Spoilers ahead for the July 18 episode of America's Got Talent Season 18 on NBC.
The eighteenth season of America's Got Talent has delivered plenty of emotional performances throughout the audition process, ranging from golden buzzer winner Lavender Darcangelo to the tribute to the late Nightbirde from a youth choir. In the latest episode, however, two mothers walked onto the stage with a touching story and beautiful song from Wicked that reduced judges Sofia Vergara and Heidi Klum to tears.
The final act of the night on July 18 began when Kim from Oregon and Holly from New York walked out together, dressed in coordinating outfits. They explained their extremely unique connection: in 2007, Holly's young son passed away. He was an organ donor, and his heart went to Beckham, Kim's newborn son whose life was saved. They shared with the judges and the audience that Holly's final song to her son was "For Good" from Wicked, and that was the very song that Kim sang to her son by pure happenstance after he awoke from his surgery.
It seemed like everybody in the theater (and in my living room, to be honest) was already emotional before they even sang the first note, but it was the song and reveal afterwards that left Sofia Vergara and Heidi Klum in tears. Take a look:
The two moms were all but guaranteed to advance beyond the auditions as soon as they finished their song, and I was honestly a little surprised that Sofia Vergara didn't hit the final golden buzzer of Season 18. The audition became even more emotional after Howie Mandel inquired about Beckham, whose live had been saved by the organ donation. The young man walked out on stage, and I think it's safe to say that plenty of people were reaching for their tissues after seeing him looking so alive and healthy!
Even though Howie Mandel and Simon Cowell weren't tearing up like Vergara and Klum, they weren't shy about giving praise to Holly and Kim. In fact, Mandel established that he's generally not a fan of musical theater before commending them on how they won him over with the song from Wicked. The two moms didn't seem to set their sights on winning the $1 million grand prize over all the competition (and golden buzzer winners are often the AGT contestants who become champions), but they just want to raise awareness about the importance of organ donations.
Between their message, the story behind singing "For Good" to their sons in highly emotional moments, and teenage Beckham walking out on stage, I can't imagine a better way to raise awareness about organ donation in primetime while also entertaining. Cowell even expressed his confidence that they already made a difference with their one song.
And thankfully, getting a "yes" from each of the four judges means that Kim and Holly will return to the AGT stage again at least one more time. Whether they'll have more to open up about remains to be seen; whatever happens, there's no denying that their audition packed an emotional punch, and I can 100% see why AGT saved their act for the last of the episode.
Keep tuning in to NBC on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET for new episodes of America's Got Talent in the 2023 TV premiere schedule.
