55-year-old singing janitor returns to ‘AGT’ with powerful performance as NBC show marks major milestone
'America's Got Talent' Season 19 winner Richard Goodall just returned to the NBC talent competition show for its milestone 20th birthday party special. During the episode, Goodall sang a power-packed version of Survivor's 1982 hit track 'Eye of the Tiger,' which was written for Sylvester Stallone's sports drama film 'Rocky III.' During an interview with The Guardian, the band's then-key player Jim Peterik revealed that they wrote the song when they were on the verge of being dropped by their label, and how it became a huge success overnight. "When we were writing 'Tiger,' I was living with a friend, renting a room for $150 a month, and he was waiving the rent half the time. The guitar I played on the song had a broken headstock. I couldn’t afford another one, so I glued it back together. Now I collect vintage guitars," Peternick shared.
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In the special episode of 'AGT' Season 20, which aired on August 12, Goodall wasn't the only fan-favorite who came forward to celebrate the 20th season of 'America's Got Talent.' During his performance, Goodall was also joined by The Pack Drumline, a percussion group from Season 17 of 'AGT.' Along with this, Goodall was also surrounded by a couple of dancers from Los Osos High School who appeared on Season 19 of the show.
Saxophonist Avery Dixon and singer Sara James, from Season 17, also returned to celebrate the milestone season of 'America's Got Talent.' Later in the episode, the Rollerblade duo, Billy and Emily England, from Season 12, also wowed the studio crowd with their jaw-dropping stunts. On the other hand, aerialist Alan Silva, who previously competed on Season 15, also put her remarkable aerial skills on display.
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Speaking of Goodall, he auditioned for 'AGT' Season 19 with the Journey classic "Don't Stop Believin'" and he won the hearts of the judges during his audition. At that point, Goodall's epic cover bagged him a Golden Buzzer from judge Heidi Klum. Due to his incredible singing skills, Goodall made it to the finale and sang 'Faithfully' by Journey during his final performance. At that point, Howie Mandel told Goodall, “I think you just sang yourself one million dollars.” Eventually, Goodall emerged as the winner of 'AGT' Season 19 and took home a cash prize of $1 million. During an interview with NBC Insider after the grand finale, which took place on September 24, Goodall exclaimed, "What a way to end on this rollercoaster. Just absolutely amazing."
While having a chat with Today in November 2024, Goodall talked about his journey on 'AGT' and stated that, in addition to performing at some sports games, he was still working as a school janitor. Then, Goodall shared, “Not much has changed. I mean, I have a manager now, and at some point I’ll probably have to take a leave of absence for a while, and then assess and see if I would stay or start singing, but for the most part, other than singing out, I’m still the same person, same guy, not changed.”
