The seventeenth season of the American

talent show A talent show is an event in which participants perform the arts of singing, dancing, lip-syncing, acting, martial arts, playing an instrument, poetry, comedy or other activities to showcase skills. Many talent shows are performances rather ...

competition series ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is a televised American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distribut ...

'' premiered on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

on May 31, 2022, and concluded on September 14, 2022. This season featured the return of a full audience without

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

restrictions, which had begun during the fifteenth season. The season was won by dance group Mayyas, with pole dancer Kristy Sellars finishing second, and singer and guitarist Drake Milligan placing third.

Production

On March 31, 2022, it was announced that the entire main cast from the previous season would return for the new season and that the season would premiere on May 31. Originally, host

Terry Crews Terry Alan Crews (born July 30, 1968) is an American actor, television host, and former American footballer. He played Julius Rock in the UPN/ CW sitcom ''Everybody Hates Chris'', which aired from 2005 to 2009, and portrayed Terry Jeffords in ...

announced the 'end of an era' in September 2021, stating that the season sixteen finale of ''America's Got Talent'' and the

series finale A series finale is the final installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, or ...

of ''

Brooklyn Nine-Nine ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'' is an American police procedural comedy television series that aired on Fox, and later on NBC. The show aired from September 17, 2013, to September 16, 2021, for a total of eight seasons and 153 episodes. Created by Dan G ...

'' had marked the end of his deal with NBC. Judge

Howie Mandel Howard Michael Mandel (born November 29, 1955) is a Canadian-American comedian, television personality, actor, and producer. Mandel voiced the character Gizmo in the 1984 film ''Gremlins'' and the 1990 sequel '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch''. I ...

was partially absent from the June 14, July 19, and August 2 episodes, and was entirely absent in the July 12 episode, due to contracting

at the

2022 Kids' Choice Awards The 35th Annual Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards ceremony was held on April 9, 2022, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California with Miranda Cosgrove and Rob Gronkowski serving as hosts. It aired live on Nickelodeon and in a domestic simulc ...

. Additionally, judge

Sofía Vergara Sofía Margarita Vergara Vergara (; born July 10, 1972) is a Colombian and American actress and model. She was the highest paid actress in American television from 2013 to 2020.

was absent from the judge deliberations at

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...

's house. The live shows for the season were held at the

Pasadena Civic Auditorium The Pasadena Convention Center is a convention center in Pasadena, California. It consists of three buildings. Pasadena Civic Auditorium The Civic Auditorium, one of the major structures in the Pasadena Civic Center District, was built in 1931 an ...

, the same venue where auditions have been filmed since season eleven. The live shows had been held at the

Dolby Theatre The Dolby Theatre (formerly known as the Kodak Theatre) is a live-performance auditorium in the Ovation Hollywood shopping mall and entertainment complex, on Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. Si ...

since the same season, excluding season fifteen, during which the live shows were held at

Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusemen ...

Season overview

Judge

and host

featured their favorite Golden Buzzer recipients from the previous seasons in a special

retrospective A retrospective (from Latin ''retrospectare'', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in medicine, software development, popu ...

episode on July 5. Singer

Nightbirde Jane Kristen Marczewski (December 29, 1990 – February 19, 2022), known professionally as Nightbirde, was an American singer-songwriter. Previously having released two extended play, EPs and several singles, Nightbirde auditioned on ''America' ...

from season sixteen was ranked as the number one Golden Buzzer in ''AGT'' history. Inspired by Nightbirde, who died from cancer in February 2022, Lebanese dance group Mayyas previously honored her during an audition episode on June 21. They received a Golden Buzzer from judge

Sofía Vergara Sofía Margarita Vergara Vergara (; born July 10, 1972) is a Colombian and American actress and model. She was the highest paid actress in American television from 2013 to 2020.

