'America's Got Talent' Season 15: Covid-19 survivor Michael Yo leaves viewers in splits with his brilliant act
'America's Got Talent' kicked off with its very first live elimination round on August 11 night on the NBC network. The stakes have now risen ever higher since only 11 contestants remain now, who are all vying for one of five spots in the semi-finals next week. Whoever gets to the grand finale and eventually takes home the big prize will walk away with one million dollars and a headlining spot in Las Vegas, so there's a lot on the line for these potential finalists.
Host Terry Crews, who was looking dapper in a white suit, encouraged the watching audience to cast their votes for their favorite performer as soon as possible since voting closed at 7 am ET on August 12. Also looking dapper in her green suit was replacement judge Kelly Clarkson who was filling in for the esteemed Simon Cowell. The infamously candid judge had recently undergone emergency surgery after suffering a horrific accident while riding his bike, and Clarkson wished him a speedy recovery while joking that she was getting really used to sitting in his chair. The other judges Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara were also in fine vocal form, encouraging the contestants and praising the acts who did well.
One of the contestants who certainly earned his stage time was Michael Yo, the TV presenter turned stand-up comedian who had recently given up his lucrative job of interviewing celebrities to make a name for himself in the comedy world. Before his performance, the emotional comic recalled how all the joy had nearly been sucked out of his life when he contracted the deadly coronavirus himself. He vividly remembered putting his hand on the window of the ambulance for what might have been his last fleeting contact with the palm of his young son.
Thanks to the efforts of the medical professionals at the hospital he was admitted at, Michael made a full recovery and the ordeal left him with a greater sense of purpose. His grateful wife told him once the happy couple was once again reunited that he was meant to be on the international stage of 'America's Got Talent', bringing happiness and laughter to people who sorely needed a laugh in these trying times. And Michael came ready to deliver, with a hilarious set and jokes aplenty.
He literally dissected the aspects of delivery during his routine, talking about how his wife had given birth to his baby boy Oliver (named after his dad) and how he realized that he was completely useless as a man in a hospital delivery room. He commented on how women were far more stronger than men and the only thing he was good for was yelling "Push! Push!" as if his wife was presumably going to suck the baby back inside her. He then talked about how Oliver grabbed his finger for the very first time and stopped crying, which prompted a flood of tears from Michael himself.
"This is what love is," Michael realized, and went on to say that while he deeply loved his wife, he had never felt ready to die for her the first time he met her, like in Oliver's case. He then brilliantly segued into how if anyone was ready to die for you on their first date, you should probably be running away from them. He then closed out his set with a highly-relatable zinger about how we all have dated someone who probably deserved to die anyway.
Yo's professionalism and the brilliant gift of drawing observational humor out of real-life situations won the judges over unanimously. Kelly declared that comedians were now needed in the world more than ever, while Howie observed that performing stand-up comedy was extremely hard to do with a virtual audience. "Comedy and tragedy go together, this was really hard, but you delivered," noted an appreciative Mandel. Meanwhile, Heidi commented on how Michael's face looked like a happy emoji throughout his set, and that he did well without an audience to feed off of. Sofia also said that his set was even better than last time and that she wished people knew how hard it was for a comedian to make it this far.
People on social media were certainly impressed, with one fan stating that he been hilarious.
Another impressed viewer noted that Michael Yo had really brought the laughs tonight.
On the basis of that heartwarming and hysterical performance, Michael Yo definitely deserves to make it through to the semi-finals, so make sure you cast your vote. Voting closes at 7 am ET on Wednesday, and make sure you tune in next Tuesday for the semi-finals of 'America's Got Talent' at 8 pm on NBC.