America's Got Talent (season 9)

America's Got Talent
Season 9
Hosted byNick Cannon
Judges
WinnerMat Franco
Runner-up
No. of episodes32
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseMay 27 (2014-05-27) –
September 17, 2014 (2014-09-17)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 8
Next →
Season 10

The ninth season of American talent show competition series America's Got Talent was broadcast on NBC 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 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, with singer Emily West 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 ninth season's competition took place during 2013 between October and December in Miami, Atlanta, Baltimore, Denver, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York City, and Providence, Rhode Island. 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 in Newark, while the other two took place in April within Madison Square Garden in New York City and the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

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 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, 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. 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, 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:

 Winner |  Runner-up |  Third place |  Finalist
 Semi-finalist |  Quarter-finalist | Wildcard Semi-finalist
Participant Age(s) 1 Genre Act Quarter-Final Result
AcroArmy 11–27 Acrobatics Acrobatic Group 3 Third place
ACTE II 29, 32 Singing Operatic Duet 2 Eliminated
Adrian Romoff 9 Music Pianist 3 Eliminated
Aerial Animation 33 Acrobatics Visual Aerialists 2 Semi-finalist
Andrey Moraru 26 Acrobatics Hand Balancer 2 Semi-finalist
Anna Clendening 20 Singing / Music Singer & Guitarist 3 Eliminated
Bad Boys of Ballet 2 Dance Ballet Dance Group 4 Semi-finalist
Baila Conmigo 2 Dance Salsa Dance Troupe 1 Semi-finalist
Blue Journey 18, 33 Dance Shadow Dance Duo 3 Top 12 Finalist
Christian Stoinev 22 3 Acrobatics / Animals Hand Balancer & Dog Tricks Act 3 Top 12 Finalist
Cornell Bhangra 18–23 Dance Bhangra Dance Group 3 Eliminated
Dan Naturman 44 Comedy Stand-up Comedian 1 Semi-finalist
Darik Santos 26 Comedy Stand-up Comedian 2 Eliminated
David & Leeman 27, 29 Magic Magicians 1 Top 12 Finalist
Dom the Bom's Triple Threat 8 Variety Card Throwing Trio 4 Eliminated
Dragon House "The Agents" 23–25 Dance Breakdancing Trio 3 Eliminated
Emil & Dariel 13, 16 Music Cellists 4 Top 12 Finalist
Emily West 32 Singing Singer 1 Runner-up
Extreme Dance Company 2 Dance Dance Group 4 Eliminated
Flight Crew Jump Rope 19–29 Variety Jump Rope Team 1 Semi-finalist
Hart Dance Team 14–17 Dance Contemporary Dance Group 2 Eliminated
Jasmine Flowers 12–18 Dance Chinese Dance Group 1 Eliminated
Jaycob Curlee 18 Singing / Music Singer & Guitarist 2 Semi-finalist
JD Anderson 26 Variety Strongman 1 Eliminated
John & Andrew 21, 41 Dance Salsa Dance Duo 2 Eliminated
Jonah Smith 38 Singing / Music Singer & Pianist 4 Semi-finalist
Jonatan Riquelme 37 Acrobatics Balancing Acrobat 4 Eliminated
Juan Carlos 49 Dance / Variety Rollerskating Dancer 2 Eliminated
Julia Goodwin 15 Singing Singer 1 Eliminated
Kelli Glover 31 Singing Singer 4 Semi-finalist
Kieran & Finian Makepeace 27, 31 Music Rock Band 3 Eliminated
Livy, Matt & Sammy 18–21 Music Rock Band 2 Eliminated
Loop Rawlins 28 Variety Wild West Performer 2 Eliminated
Mara Justine 11 Singing Singer 2 Top 12 Finalist
Mat Franco 25 Magic Close-up Magician 2 Winner
Miguel Dakota 21 Singing / Music Singer & Guitarist 1 Grand-finalist
Mike Super 37 Magic Mystifier Magician 3 Top 12 Finalist
Mothmen Dance 18–35 Dance / Variety Aerialist Dance Group 4 Eliminated
Nina Burri 36 Dance / Variety Contortionist Dancer 4 Eliminated
One Voice Children's Choir 6–18 Singing Choir 4 Eliminated
Paul Ieti 21 Singing Singer 3 Semi-finalist
Quintavious Johnson 12 Singing R&B Singer 4 Grand-finalist
Sean & Luke 17, 18 Dance Tap Dancing Duo 1 Eliminated
Smoothini 33 Magic Close-up Magician 4 Semi-finalist
Sons of Serendip 26–30 Music Rock Band 3 Grand-finalist
The Willis Clan 3–21 Music Family Band 1 Eliminated
Valo & Bobby 31, 37 Acrobatics / Danger Extreme Balancing Acrobats 1 Eliminated
Wendy Liebman 53 Comedy Stand-up Comedian 3 Semi-finalist
  • ^1 Ages denoted for a participant(s), pertain to their final performance for this season.
  • ^2 The ages of these participants were not disclosed on the program.
  • ^3 The age of the dog in this act was not disclosed on the program.

