America's Got Talent (season 9)
The ninth season of America's Got Talent, an American talent show competition, began broadcasting in the United States during 2014, from May 27 to September 17 on NBC. Following the previous season, the program underwent a number of changes that included the changing of the second audition stage, the involvement of a third-party TV program to appoint a place in the live rounds for a single participant, and the inclusion of a public WildCard act. The "Golden Buzzer" format, incorporated into other editions within the Got Talent franchise, was also introduced but in an arrangement that would be changed in later seasons.
The ninth season was won by magician Mat Franco, with singer Emily West finishing in second, and acrobatic group Acro Army placing third. During its broadcast, the season averaged around 10.26 million viewers.
Season Overview
Auditions for the eighth season's competition took place during 2013 between October to December, within Miami, Atlanta, Baltimore, Denver, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York City and Providence, Rhode Island. Contestants could also submit a video of their audition online. The judges' auditions had a number of sessions held across three major venues the following year in 2014 - the first within February at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, while the other two took place in April within Madison Square Garden in New York City and the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.Production on the season saw a number of changes being made. One of the most notable was the introduction of the "Golden Buzzer" format - a new addition that was bringing brought into other editions of the Got Talent franchise. While the format was assigned to the auditions round, it functioned differently in its first use, in that anyone who received the buzzer simply gained a place in the next stage automatically, though the host was not allowed to use it, and it was more typically used to save an act from elimination or breaking up a tied vote by judges in auditions; later seasons would alter the rules for the Golden Buzzer to match that of other editions. Another notable change was to incorporate an online public vote - named after the sponsor, it allowed the public to grant an automatic place from the semi-finals into the finals via online voting through Google. However, the voting system's rule was that it would only allow the public to vote amongst the participants who were placed 5th, 6th and 7th in the main public vote respectively for a spot in the next stage; the remaining two who lost out would then face a vote from the judges for a final place in the next stage. While the format remained for later seasons, with a different name following a change in sponsor, the ninth season is the only one in the program's history to allow this format to be used in the finals as well. Other changes included a reduction in the number of quarter-finalists and quarter-finals, and the second stage of auditions being conducted in New York, rather than in Las Vegas - while it retained the same format of "Vegas Verdicts", it was made more competitive under the title of "Judgement Week" and originally intended to have a live audience in the segment before the idea was later dropped.
One notable element to the ninth season that was unusual for America's Got Talent to do in production of a season - a decision that would not be repeated in later seasons - was to involve another television show, The Today Show, in a collaboration to appoint an outsider into the competition's live round. The involvement of a 3rd party in the competition's audition process focused on a simple arrangement - participants wanting a place in the competition could submit a recording of their performance on the website for The Today Show, in which the top three entrants conducted a further performance in late July 2014 on the program, and the best of these voted by their viewers earned a place in the live rounds of the competition. Of the participants who auditioned for this season, 48 secured a place in the live quarter-finals, with twelve quarter-finalists in each one. Around 20 quarter-finalists advanced to and were split between the two semi-finals - including four WildCards selected by the judges - with 12 semi-finalists securing a place in the finals, and 6 finalists securing a place in the grand-final. The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this season:
