In one of the most unexpected moments of America’s Got Talent season 20 so far, Simon Cowell stunned the audience — and the contestant herself — when he interrupted an audition to invite her granddaughter on stage to sing instead.
The scene unfolded when Gina Bellina took the stage, explaining to the judges that her granddaughter, Lilliana, had secretly signed her up for AGT. “Behind my back, she signed me up,” Bellina told the panel with a laugh. “I only found out two days before I was meant to be here. I thought she was crazy, but she believed in me.”
With encouragement from the audience, Bellina began performing an original song written by Lilliana. But mid-performance, Cowell cut in. “Hang on a second,” he said, turning to Lilliana in the audience. “Did you write that song? You did? Can you sing it?”
Visibly nervous, Lilliana stepped on stage for an impromptu audition that quickly turned into a show-stopping moment. Her soulful rendition of the heartfelt track drew a standing ovation and left the judges speechless.
“You’ve got Gina here, but weirdly Gina got you here,” Cowell told Lilliana afterwards. “You’ve got the better voice. You’re cool, and I think people are going to root for you. So, as long as Gina, you’re prepared to let Liliana sing, this could work.”
Sofía Vergara echoed the sentiment, saying, “We would have never known you had this beautiful, beautiful voice if Simon hadn’t asked you to sing. I think people are going to love you.”
The judges were split on Bellina’s original audition. Mel B admitted, “I have to be honest, it didn’t quite get there for me,” voting no. But Mandel and Vergara said yes, pushing Lilliana through to the next round with Cowell’s decisive vote.
America’s Got Talent airs Tuesdays on NBC and streams on Peacock.
