America's Got Talent (season 4)

The fourth season of America's Got Talent, an American talent show competition, began broadcasting in the United States during 2009, from June 23 to September 16 on NBC. Following the previous season, Jerry Springer was forced to leave the program due to other commitments,[1] leading to him being replaced as host by Nick Cannon,[2] with no further changes being required, in regards to the judging panel.[3]

America's Got Talent
Season 4
Broadcast fromJune 23 –
September 16, 2009
JudgesPiers Morgan
Sharon Osbourne
David Hasselhoff
Host(s)Nick Cannon
BroadcasterNBC
No. of episodes26
WebsiteOfficial website
Winner
Kevin Skinner
Kevin Skinner
OriginMayfield, Kentucky
Genre(s)Country music
Runner-up
Bárbara Padilla

Alongside the change in host, production staff made a number of new changes to the program, which included replacing the "bootcamp" stage with an audition round similar in format to that used by Britain's Got Talent for selecting live round participants, titled "Vegas Verdicts", and airing Results episodes for live rounds the day after their respective Performance episodes, with each broadcast in a one-hour timeslot and featuring a selection of guest performers. This season featured unique moments that had different impacts on the competition for 2009 - Simon Cowell was forced to question some of the acts that were eliminated from auditions, leading to some of these being invited back as Wildcard acts in the quarter-finals, while the judges held no vote in one of the semi-finals due to having been undecided over two acts in another and opting to send both through.

The fourth season was won by Country singer Kevin Skinner, with opera singer Bárbara Padilla finishing in second, and percussion group Recycled Percussion placing third. During its broadcast, the season averaged around 11.91 million viewers, and was the first in the program's history to be aired in high definition.

Season Overview
Jerry Springer's departure prior to this season led to NBC appointing Nick Cannon as AGT's new host.

Auditions for the fourth season's competition took place across Winter - mid-Spring 2009, with production staff expanding the audition sites to a greater number of cities. Filming for the audition episodes focused on those held within the cities of New York, Houston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Tacoma, and Seattle; auditions were also held in Boston, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C., but production staff opted to not include these in the final edits of these episodes. Prior to auditions taking place, NBC received word from Jerry Springer that his work schedule for 2009 would make him unable to commit to hosting the program that year - alongside working on his talk show, he had also signed up to take part in summer theatre productions to help further his acting skills.[1] As a direct result, a search was made for a successor, with the network eventually recruiting Nick Cannon as his successor.[2]

Production staff decided to alter the program's format with regards to the second stage of auditions. The change was aimed at ditching the "bootcamp" format that had been used in the previous two seasons, in favor of using the selection process from Britain's Got Talent, under the title of "Vegas Verdicts" - judges would now review the tapes of participants who had made successful auditions, to determine who would advance into the live rounds. This stage would continue to divide participants into groups, allowing the judges to debate amongst themselves about which group of participants should earn a place in the live rounds, before bringing back each group to inform them of their decision about their progress in the competition; in some cases, some participants were required to do a second performance to help the judges make their final decisions. The format for the buzzers in the live rounds was also altered to match that of the format across the Got Talent franchise, in that participants receiving buzzes from all the judges had to stop immediately, rather than being given a little more time to perform.

The fourth season saw a number of issues arise that had to be dealt with during production of the episodes. The first use of the "Vegas Verdicts" stage for the first season forced executive producer Simon Cowell to question the judges on some of their choices made in this stage. After voicing his concerns that "too much talent" had been eliminated, the judges were prompted to bring back a number of eliminated acts and appoint them as Wildcards for the quarter-finals at his instruction. During the semi-finals for this year's competition, the judges were faced with an inability to determine which of two acts would advance into the final from the first semi-final, which eventually led to the decision that both would advance, while the judges' vote in the second semi-final would not occur as a direct result.

Of the participants who auditioned for this season, 48 secured a place in the live quarter-finals - including those originally eliminated in the Vega Verdicts stage before Cowell's intervention - with twelve quarterfinalists in each one. Around 20 of these advanced to and were split between the two semi-finals, with 10 semi-finalists securing a place in the live final, which was a single stage rather than multiple rounds in previous seasons. The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this season:

  Winner |   Runner-up |   Third place |   Finalist |   Semi-finalist
  Quarter-finalist | Judges' Wildcard Quarter-Finalist
Participant Age(s) 1 Genre Act From Quarter-Final Result
African High Flyers 24–35 Acrobatics Acrobats Orlando, Florida 4 Eliminated
Alizma 23, 23, 23 Singing / Music Singing Violinist Triplets Las Vegas 2 Eliminated
Anthony & Matt (AM Project) 24, 22 Dance / Music Tap dancer & Guitarist New York City 4 Eliminated
Arcadian Broad 13 Dance / Music Dancer & Pianist Orlando, Florida 1 Semi-finalist
Bárbara Padilla 36 Singing Opera singer Houston 4 Runner-up
Beale Street Flippers 20–26 Acrobatics Flippers Memphis, Tennessee 2 Eliminated
Breaksk8 21–30 Dance Rollerskating Dance Troupe Kokomo, Indiana 1 Eliminated
BRI 17 Singing / Music Singer & Pianist Las Vegas 3 Eliminated
Carol Loo 63 Dance Dancer Jersey City, New Jersey 2 Eliminated
Charles DeWayne 21 Singing / Music Singer & Pianist La Verne, California 2 Eliminated
Coney Island Chris 42 Danger / Comedy Comic Stuntman Naugatuck, Connecticut 4 Eliminated
David Johnson 30 Singing / Comedy Comic singer Renton, Washington 3 Eliminated
Diva League 20–44 Dance / Variety Drag Dancers & Lip-synchers Washington, D.C. 1 Eliminated
Drew Stevyns 26 Singing / Music Singer & Musician Sykesville, Maryland 4 Finalist
Drew Thomas Magic & Illusion 40 2 Magic Magician & Illusionist Orlando, Florida 1 Semi-finalist
Eleisha Miller 8 Singing / Music Singer & Pianist Amarillo, Texas 2 Eliminated
EriAm Sisters 11, 14, 16 Singing Singing Trio Seattle 4 Semi-finalist
Erik & Rickie 8, 8 Dance Ballroom Dancers Seattle 4 Semi-finalist
Fab Five 24-35 Dance / Variety Clogging Dance Troupe Morgan, Utah 2 Finalist
FootworKINGz 16-24 Dance Dance Troupe Chicago 3 Semi-finalist
G Force 11, 9, 8 Singing / Music Girl Rock Band Amherst, Ohio 3 Eliminated
Grandma Lee 75 Comedy Stand-up Comedian Jacksonville, Florida 1 Finalist
Hairo Torres 23 Variety / Dance Contortionist & Breakdancer Grants Pass, Oregon 3 Finalist
Ishaara 18–23 Dance Bollywood Dance Troupe Berkeley, California 4 Eliminated
Jay Mattioli 27 Magic Magician & Illusionist Manassas, Virginia 3 Eliminated
Jeffrey Ou 18 Music Classical Pianist Carrollton, Texas 3 Semi-finalist
Kevin Skinner 35 Singing / Music Singer & Musician Mayfield, Kentucky 1 Winner
Lake Houston Dance 9–14 Dance Dance troupe Houston 1 Eliminated
Lawrence Beamen 34 Singing Bass Singer Walnut Creek, California 3 Finalist
Manuela Horn 36 Singing / Variety Yodeller & Singer Seattle 1 Eliminated
Marcus Terrell & The Serenades 22 2 Vocal Group Singer Kansas City, Missouri 3 Eliminated
Mario & Jenny 34, 33 Variety Jugglers Las Vegas 3 Semi-finalist
Mia Boostrom 16 Singing Singer North Dighton, Massachusetts 4 Eliminated
Mosaic 30–34 Singing Cappella Vocal Group Las Vegas 1 Eliminated
Pam Martin's Top Dog 54 Animal Dancing Dogs Garland, Texas 4 Eliminated
Paradizo Dance 37,29 Acrobatics Acrobatic Performers New York City 2 Semi-finalist
Pete Peterkin 54 Comedy Impressionist New York City 2 Eliminated
Pixie Mystère 9–11 Variety / Dancing Contortionist Dance Troupe Cape May, New Jersey 3 Eliminated
Platt Brothers 22–27 Acrobatics / Comedy Comic Acrobats San Diego, California 1 Eliminated
Recycled Percussion 22–39 Music Junkyard Percussion Group Goffstown, New Hampshire 4 Third place
SQ Entertainment 19–32 Dance Dance Group Boston 2 Eliminated
Team Acrodunk 23-45 Acrobatics Acrobatic Basketball Dunkers Houston 1 Semi-finalist
The Lollipop Girls 21–40 Dance / Variety Burlesque Dance Troupe San Diego, California 4 Eliminated
The Texas Tenors 34, 35, 44 Singing Country & Classical Vocal Group Houston 2 Finalist
The Voices of Glory 16, 13, 9 Singing Sibling Trio Highland, New York 2 Finalist
Thia Megia 14 Singing Singer Redwood City, California 1 Eliminated
Tony Hoard & Rory 54 Animal Dog Frisbee-catching Act New Castle, Indiana 2 Semi-finalist
U4ria Dance Crew 16–23 Dance Dance Troupe Coral Springs, Florida 3 Eliminated
  • ^1 Ages denoted in this column pertain to a participant(s) age in their final performance for this season.
  • ^2 The ages of Drew Thomas' assistants and Marcus Terrell's backing group were not disclosed during the season's broadcast.