. For the second time in ''AGT'' history (the first in season sixteen), a group Golden Buzzer was given by all the judges and host on the July 19 episode, to country trio

Chapel Hart Chapel Hart is an American country music vocal group from Poplarville, Mississippi. Its members are sisters Danica Hart and Devynn Hart, and their cousin Trea Swindle, all three of whom are vocalists. The group has independently released two studi ...

for their original song " You Can Have Him Jolene". Unlike previous seasons of ''AGT'', the live show format was changed to accommodate the top 55 acts, which were divided into five qualifying rounds of eleven acts (two acts from each qualifying round plus a wildcard advanced to the finals), instead of the usual quarter-final and semi-final rounds. In the judge deliberations portion of the episode aired on August 2, the judges selected 54 of the top 55 spots. Following this episode, a public vote was opened to allow viewers to vote the last act into the live shows. Danger act Auzzy Blood, singers Ben Waites and Debbii Dawson, and comedian Jordan Conley were all in contention for the final spot in the top 55. During the August 9 live show, it was announced that Conley had won the America's Wildcard vote. During the final qualifying round results show on September 7, an Instant Save vote was held for viewers to send a final wildcard into the finals. The four acts included in this vote were acts that were eliminated in the live shows, with each act selected by one of the judges;

Mandel Mandel is a surname (and occasional given name) that occurs in multiple cultures and languages. It is a Dutch, German and Jewish surname, meaning "almond", from the Middle High German and Middle Dutch ''mandel''.''Dictionary of American Family Name ...

selected Don McMillan, Klum selected Lily Meola, Vergara selected Celia Muñoz, and Cowell selected Players Choir. Celia Muñoz ultimately won the public vote, taking the last spot in the season's finals. : , , , , : Playing card club A

America's Wildcard , Playing card heart A

Final Wildcard , Yellow ffff00 pog

Golden Buzzer Audition

Qualifiers summary

Buzzed Out , , ,

Qualifier 1 (August 9)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Dustin Tavella with

Sarah Hyland Sarah Jane Hyland (born November 24, 1990) is an American actress and singer. Born in Manhattan, she attended the Professional Performing Arts School before having small roles in the films '' Private Parts'' (1997), '' Annie'' (1999) and ''Blin ...

Qualifier 2 (August 16)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Jon Dorenbos

Qualifier 3 (August 23)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Kodi Lee with

Teddy Swims Jaten Dimsdale, known by his stage name Teddy Swims, is an American singer-songwriter, known for blending genres including R&B, soul, country, and pop. Originally attracting fans through his cover performances on his YouTube, which has amassed 4 ...

and

Neal Schon Neal (Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "hono ...

* Celia Muñoz was later brought back as a Wildcard act for the Finals.

Qualifier 4 (August 30)

Guest Performers, Results Show:

Piff the Magic Dragon John van der Put (born 9 June 1980) is a magician and comedian from the United Kingdom who performs under the stage name Piff the Magic Dragon. A winner of multiple awards from British magic societies, he toured as a supporting act for Mumfo ...

and ''

Riverdance ''Riverdance'' is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions Jean ...

Qualifier 5 (September 6)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Cast of ''

& Juliet ''& Juliet'' is a 2019 coming-of-age stage musical featuring the music of Swedish pop songwriter Max Martin, with a book by David West Read. The story focuses on a "what if" scenario, where Juliet does not die at the end of Shakespeare's '' ...

Finals (September 13–14)

Guest Performers, Results Show:

Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo (rapper), Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie (singer ...

and Light Balance : , , , * Nicolas RIBS and Yu Hojin conducted a joint routine for their second performance, and thus shared the same guest performer. * Chapel Hart and Drake Milligan conducted a joint routine for their second performance, and thus shared the same guest performers. * Metaphysic and Mike E. Winfield conducted a joint routine for their second performance, and thus shared the same guest performers. * Kristy Sellars and Mayyas conducted a joint routine for their second performance.

Ratings

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:America's Got Talent (Season 17) 2022 American television seasons America's Got Talent seasons