KIRO NEWSRADIO

Maple Valley teen advances to finals of ‘America’s Got Talent’

Sep 16, 2019, 2:18 PM | Updated: Oct 1, 2024, 11:39 am

Maple Valley teen Benicio Bryant has made it all the way to the finals in America’s Got Talent, and joined the Candy, Mike and Todd Show to discuss reaching such a high level at such a young age.

“I was so excited because it’s a crazy feeling to know that America put you through to the next round — that just makes you really happy,” he said.

It’s been a whirlwind of a year for Bryant. After placing second in Germany’s “The Voice Kids,” he recently got the chance to perform alongside Brandi Carlile at Tahoma High School. Now he’s reached heights he never imagined.

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“I get to perform my original song on a stage that’s probably the biggest stage in the world. And I’m just so excited. Millions of people are going to see this song, but I’m also kind of nervous, you know, you don’t want to mess up but it’s so fun. This whole journey has been amazing.”

His recent performance saw him also deal with minor criticism on such a big stage, when Howie Mandel wasn’t quite a fan of one of the songs he sang. But Bryant was not thrown and hopes to learn from it.

“Honestly, I just took his comment as criticism, I just took it as advice. And what I could do better or something.”

Nonetheless the fans kept him in the running, and he’ll be appearing in the finals on Tuesday, September 17 at 8 p.m. on NBC.

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Most importantly of all, his school Tahoma High School in Maple Valley was alright with letting him off.

“Yeah, it was an excused absence,” he said, laughing.

Listen to The Candy, Mike, and Todd Show weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on KIRO Radio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

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Maple Valley teen advances to finals of ‘America’s Got Talent’