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

Quarter-final 1 (August 4)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Terry Fator and Mariah Carey

Quarter-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result (August 5)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
Breaksk8 1 Rollerskating Dance Troupe Eliminated
Thia Megia 2 Singer Lost Judges' Vote
Platt Brothers 3 Comic Acrobats Eliminated
Diva League 4 Drag Dancers & Lip-synchers Eliminated
Manuela Horn 5 Yodeller & Singer Eliminated
Grandma Lee 6 Standup Comedian Advanced
Mosaic 7 Cappella Vocal Group Eliminated
Team Acrodunk 8 Acrobatic Basketball Dunkers Advanced
Arcadian Broad 9 Dancer Won Judges' Vote
Drew Thomas Magic & Illusions 10 Magician & Illusionist Advanced
Kevin Skinner 11 Singer Advanced
Lake Houston Dance 12 Dance Troupe Eliminated

Quarter-final 2 (August 11)

Guest Performers, Results Show: LMFAO and Penn and Teller.

Quarter-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result (August 12)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
Fab Five 1 Clogging Dance troupe Advanced
Charles DeWayne 2 Singer Lost Judges' Vote
Carol Loo 3 Dancer Eliminated
Tony Hoard & Rory 4 Dog Frisbee-catching Act Won Judges' Vote
Eleisha Miller 5 Singer & Pianist Eliminated
Paradizo Dance 6 Acrobatic Performers Advanced
The Texas Tenors 7 Country & Classical Vocal Group Advanced
SQ Entertainment 8 Dance Group Eliminated
Pete Peterkin 9 Impersonator Eliminated
Alizma 10 Singing Violinist Triplets Eliminated
Beale Street Flippers 11 Flippers Eliminated
The Voices of Glory 12 Singing Trio Advanced


Quarter-final 3 (August 18)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Ashley Tisdale and Daughtry

Quarter-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result (August 19)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
FootworKINGz 1 Dance Troupe Won Judges' Vote
Marcus Terrell and the Serenades 2 Vocal Group Eliminated
Pixie Mystère 3 Contortionist Dance Troupe Lost Judges' Vote
Jay Mattioli 4 Magician & Illusionist Eliminated
BRI 5 Singer & Pianist Eliminated
U4RIA Dance Crew 6 Dance Troupe Eliminated
David Johnson 7 Comic Singer Eliminated
Hairo Torres 8 Contortionist & Breakdancer Advanced
G-Force 9 Girl Rock Band Eliminated
Jeffery Ou 10 Classical Pianist Advanced
Mario & Jenny 11 Jugglers Advanced
Lawrence Beamen 12 Bass Singer Advanced

Quarter-final 4 (August 25)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Reba McEntire

Quarter-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result (August 26)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
Ishaara 1 Bollywood Dance Troupe Eliminated
Bárbara Padilla 2 Singer Advanced
Pam Martin's Top Dogs 3 Dancing Dogs Eliminated
African High Flyers 4 Acrobats Eliminated
Mia Boostrom 5 Singer Lost Judges' Vote
Erik & Rickie 6 Ballroom Dancers Won Judges' Vote
Coney Island Chris 7 Comic Stuntman Eliminated
Matt & Anthony 8 Guitarist & Tap Dancer Eliminated
The Lollipop Girls 9 Burlesque Dancers Eliminated
Drew Stevyns 10 Singer Advanced
Recycled Percussion 11 Junkyard Percussion Group Advanced
EriAm Sisters 12 Singing Trio Advanced

Semi-final Summary
Buzzed |   Advanced

Semi-final 1 (September 1)

Guest Performers, Result Show: Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog,4 and David Hasselhoff

Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes Result (September 2)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
Team Acrodunk 1 Acrobatic Basketball Dunkers Eliminated
The Texas Tenors 2 Country & Classical Vocal group Advanced
Paradizo Dance 3 Acrobatic Performers Eliminated
Drew Thomas Magic & Illusions 4 Magician & Illusionist Eliminated
Tony Hoard and Rory 5 Dog Frisbee-catching Act Eliminated
The Voices of Glory 5 6 Singing Trio Advanced
The Fab Five 5 7 Clogging Dance Troupe Advanced
Grandma Lee 8 Stand-up Comedian Advanced
Arcadian Broad 9 Dancer & Pianist Eliminated
Kevin Skinner 10 Singer & Guitarist Advanced
  • 4 Kermit was handled by Artie Esposito, as his usual puppeteer Steve Whitmire (at the time) was unavailable.
  • 5 Both acts were advanced into the next stage, after the judges could not decide on who to vote for advancing further in the competition. This decision meant no Judges' Vote was held in the next semi-final.