| Participant | Age | Genre | Act | Quarter-Final | Result |
| AcroArmy | 11–27 | Acrobatics | Acrobatic Group | 3 | ' |
| ACTE II | 29, 32 | Singing | Operatic Duet | 2 | |
| Adrian Romoff | 9 | Music | Pianist | 3 | |
| Aerial Animation | 33 | Acrobatics | Visual Aerialists | 2 | |
| Andrey Moraru | 26 | Acrobatics | Hand Balancer | 2 | |
| Anna Clendening | 20 | Singing / Music | Singer & Guitarist | 3 | |
| Bad Boys of Ballet | Dance | Ballet Dance Group | 4 | ||
| Baila Conmigo | Dance | Salsa Dance Troupe | 1 | ||
| Blue Journey | 18, 33 | Dance | Shadow Dance Duo | 3 | ' |
| Christian Stoinev | 22 | Acrobatics / Animals | Hand Balancer & Dog Tricks Act | 3 | ' |
| Cornell Bhangra | 18–23 | Dance | Bhangra Dance Group | 3 | |
| Dan Naturman | 44 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | 1 | |
| Darik Santos | 26 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | 2 | |
| David & Leeman | 27, 29 | Magic | Magicians | 1 | ' |
| Dom the Bom's Triple Threat | 8 | Variety | Card Throwing Trio | 4 | |
| Dragon House "The Agents" | 23–25 | Dance | Breakdancing Trio | 3 | |
| Emil & Dariel | 13, 16 | Music | Cellists | 4 | ' |
| Emily West | 32 | Singing | Singer | 1 | ' |
| Extreme Dance Company | Dance | Dance Group | 4 | ||
| Flight Crew Jump Rope | 19–29 | Variety | Jump Rope Team | 1 | |
| Hart Dance Team | 14–17 | Dance | Contemporary Dance Group | 2 | |
| Jasmine Flowers | 12–18 | Dance | Chinese Dance Group | 1 | |
| Jaycob Curlee | 18 | Singing / Music | Singer & Guitarist | 2 | |
| JD Anderson | 26 | Variety | Strongman | 1 | |
| John & Andrew | 21, 41 | Dance | Salsa Dance Duo | 2 | |
| Jonah Smith | 38 | Singing / Music | Singer & Pianist | 4 | |
| Jonatan Riquelme | 37 | Acrobatics | Balancing Acrobat | 4 | |
| Juan Carlos | 49 | Dance / Variety | Rollerskating Dancer | 2 | |
| Julia Goodwin | 15 | Singing | Singer | 1 | |
| Kelli Glover | 31 | Singing | Singer | 4 | |
| Kieran & Finian Makepeace | 27, 31 | Music | Rock Band | 3 | |
| Livy, Matt & Sammy | 18–21 | Music | Rock Band | 2 | |
| Loop Rawlins | 28 | Variety | Wild West Performer | 2 | |
| Mara Justine | 11 | Singing | Singer | 2 | ' |
| Mat Franco | 25 | Magic | Close-up Magician | 2 | ' |
| Miguel Dakota | 21 | Singing / Music | Singer & Guitarist | 1 | ' |
| Mike Super | 37 | Magic | Mystifier Magician | 3 | ' |
| Mothmen Dance | 18–35 | Dance / Variety | Aerialist Dance Group | 4 | |
| Nina Burri | 36 | Dance / Variety | Contortionist Dancer | 4 | |
| One Voice Children's Choir | 6–18 | Singing | Choir | 4 | |
| Paul Ieti | 21 | Singing | Singer | 3 | |
| Quintavious Johnson | 12 | Singing | R&B Singer | 4 | ' |
| Sean & Luke | 17, 18 | Dance | Tap Dancing Duo | 1 | |
| Smoothini | 33 | Magic | Close-up Magician | 4 | |
| Sons of Serendip | 26–30 | Music | Rock Band | 3 | ' |
| The Willis Clan | 3–21 | Music | Family Band | 1 | |
| Valo & Bobby | 31, 37 | Acrobatics / Danger | Extreme Balancing Acrobats | 1 | |
| Wendy Liebman | 53 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | 3 |
- Ages denoted in this column pertain to a participant age in their final performance for this season.
- The ages of these participants were not disclosed on the program.
- The age of the dog in this act was not disclosed on the program.
Quarter-final Summary
Quarter-final 1 (July 29)
Guest Performers, Results Show: The Rockettes, Enrique Iglesias and Sean Paul- Flight Crew Jump Rope were later appointed as Heidi Klum's Wildcard semi-finalist.
Quarter-final 2 (August 5)
Quarter-final 3 (August 12)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Kenichi Ebina, and Taylor Williamson- Mike Super was later appointed as Howie Mandel's Wildcard semi-finalist.
- Wendy Liebman was later appointed Howard Stern's Wildcard semi-finalist.
Quarter-final 4 (August 19)
- Bad Boys of Ballet were later appointed as Mel B's Wildcard semi-finalist.
- Due to the majority vote for Kelli Glover, Klum's voting intention was not revealed.
Semi-final Summary
Semi-final 1 (August 26)
Guest Performer, Results Show: Ariana Grande- Due to the majority vote for David & Leeman, Mel B's voting intention was not revealed.
