Originally posted Tuesday, January 22, 2019 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
Pixie-like Suwanee resident Angelica Hale, who came in second in 2017 on "America's Got Talent," is now in the finals of a special "America's Got Talent: The Champions" edition.
The 11-year-old girl with an angelic adult-sounding voice received the Golden Buzzer from Howie Mandel Monday night, guaranteeing her a spot without submitting to a vote.
She covered Rachel Platten's "Fight Song," navigating the soft notes and big ones with equal aplomb. As usual, she melded equal parts precision and emotion in a tiny package, adding plenty of her own personality into the pop song.
"You are like the little boss lady you are," Heidi Klum said. "You came here to win!"
Mel B didn't think she did enough: "You have this incredible voice. You're like a firecracker. I see your hunger to win this competition. I thought you would have taken this song and given it your own Angelica twist to it." (She got boos for that.)
But Mandel ignored Mel B and said he wanted to help her win this fight and pressed the Golden Buzzer.
Tearfully, Angelica said, “I never expected this to happen! Thank you!”
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