Quarter-finals summary

Buzzed Out | Judges' choice |  Advanced to Semi-finals
 Won Judges' Vote |  Lost Judges' Vote

Quarter-final 1 (July 29)

Guest Performers, Results Show: The Rockettes, Enrique Iglesias and Sean Paul

Quarter-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (July 30)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Sean & Luke 1 Eliminated
Valo & Bobby 2 Eliminated
Julia Goodwin 3 Eliminated
Baila Conmigo 4 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
David & Leeman 5 Advanced
The Willis Clan 6 Eliminated
Flight Crew Jump Rope 4 7 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Jasmine Flowers 8 Eliminated
Emily West 9 Advanced
JD Anderson 10 Eliminated
Dan Naturman 11 Advanced
Miguel Dakota 12 Advanced
  • ^4 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, and Lzzy Hale

Quarter-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (August 6)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Hart Dance Team 1 Eliminated
Loop Rawlins 2 Eliminated
John & Andrew 3 Eliminated
Livy, Matt & Sammy 4 Eliminated
Andrey Moraru 5 Advanced
Juan Carlos 6 Eliminated
Mara Justine 7 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Aerial Animation 8 Advanced
Jaycob Curlee 9 Advanced
Mat Franco 10 Advanced
Darik Santos 11 Eliminated
Acte II 12 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)

Quarter-final 3 (August 12)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Kenichi Ebina, and Taylor Williamson

Quarter-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (August 13)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Dragon House "The Agents" 1 Eliminated
Anna Clendening 2 Eliminated
Cornell Bhangra 3 Eliminated
Kieran & Finian Makepeace 4 Eliminated
Mike Super 5 5 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Adrian Romoff 6 Eliminated
AcroArmy 7 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Wendy Liebman 8 Eliminated
Sons of Serendip 9 Advanced
Blue Journey 10 Advanced
Christian Stoinev 11 Advanced
Paul Ieti 12 Advanced
  • ^5 Mike Super was later appointed as Howie Mandel's Wildcard semi-finalist.
  • ^6 Wendy Liebman was later appointed Howard Stern's Wildcard semi-finalist.

Quarter-final 4 (August 19)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Taylor Williamson, and The Illusionists

Quarter-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (August 20)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Bad Boys of Ballet 7 1 Eliminated
One Voice Children's Choir 2 8 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Jonah Smith 3 Advanced
Dom the Bom's Triple Threat 4 Eliminated
Extreme Dance Company 5 Eliminated
Emil & Dariel 6 Advanced
Nina Burri 7 Eliminated
Quintavious Johnson 8 Advanced
Mothmen Dance 9 Eliminated
Smoothini 10 Advanced
Jonatan Riquelme 11 Eliminated
Kelli Glover 12 8 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
  • ^7 Bad Boys of Ballet were later appointed as Mel B's Wildcard semi-finalist.
  • ^8 Due to the majority vote for Kelli Glover, Klum's voting intention was not revealed.

Semi-finals summary

Buzzed Out | Judges' choice |  Advanced to Finals
 Won Online Public Vote |  Won Judges' Vote |  Lost Judges' Vote

Semi-final 1 (August 26)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Ariana Grande

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (August 27)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Flight Crew Jump Rope 1 Eliminated
Mara Justine 2 Advanced (Online Public Vote)
Bad Boys of Ballet 3 Eliminated
Paul Ieti 4 Eliminated
Mike Super 5 Advanced
Andrey Moraru 6 Eliminated
Miguel Dakota 7 Advanced
Sons of Serendip 8 Advanced
David & Leeman 9 9 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Dan Naturman 10 Eliminated
Aerial Animation 11 9 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Emily West 12 Advanced
  • ^9 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

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (September 3)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Jonah Smith 1 Eliminated
Baila Conmigo 2 Eliminated
Jaycob Curlee 3 Eliminated
Mat Franco 4 Advanced
AcroArmy 5 Advanced
Kelli Glover 6 Eliminated
Wendy Liebman 7 Eliminated
Blue Journey 8 Advanced (Online Public Vote)
Emil & Dariel 9 Advanced
Smoothini 10 Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Christian Stoinev 11 Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Quintavious Johnson 12 Advanced

Finals summary

Finals – Top 12 (September 9–10)

