America's Got Talent (season 9)
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The ninth season of 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 ...
'' was broadcast 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 ...
from May 27 to September 17, 2014. Following the previous season, the program underwent a number of format changes, including the second audition stage and to the Wildcard format. The most significant change to be made was the inclusion of the "Golden Buzzer", an element that was being introduced into the ''
Got Talent ''Got Talent'' is a British talent show TV format conceived and owned by Simon Cowell's SYCOtv company. It has spawned spin-offs in over 69 countries, in what is now referred to as the 'Got Talent' format, similar to that described by Fremantle ...
'' franchise around that time (although the format used would later be changed by the next season). Apart from the format changes, the ninth season's audition process featured the first and only involvement of a third-party television program to collaborate with ''America's Got Talent'' in offering a place in the competition. The ninth season was won by magician
Mat Franco Mat Franco (born May 10, 1988) is an American magician best known for his personality driven, skill-based sleight of hand magic. He gained fame as the first magician to win '' America's Got Talent'', in the show’s ninth season. Franco went on ...
, with singer
Emily West Emily Marie Nemmers (born July 9, 1981) is an American music artist, who performs and records under the name Emily West. Signed to Capitol Records Nashville, she debuted on ''Billboard's'' Hot Country Songs charts in early 2008 with the single " ...
finishing in second, and acrobatic group Acro Army placing third. During its broadcast, the season averaged around over 10.2 million viewers.


Season overview

Auditions for the eighth season's competition took place during 2013 between October to December in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
,
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
,
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
,
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, and
Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
. Contestants could also submit a video of their audition online. The judges' auditions had a number of sessions held across three major venues the following year in 2014, the first within February at the
New Jersey Performing Arts Center The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), in downtown Newark, New Jersey, United States, is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. Home to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra (NJSO), more than nine million visitors (i ...
in Newark, while the other two took place in April within
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and 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 ...
in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. Production on the season had a number of changes made. One of the most significant was the introduction of the "Golden Buzzer" format, a new addition that was brought into other editions of the ''
Got Talent ''Got Talent'' is a British talent show TV format conceived and owned by Simon Cowell's SYCOtv company. It has spawned spin-offs in over 69 countries, in what is now referred to as the 'Got Talent' format, similar to that described by Fremantle ...
'' franchise. While the format was assigned to the auditions round, it functioned differently in its first use. Anyone who received the buzzer would simply gain a place in the next stage of auditions automatically, although only the judges could use it. In effect, the new buzzer was used mainly to save an act from elimination or to break up a 2-2 tie vote by judges in the auditions. Later seasons would alter the rules for the Golden Buzzer to match that of other international editions. Another change was to incorporate an online public vote in the live rounds, named after the program's sponsor at the time, which allowed viewers to grant an automatic place in the finals to a semi-finalist in each semi-final. While they could vote via
Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
, they could only vote on those placed 5th, 6th and 7th in the main public vote respectively, with the remaining two who lost out facing a vote from the judges for advancement. Although the format remained for later seasons, with a different name following a change in sponsor, the ninth season is the only one in the program's history to allow this format to be used in the finals as well. Other changes that were made included a reduction in the number of quarter-finalists and quarter-finals, and the second stage of auditions being conducted in New York, rather than in
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
. It retained the same format of "Vegas Verdicts", but was made more competitive and renamed as "Judgement Week". It was also originally intended to have a live audience, but this idea was later dropped. One prominent element of the ninth season that was unusual for ''America's Got Talent'', a decision that would not be repeated in later seasons, was to involve another television show. With the collaborative help from ''
The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...
'', a place in the competition's live round was offered to an additional participant. The involvement of a third-party television program in the competition's audition process focused on a simple arrangement. Participants wanting a place in the competition could submit a recording of their performance on the website for ''The Today Show''. The top three entries from these would then conduct a further performance in late July 2014 on the program, and the best of these voted for by the program's viewers would earn a place in the live rounds of the competition. Forty-eight of the participants who auditioned for this season secured a place in the live quarter-finals, with twelve quarter-finalists performing in each show. About twenty quarter-finalists advanced and were split between the two semi-finals (including four Wildcard acts selected by the judges), with twelve semi-finalists securing a place in the finals, and six finalists securing a place in the grand-final. These are the results of each participant's overall performance during the season: : , , , : , , Wildcard Semi-finalist * Ages denoted for a participant(s), pertain to their final performance for this season. * The ages of these participants were not disclosed on the program. * The age of the dog in this act was not disclosed on the program.


