent, created by Simon Cowell, 64, sees a variety of talented participants from across the United States, compete for a cash prize and a chance to headline a show on the Las Vegas Strip.
The acts included singing, dancing, comedy, magic, stunts, and more variety.
Participants attempt to secure a place in the live episodes of a season, by impressing a panel of judges - whose seats are currently filled by Simon, Howie Mandel, 68; Heidi Klum, 50; and Sofia Vergara, 51 - with their audition.
The acts that reach the live episodes compete against each other for the judges and the public's vote to reach the live final where the season winner will be voted on.
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Here are the finalists, runner-ups, and participants who found fame despite failing to secure the big win.
JACKIE EVANCHO
In 2010, classical crossover singer Jackie Evancho, 24, competed in the fifth season of the televised talent competition, finishing runner-up to soul singer, Michael Grimm, 45.
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The highly-anticipated season finale was the most watched in the reality program's history with approximately 16.41 million viewers.
Even though the then-10-year-old Jackie lost in the finale, the holiday release of her O Holy Night EP later that year made the finalist the best-selling debut artist of 2010.
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The EP also made her the youngest top-10 debut artist in US history and the youngest solo artist ever to go platinum in the US.
In 2011, the singer's first full-length album, Dream with Me, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart.
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Billboard would also rank Jackie as the top Classical Albums Artist of 2011.
While on her first concert tour, The Company You Keep star would become the youngest person to perform a solo concert at Lincoln Center in New York City.
Jackie would open up about her success after America's Got Talent when she returned to perform on the show.
She told host Terry Crews, "When I didn't win, I, at the time, was assuming that I was going to be just going back home to my normal life... but my life completely changed after America's Got Talent.
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"I was performing all over the place, Japan, Russia, London. As a 10-year-old it was crazy."
Jackie joked, "You don't how many times people have [gone], 'You won.' No, I didn't but thanks."
In 2017, Jackie performed the United States national anthem at the presidential inauguration of Donald Trump and continued breaking records when she became the youngest person ever to perform a concert series at Café Carlyle.
Recently, the singer returned to reality TV when she appeared in 2020 as a contestant on The Masked Singer.
LINDSEY STIRLING
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The same season as Jackie, violinist, songwriter, and dancer Lindsey Stirling, 37, was eliminated in the quarter-finals of AGT.
The judges loved her unique sound but weren’t keen on her dancing and marketability.
Then-judge Piers Morgan, 59, even told the performer she wasn’t "good enough to mix playing and dancing," per Watch Mojo.
After elimination from the competition, Lindsey found success performing original music and covers of classical and popular songs blended with her unique style on YouTube.
In 2012, her music video Crystallize finished as the eighth-most watched video on the social media platform that calendar year.
In 2013, the Shatter Me artist's cover version of Radioactive with the a capella group and Season 3 winners of NBC's The Sing-Off, Pentatonix, won Response of the Year in the first YouTube Music Awards.
Lindsey achieved 1 million singles sold worldwide by August 2014.
Her YouTube channel currently has 14.1 million subscribers and nearly 4 billion total views.
Lindsey's eponymous debut album was nominated at the 2014 Billboard Music Awards for Top Dance/Electronic Albums.
The following year, her second album, Shatter Me, won the award for Top Dance/Electronic Album.
Last year, Lindsey opened up about being embarrassed about her elimination on The Allison Hagendorf Show.
She told the host, "I remember being so embarrassed. I can't even describe the humiliation.
"'Cause knowing that like literally everybody I knew was tuned in and watched and I was like, 'I don't want to go back to college, I don't want to go back to my school, I can't face people again - I'm so embarrassed.'"
Lindsey continued, "The critique was pretty cruel. They used words like, 'You sounded like rats being strangled,' just like beyond what needed to be said."
The musician revealed that after the heartbreak of elimination and the brutal feedback, she knew she wasn't done yet.
"You can never let one moment of your life define your existence," she added.
MELISSA VILLASENOR
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Impressionist and comedian Melissa Villaseñor competed on Season 6 of AGT.
Her comedy skills propelled her to the semi-finals where she would lose to the season's eventual winner, jazz singer Landau Murphy Jr.
Though she was eliminated, Melissa's comedic ability didn't go unnoticed she would eventually land a spot on Saturday Night Live in 2016 as a featured player.
The comic previously tried out in 2009 but failed to land the gig.
Her debut was an impression of comedian Sarah Silverman in the Family Feud: Political Edition sketch.
She appeared on the sketch comedy show between seasons 42 and 47 and was promoted to a repertory player for season 44 - the first Latina to do so.
She left SNL in 2022 but continues to perform both voiceover and acting work and is currently the voice of Nellie Ramirez Humphrey in the animated Disney Channel series, Primos.