Guest Performers, Results Show: The Muppets, and Jackie Evancho

Buzzed Out | Judges' choice |  Advanced to Grand-final
 Won Online Public Vote |  Won Judges' Vote |  Lost Judges' Vote
Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' votes Result (September 10)
Mandel Mel B Klum Stern
Mara Justine 1 Eliminated
David & Leeman 2 Eliminated
Sons of Serendip 3 Advanced (Online Public Vote)
Christian Stoinev 4 Eliminated
Emil & Dariel 5 Eliminated (Judges' Vote Tied – Lost by Public Vote)
AcroArmy 6 Advanced
Quintavious Johnson 7 Advanced
Mike Super 8 Eliminated
Blue Journey 9 Eliminated
Emily West 10 Advanced
Mat Franco 11 Advanced
Miguel Dakota 12 Advanced (Judges' Vote Tied – Won by Public Vote)

Grand-Final (September 16)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Pitbull & The Rockettes, and Ed Sheeran

 Winner |  Runner-up |  3rd place
Grand-finalist Performed with
(2nd Performance)
Result (September 17)
AcroArmy Travis Barker 3rd
Emily West Cyndi Lauper 2nd
Mat Franco Rosie O'Donnell 1st
Miguel Dakota Lenny Kravitz 6th
Quintavious Johnson Jennifer Hudson 5th
Sons of Serendip Train 4th

Ratings

The following ratings are based upon those published by Nielsen Media Research after this season's broadcast:

Show Episode First air date Rating
(18–49)
Share
(18–49)
Viewers
(millions)
Time slot
rank
Nightly
rank
Weekly
rank
1 Season premiere May 27, 2014 3.0 9 12.00 1 1 1
2 Auditions Week 2 June 3, 2014 2.9 10 11.30 1 1 3
3 Auditions Week 3 June 10, 2014 2.6 9 11.54 1 2 5
4 Auditions Week 4 June 17, 2014 2.6 9 11.42 1 1 1
5 Auditions Week 5 June 22, 2014 2.1 6 8.12 1 1 2
6 Auditions Week 6 July 1, 2014 2.6 9 11.14 1 1 1
7 Best of Auditions July 15, 2014 2.0 7 8.53 2 2 5
8 Judgment Week 1 July 22, 2014 2.4 8 10.43 1 1 1
9 Judgment Week 2 July 23, 2014 2.4 8 10.32 1 1 2
10 Quarterfinals, Week 1 (performances) July 29, 2014 2.4 8 10.64 1 1 2
11 Quarterfinals, Week 1 (results) July 30, 2014 2.2 7 10.79 1 2 4
12 Quarterfinals, Week 2 (performances) August 5, 2014 2.0 6 9.04 1 1 4
13 Quarterfinals, Week 2 (results) August 6, 2014 2.0 7 10.12 1 2 3
14 Quarterfinals, Week 3 (performances) August 12, 2014 2.1 6 9.68 1 1 3
15 Quarterfinals, Week 3 (results) August 13, 2014 1.9 6 9.97 1 2 6
16 Quarterfinals, Week 4 (performances) August 19, 2014 2.0 7 9.48 1 1 5
17 Quarterfinals, Week 4 (results) August 20, 2014 1.9 6 9.43 1 2 7
18 Semifinals, Round 1 (performances) August 26, 2014 2.1 7 9.52 1 1 3
19 Semifinals, Round 1 (results) August 27, 2014 1.8 6 9.46 1 2 8
20 Semifinals, Round 2 (performances) September 2, 2014 1.8 6 8.99 1 1 14
21 Semifinals, Round 2 (results) September 3, 2014 2.0 6 10.47 1 2 10
22 Top 12 (performances) September 9, 2014 1.9 6 9.83 1 2 8
23 Top 12 (results) September 10, 2014 1.8 6 10.52 1 2 10
24 Finals (performances) September 16, 2014 2.5 8 11.46 1 1 6
25 Finale September 17, 2014 2.4 8 12.21 1 1 8

Recap episodes

Show Episode First air date Rating
(18–49)
Share
(18–49)
Viewers
(millions)
Time slot
rank
Nightly
rank
Weekly
rank
1 Quarterfinals Week 1, Recap July 30, 2014 1.2 5 6.29 2 3 16
2 Quarterfinals Week 2, Recap August 6, 2014 1.1 4 6.06 2 4 18
3 Quarterfinals Week 3, Recap August 13, 2014 1.1 4 5.84 2 5 20
4 Quarterfinals Week 4, Recap August 20, 2014 1.1 4 5.68 2 5 20
5 Semifinals Week 1, Recap August 27, 2014 1.0 4 5.55 3 7 21
6 Semifinals Week 2, Recap September 3, 2014 1.1 4 6.42 3 5 n/a a
7 Top 12, Recap September 10, 2014 1.2 4 6.90 3 5 24
  • ^a This episode's weekly rank is not known because it was not among the 25 highest ranked shows of the week.

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