Semi-final 2 (September 8)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Cast of musical Jersey Boys.

Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes Result (September 9)
Hasselhoff Osbourne Morgan
Recycled Percussion 1 Junkyard Percussion Group Advanced
Lawrence Beamen 2 Bass Singer Advanced
Erik and Rickie 3 Ballroom Dancers Eliminated
Jeffrey Ou 4 Classical Pianist Eliminated
Hairo Torres 5 Contortionist & Breakdancer Advanced
EriAm Sisters 6 Singing Trio Eliminated
Mario and Jenny 7 Jugglers Eliminated
Drew Stevyns 8 Singer & Musician Advanced
FootworKINGz 9 Dance Troupe Eliminated
Bárbara Padilla 10 Opera Singer Advanced

Final (September 14)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Thelma Houston, Shakira, Rascal Flatts, cast members of Cirque Du Soleil, Leona Lewis, and Susan Boyle.

  Winner |   Runner-up |   3rd place
Finalist Order Act Result (September 16)
The Voices of Glory 1 Sibling Trio 5th
Hairo Torres 2 Contortionist & Breakdancer 8th
Lawrence Beamen 3 Bass Singer 9th
Bárbara Padilla 4 Opera Singer 2nd
Fab Five 5 Clogging Dance Troupe 6th
The Texas Tenors 6 Country & Classical Vocal Group 4th
Drew Stevyns 7 Singer & Guitarist 10th
Grandma Lee 8 Stand-up Comedian 7th
Kevin Skinner 9 Singer & Musician 1st
Recycled Percussion 10 Junkyard Percussion Group 3rd

Ratings
Order Episode Rating Share Rating/Share
(18–49)		 Viewers
(millions)		 Rank (night)
(viewers)		 Rank (week)
(viewers)
1 "Auditions Episode 1" 6.8 12 3.3/10 [4] 11.30 #1 #1
2 "Auditions Episode 2" 6.2 11 3.1/9 [5] 10.39 #1 #3
3 "Auditions Episode 3" 7.5 13 3.7/11 [6] 12.91 #1 #1
4 "Auditions Episode 4" 6.8 12 2.9/9 11.30 #2 #3
5 "Auditions Episode 5" 6.2 10 3/9 [7] 10.43 #1 #2
6 "Auditions Episode 6" 6.9 12 3.3/10 [8] 11.69 #1 #1
7 "Auditions Episode 7" 8 13 3.6/10 [9] 13.17 #2 #2
8 "Auditions Episode 8" 6.9 12 2.9/9 [10] 11.38 #1 #4
9 "Auditions Episode 9" 8.2 14 3.4/10 [11] 13.75 #1 #1 [12]
10 "Auditions Episode 10
Susan Boyle Interview"		 6.6 11 2.5/7 [13] 11.26 #1 #2 [12]
11 "Vegas Verdicts (Part 1)" 7.7 13 3.4/10 [14] 12.76 #1 #1
12 "Vegas Verdicts (Part 2)" 6.4 11 2.8/8 [15] 10.90 #1 #2
13 "Quarterfinals, Group 1" 7.7 14 3.6/11 [16] 12.97 #1 #1
14 "Quarterfinals, Group 1 Results" 6 10 2.9/9 [17] 10.68 #1 #2
15 "Quarterfinals, Group 2" 7.6 13 3.4/10 12.48 #1 #1
16 "Quarterfinals, Group 2 Results" 6.9 12 2.9/9 11.42 #1 #4
17 "Quarterfinals, Group 3" 7 12 2.9/9 [18] 11.59 #1 #2
18 "Quarterfinals, Group 3 Results" 6.4 11 2.4/7 [19] 10.29 #1 #4
19 "Quarterfinals, Group 4" 6.9 12 3/8 11.42 #1 #1
20 "Quarterfinals, Group 4 Results" 6.7 11 2.9/8 10.87 #1 #2
21 "Semifinals, Group 1" 7.5 13 3.2/9 [20] 12.81 #1 #1
22 "Semifinals, Group 1 Results" 7.4 12 2.6/8 [21] 12.39 #1 #2
23 "Semifinals, Group 2 " 7.1 12 2.9/8 [22] 12.03 #1 #5
24 "Semifinals, Group 2 Results" 6 9 2.1/5 [23] 10.06 #1 #10
25 "Finals, Performances" 8.5 13 3.3/9 [24] 13.84 #2 #3
26 "Finale" 9.5 16 3.5/10 [25] 15.53 #1 #2

References
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  18. Weisman, Jon (August 19, 2009). "NBC top ratings with 'Talent'". Variety. Retrieved August 19, 2009.
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