JABBAWOCKEEZ
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In 2007, the Jabbawockeez, a hip-hop dance crew from San Diego, California, appeared briefly in Season 2 of AGT.
At the time of their audition, the group consisted of members Gary "Gee One" Kendell, Randy "DJ Wish One" Bernal, Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag, Ben "B-Tek" Chung, Kevin "KB" Brewer, Chris "Cristyle" Gatdula, Rynan "Kid Rainen" Paguio, and Jeff "Phi" Nguyen.
Though they impressed the judges, they were cut after the Vegas Round.
The next year, the Jabbawockeez reemerged on America’s Best Dance Crew and beat Status Quo in the finale.
The Jabbawockeez would eventually headline their own Vegas production titled MÜS.I.C, making them the first dance team to headline a Vegas show, per Watch Mojo.
They have since headlined two more performances, PRiSM and JREAMZ, at the Luxor and MGM Grand.
THE TEXAS TENORS
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The classical crossover trio The Texas Tenors finished fourth in the fourth season of America’s Got Talent that saw country singer Kevin Skinner win the grand prize.
Formed in 2009 by country singer JC Fisher, pop singer Marcus Collins, and opera singer John Hagen, the tro have released five studio and three live albums since coming short on AGT.
AMERICA'S GOT TALENT WINNERS
America's Got Talent has launched the careers of several singers, magicians, musicians, comedians, and dancers over its 18 season run. Here are a list of the winners from each season:
- 11-year-old singer Bianca Ryan won the inaugural season of AGT on August 16, 2006. The runners-up were the male clogging group All That and singers/musicians The Millers
- Ventriloquist/singer Terry Fator won Season 2 on August 21, 2007, with singer/guitarist Cas Haley coming in second
- Opera singer Neal E. Boyd won Season 3 on August 2, 2008. The runner-up was singer/pianist Eli Mattson
- Singer/guitarist Kevin Skinner won Season 4 on September 16, 2009, beating out opera singer Barbara Padilla
- Singer/guitarist Michael Grimm won Season 5 on September 15, 2010, in the most-watched episode in the show's history. The runner-up was classical crossover singer Jackie Evancho
- Jazz singer Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. won Season 6 on September 14, 2011. The sixth season's runner-up was the dance group Silhouettes
- The father and son dog trick team Olate Dogs won Season 7 on September 13, 2012, defeating stand-up comedian Tom Cotter in the finale
- Dancer Kenichi Ebina won Season 8 on September 18, 2013. The runner-up was stand-up comedian Taylor Williamson
- Magician Mat Franco won Season 9 on September 17, 2014, with singer Emily West coming in second
- Ventriloquist Paul Zerdin won Season 10 on September 16, 2015. The runner-up was stand-up comedian Drew Lynch
- 12-year-old ukulele player Grace VanderWaal won Season 11 beating out the mentalist duo The Clairvoyants on the September 14, 2016 finale
- 12-year-old ventriloquist Darci Lynne Farmer won Season 12 on September 20, 2017. The runner-up was 10-year-old singer Angelica Hale
- Card magician Shin Lim won Season 13 on September 19, 2018, with the acrobatic act Zurcaroh coming in second
- Singer and pianist Kodi Lee, born blind and autistic, won Season 14, beating the Detroit Youth Choir on the September 18, 2019, finale
- Spoken word artist Brandon Leake won Season 15 on September 23, 2020. The runner-up was the singing duo Broken Roots
- Magician Dustin Tavella, who routinely used his family and personal experiences in magic tricks, won Season 16 on September 15, 2021. The runner-up was teenage aerialist Aidan Bryant
- The dance troupe Mayyas won Season 17 on September 14, 2022. The runner-up was pole dancer/animator Kristy Sellars
- Animal act Adrian Stoica & Hurricane won Season 18 on September 27, 2023. This season's runner-up was female magician Anna DeGuzman
Their album A Collection of Broadway & American Classics reached No. 1 on the Billboard Classical Chart and in 2014, the group's 2013 PBS special with The Phoenix Symphony, in which they performed songs from their second album You Should Dream, was nominated for five Emmys.
The Texas Tenors would win three out of the five.
JON DORENBOS
Former Philadelphia Eagle Jon Dorenbos, 43, competed in the eleventh season of AGT as a magician.
The two-time pro-bowler, who received an honorary Super Bowl ring in 2018 when the Eagles defeated the Patriots, finished third.
Ukulele player Grace VanderWaal won the competition.
Jon has performed magic shows in Las Vegas and Hollywood and also worked as a motivational speaker.
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Jon returned to the talent competition on America's Got Talent: The Champions.
The long-snapper-turned-magician advanced to the show final but was later eliminated in the final twelve.
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