'AGT' youth choir honors late contestant Nightbirde and brings Simon Cowell to tears

The 18th season of “America’s Got Talent” premiered May 30 with a touching tribute to one of the most well-known acts in the show’s history.

South Africa’s Mzansi Youth Choir performed “It’s OK,” a song by Season 16 contestant Nightbirde, who died from cancer in 2022.

One of the choir’s 17 members said they wanted to compete on the show because “it has the power to inspire and give hope to the people.” That proved prophetic, since they earned a standing ovation when they finished their audition.

“What a wonderful tribute to a beautiful person,” host Terry Crews said backstage.

After the performance, judge Heidi Klum mentioned the song came from Nightbirde. Born Jane Marczewski, the singer first made a name for herself when she revealed she had been battling cancer for years during her “AGT” audition in 2021. She later dropped out of the show for health reasons.

The choir easily won over the show’s judges.

“It has a very special meaning in my heart,” Klum said about “It’s OK,” while complimenting the choir's performance.

“That was the perfect ‘AGT’ audition,” Sofia Vergara said.

“I’ll always remember Nightbirde and to see that it touched people on the other side of the globe — unbelievable,” Howie Mandel said. “You deserve so much more than a ‘yes’ and to be here. You deserve a ‘thank you.’”

One of the choir members said they recorded the song after hearing Nightbirde sing it on “AGT,” noting that they were surprised when she responded “so beautifully” to it.

“This song has been such a pillar of strength for us as a choir, through difficult times,” she said. “We just want to continue her legacy and that’s why we chose this song.”

A visibly moved Simon Cowell fought back tears.

“I know how much this would’ve meant to her. It would,” he said. “Right until the end, she was so passionate about sharing her music and this has gone all over the world and you’ve come back here with the most amazing tribute. It was just breathtaking.”

The audience then started chanting, “Golden Buzzer!” That prompted Cowell to say how they have discussed letting the audience have a say in the auditions by giving them the power to use the Golden Buzzer. They all agreed.

“This is for you. This is for you,” Cowell said pointing to the choir and then the audience. “This is for Jane.”

All four judges and Crews then pushed the buzzer, advancing the group to the next round, sparking a frenzy of excitement and cheers.

“We never expected a reception like this,” Jannie Zaaiman, the founder and director of Mzansi Youth Choir, told People.

“We had hoped we would make it through to the next round, but this was an absolute spectacular experience for the choristers, who handled the pressure with such poise and grace ... We are immensely proud of them for this extraordinary achievement.”

Mitch Marczewski Jr., the older brother of Nightbirde, was also stunned by the choir’s version of his sister’s song, according to People.

“It was simply amazing to see,” he said. “‘AGT’ did an incredible job with Jane’s song and I was deeply moved by their performance. I didn’t think anyone could cover Jane’s song on ‘AGT,’ but they proved me wrong.”

This article was originally published on TODAY.com