Quarter-finals summary

: Buzzed Out , Judges' choice , : ,


Quarter-final 1 (July 29)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
The Rockettes The Rockettes are an American precision dance company. Founded 1925 in St. Louis, they have, since , performed at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Until 2015, they also had a touring company. They are best known for starring in the Rad ...
,
Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By the ...
and
Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles "Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...
* Flight Crew Jump Rope were later appointed as Heidi Klum's Wildcard semi-finalist.


Quarter-final 2 (August 5)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
Lindsey Stirling Lindsey Stirling (born September 21, 1986) is an American violinist, songwriter, and dancer. She presents choreographed violin performances, in live and music videos found on her official YouTube channel, which she created in 2007. Stirling pe ...
, and
Lzzy Hale Elizabeth Mae "Lzzy" Hale (born October 10, 1983) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of hard rock band Halestorm, which she co-founded with her brother Arejay Hale in 1997. Career Hale began writing and ...


Quarter-final 3 (August 12)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
Kenichi Ebina is a Japanese performance artist who is best known for winning the eighth season of ''America's Got Talent'' on September 18, 2013. His solo act, labeled 'dance-ish' by Ebina, features his unique self-taught style which combines acting, storyte ...
, and
Taylor Williamson Taylor Williamson is an American stand-up comic and actor. He is known for finishing as the runner-up on the America's Got Talent (season 8), eighth season of ''America's Got Talent'' and as a semi-finalist on ''Last Comic Standing#Season 7 (2010) ...
* Mike Super was later appointed as Howie Mandel's Wildcard semi-finalist. * Wendy Liebman was later appointed Howard Stern's Wildcard semi-finalist.


Quarter-final 4 (August 19)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
Taylor Williamson Taylor Williamson is an American stand-up comic and actor. He is known for finishing as the runner-up on the America's Got Talent (season 8), eighth season of ''America's Got Talent'' and as a semi-finalist on ''Last Comic Standing#Season 7 (2010) ...
, and The Illusionists * Bad Boys of Ballet were later appointed as Mel B's Wildcard semi-finalist. * Due to the majority vote for Kelli Glover, Klum's voting intention was not revealed.


Semi-finals summary

: Buzzed Out , Judges' choice , : , ,


Semi-final 1 (August 26)

Guest Performer, Results Show:
Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...
* Due to the majority vote for David & Leeman, Mel B's voting intention was not revealed.


Semi-final 2 (September 2)

Guest Performers, Results:
Maroon 5 Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It currently consists of lead vocalist Adam Levine, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, drummer Matt ...


Finals summary


Finals - Top 12 (September 9–10)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses ...
, and
Jackie Evancho Jacqueline Marie Evancho ( ; born April 9, 2000) is an American crossover music#Classical crossover, classical crossover singer who gained wide recognition at an early age. Since 2009, she has issued a platinum-selling extended play, EP and nine ...
: Buzzed Out , Judges' choice , : , ,


Grand-Final (September 16)

Guest Performers, Results Show:
Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...
&
The Rockettes The Rockettes are an American precision dance company. Founded 1925 in St. Louis, they have, since , performed at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Until 2015, they also had a touring company. They are best known for starring in the Rad ...
, and
Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
: , ,


Ratings

The following ratings are based upon those published by
Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...
after this season's broadcast: Recap Episodes * This episode's weekly rank is not known because it was not among the 25 highest ranked shows of the week.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:America's Got Talent (Season 9) 2014 American television seasons America's Got Talent seasons