“America’s Got Talent” has a new champion.
Who won ‘AGT’ 2022?
The Lebanese dance group Mayyas has been crowned the Season 17 winner of “AGT.”
You voted, now we've crowned our #AGT Season 17 Winner! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/m8VBXzJpZA
— America’s Got Talent (@AGT) September 15, 2022
The act was a strong contender from the start, earning the golden buzzer from “AGT” judge Sofia Vergara during the audition, which has 17 million views on YouTube.
“We want to show the world that we’re able to stand on our own two feet as really strong and powerful women,” one of the dancers said during a clip that aired before their audition, per the Deseret News.
“It was the most beautiful, creative dancing I’ve ever seen,” Vergara told the women after their routine, before ultimately going on to hit the golden buzzer for the group, immediately advancing the act to the show’s live round.
The group — who was the champion of “Arabs Got Talent” in 2019 — continued to wow the “AGT” audiences and judges during the semifinals.
“I think that by far, for me personally, it is probably the most impressive, wonderful act I have seen in my years on this show,” judge Howie Mandel told People after the semifinal round. “It’s not like anything you can describe. It was amazing. It was just beautiful and mesmerizing and hypnotizing and powerful. Then take into account where they’re from and what the culture is, and what they’re up against and what women are up against anyhow, all over the world. They need to be the poster people for female empowerment.”
For the “AGT” finale, Mayyas — which is an Arabic word for the proud walk of a lioness— raised the bar even more with a synchronized dance involving lights and feathers. The response from the crowd nearly drowned out the judges’ feedback.
“This is what a million dollar act looks like,” “AGT” judge Heidi Klum exclaimed, per USA Today. “Tonight it was A+.”
Howie Mandel added that this was his “favorite act ever on ‘AGT,’” while Simon Cowell said he believed the dance group would find success beyond the show.
“This was astonishing,” Cowell said, according to USA Today. “Something has happened with you, where I’m beginning to feel a buzz beyond the show. This has landed.”
This is not the dance company’s first time competing on TV. The crew, founded by Nadim Cherfan in Beirut, was the champion of “Arabs Got Talent” in 2019, according to TheNationalNews.com. The group also made it to the semifinals on “Britain’s Got Talent: The Champions.”
“Unfortunately, being a female Arab dancer is not fully supported yet,” one of the dancers said during the “AGT” audition round, per Arab News. “Us being here, standing on the biggest stage of the world, is our only chance to prove to the world what Arab women can do.”
The dance group took to Instagram after winning the competition.
“Lebanon, this one’s for you,” the dancers shared.
Who was the ‘AGT’ 2022 runner-up?
Kristy Sellars — a pole dancer from Australia who has wowed audiences with her unique blend of dancing and digital media effects — finished in second place. Sellars won “Australia’s Got Talent” in 2019, Yahoo reported.
This marks the first time in “AGT” history that the top two acts were female, according to Yahoo.
Country singer Drake Milligan — who Mandel dubbed “the new Elvis of country” — finished third.
After the finale, “AGT” host Terry Crews revealed how tight the competition was.
“I gotta say one thing about tonight. The fact that Drake Milligan, who had two number one hits, was third place will show you how close the vote was,” Crews said, per CinemaBlend. “You know what I mean? Oh, it was really close, man. That’s the thing — because any one of these acts could have won it all, which is crazy.”