Semi-final 2 (September 2)
Finals Summary
Top 12 Finals (September 9–10)
Guest Performers, Results Show: The Muppets, and Jackie EvanchoGrand-Final (September 16)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Pitbull & The Rockettes, and Ed Sheeran| Grand-finalist | Act | Performed with | Result |
| Quintavious Johnson | R&B Singer | Jennifer Hudson | 5th |
| Mat Franco | Close-up Magician | Rosie O'Donnell | 1st |
| Emily West | Singer | Cyndi Lauper | 2nd |
| Miguel Dakota | Singer & Guitarist | Lenny Kravitz | 6th |
| Sons of Serendip | Rock Band | Train | 4th |
| AcroArmy | Acrobatic Group | Travis Barker | 3rd |
Ratings
The following ratings are based upon those published by Nielsen Media Research after this season's broadcast:| Show | Episode | First air date | Rating | Share | Viewers | Time slot rank | Nightly rank | Weekly rank |
| 1 | Season Premiere | May 27, 2014 | 3.0 | 9 | 12.00 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Auditions Week 2 | June 3, 2014 | 2.9 | 10 | 11.30 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Auditions Week 3 | June 10, 2014 | 2.6 | 9 | 11.54 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 4 | Auditions Week 4 | June 17, 2014 | 2.6 | 9 | 11.42 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Auditions Week 5 | June 22, 2014 | 2.1 | 6 | 8.12 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Auditions Week 6 | July 1, 2014 | 2.6 | 9 | 11.14 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Best of Auditions | July 15, 2014 | 2.0 | 7 | 8.53 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 8 | Judgment Week 1 | July 22, 2014 | 2.4 | 8 | 10.43 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | Judgment Week 2 | July 23, 2014 | 2.4 | 8 | 10.32 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | Quarterfinals, Week 1 | July 29, 2014 | 2.4 | 8 | 10.64 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | Quarterfinals, Week 1 | July 30, 2014 | 2.2 | 7 | 10.79 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 12 | Quarterfinals, Week 2 | August 5, 2014 | 2.0 | 6 | 9.04 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 13 | Quarterfinals, Week 2 | August 6, 2014 | 2.0 | 7 | 10.12 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 14 | Quarterfinals, Week 3 | August 12, 2014 | 2.1 | 6 | 9.68 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 15 | Quarterfinals, Week 3 | August 13, 2014 | 1.9 | 6 | 9.97 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 16 | Quarterfinals, Week 4 | August 19, 2014 | 2.0 | 7 | 9.48 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 17 | Quarterfinals, Week 4 | August 20, 2014 | 1.9 | 6 | 9.43 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| 18 | Semifinals, Round 1 | August 26, 2014 | 2.1 | 7 | 9.52 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 19 | Semifinals, Round 1 | August 27, 2014 | 1.8 | 6 | 9.46 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 20 | Semifinals, Round 2 | September 2, 2014 | 1.8 | 6 | 8.99 | 1 | 1 | 14 |
| 21 | Semifinals, Round 2 | September 3, 2014 | 2.0 | 6 | 10.47 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 22 | Top 12 | September 9, 2014 | 1.9 | 6 | 9.83 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 23 | Top 12 | September 10, 2014 | 1.8 | 6 | 10.52 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 24 | Finals | September 16, 2014 | 2.5 | 8 | 11.46 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 25 | Finale | September 17, 2014 | 2.4 | 8 | 12.21 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
Recap Episodes
| Show | Episode | First air date | Rating | Share | Viewers | Time slot rank | Nightly rank | Weekly rank |
| 1 | Quarterfinals Week 1, Recap | July 30, 2014 | 1.2 | 5 | 6.29 | 2 | 3 | 16 |
| 2 | Quarterfinals Week 2, Recap | August 6, 2014 | 1.1 | 4 | 6.06 | 2 | 4 | 18 |
| 3 | Quarterfinals Week 3, Recap | August 13, 2014 | 1.1 | 4 | 5.84 | 2 | 5 | 20 |
| 4 | Quarterfinals Week 4, Recap | August 20, 2014 | 1.1 | 4 | 5.68 | 2 | 5 | 20 |
| 5 | Semifinals Week 1, Recap | August 27, 2014 | 1.0 | 4 | 5.55 | 3 | 7 | 21 |
| 6 | Semifinals Week 2, Recap | September 3, 2014 | 1.1 | 4 | 6.42 | 3 | 5 | n/a |
| 7 | Top 12, Recap | September 10, 2014 | 1.2 | 4 | 6.90 | 3 | 5 | 24 |
- This episode's weekly rank is not known because it was not among the 25 highest ranked shows of the week.