The America’s Got Talent judges all finally agree on something!
Murmuration, the 64-member dance group, earned unanimous praise across the board on Monday as the closing act of the latest live show of season 18. The group, which hails from France, is known for performing their synchronized, hand-based choreography blindfolded.
Speaking after Monday’s live show, judge Howie Mandel — who selected the group as his Golden Buzzer recipient earlier this season — said he “couldn’t be happier” with Murmuration’s performance and even claimed he got “goosebumps” watching them.
“When you talk about rising to the occasion, they rose not only to the occasion, they rose above the occasion. They were the ultimate perfection,” the 67-year-old judge raved. “I’ve never seen anything like that in my life.”
Fellow judge Simon Cowell echoed Howie’s praise, calling the act “seriously unbelievable.”
“It was incredible … this is the one everyone’s talking about,” Simon, 63, said of the performance. “How difficult it was and how creative it was. I mean, every part of it had to be right.”
“It was just what I call a ‘moment,’” he added. “We all want the moments.”
Heidi Klum declared Murmuration’s act her favorite part of Monday’s live show. She also admitted that she didn’t initially think they were “Golden Buzzer-worthy,” but has since had a change of heart.
“To me, they were mind-blowing,” Heidi, 50, shared. “I kind of gave [Howie] a little bit of s — — last time because I said, ‘Really? You give your Golden Buzzer to these guys? They were good but they were not Golden Buzzer-worthy.’ But you know, they stepped it up.”
She added: “They kept on surprising us with so many beautiful things … I feel like they had so many tricks up their sleeves that never made it boring. And no one missed a beat. So insane. It was incredible.”
Murmuration’s stand-in leader Jibril Maillot was also on cloud nine following the performance.
Speaking backstage, Jibril said it was “amazing” being the closing act of the night. He also emphasized how great it was to get such positive feedback from the judges — especially Simon, who was unable to speak during their audition because he had lost his voice.
“It’s been amazing, like, even like the crowd was amazing too,” Jibril said. “It was better than our dreams.”
The dance group earned Howie’s Golden Buzzer during an audition episode that aired in June, wowing the judges with their blindfolded, synchronized performance.
“I am so excited about the irony and talent of my Golden Buzzer,” Howie, who has been open about his struggles with OCD often brought on by his debilitating fear of germs, told at the time. “For a guy who spends 90 percent of his life wanting to avoid everyone’s hands, I never would have dreamed I would be so moved by so many strange hands.”
Fans will find out if Mumuration is one of two viewer-voted contestants to move onto the season 18 finale when the America’s Got Talent results show airs Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
