Spoilers ahead for the semifinals results episode of America’s Got Talent Season 20, available streaming next day with a Peacock subscription.
The milestone 20th season of America’s Got Talent is nearly over, but the combination of semifinals performances and quarterfinals golden buzzers has put together a pretty stacked lineup to close out the 2025 TV schedule next week. While there weren’t many surprises in the semifinals results episode when always-snazzy host Terry Crews announced who was still in the running for the $1 million grand prize and Las Vegas stage show, I wasn’t as much on the edge of my seat as usual. And I think that’s down to just how many golden buzzers were hit this season.
But let’s start with the good news! The ten finalists have been confirmed, with the final six acts that were voted ahead by fans added to the four who got a quarterfinals golden buzzer from each Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Mel B, and Howie Mandel. Here's the final list (with golden buzzers in bold), as of the semifinals results episode:
- Steve Ray Ladson - Musician
- Mama Duke - Rapper
- Micah Palace - Musician
- Team Recycled - Dance Group
- Chris Turner - Comedian
- Sirca Marea - Variety Act
- Jessica Sanchez - Singer
- Leo High School Choir - Singing Group
- LightWire - LED Dance Group
- Jourdan Blue - Singer
As expected, the finals will be packed with music acts, and unlike how Richard Goodall won me over in Season 19 with his Journey covers, I think I'm back to my tendency of not rooting for singers. (Singers have American Idol and The Voice as TV options, so dang it, let the weirder acts win AGT!) The only time that I really picked up on what seemed like genuine surprise from any of the judges was when youngster rock star Bay Melnick Virgolino was eliminated and Jourdan Blue was advanced.
All in all, there's nothing too groundbreaking about this crop of finalists, and the finale will almost certainly be entertaining. At this point, I'm thinking Sirca Marea are going to be my ultimate picks to win since the TT Boys were eliminated, but I'm open to having my mind changed when these ten all get one last chance to impress audiences. LightWire seems like a possible frontrunner among audiences, but I mostly remember them for being the first golden buzzer from the AGT Season 20 premiere.
I'm looking forward to the finale, but I'm also not really on the edge of my seat waiting for it like I might have for other seasons, and I think that goes down to the golden buzzers this year. A whopping total of fifteen golden buzzers were planned for Season 20, with each of the judges and Terry Crews getting two in the auditions stage, along with another one each for the judges in the quarterfinals round. The fifteenth had been announced as a group buzzer for the semifinals, but was scrapped. So, fourteen golden buzzers.
The novelty of the gold confetti raining down started wearing off for me in the auditions stage, and I was really past the point of caring much by the time the judges started hitting the buzzers live in the quarterfinals. I'd love to see AGT cutting down on the twist that advances so many acts straight to the next round, even if it's just scrapping the live golden buzzers and/or only giving the judges (and Terry Crews) one each in the auditions.
The Season 20 performance finale will air on Tuesday, September 23 at 9 p.m. ET rather than the usual 8 p.m. ET time slot, while the finale results episode airs on Wednesday, September 24 starting at 9 p.m. ET, all on NBC.
