A youth choir comprised of Israelis and Palestinians advanced past the audition round of America’s Got Talent after wowing the audience on Tuesday night’s episode of the NBC show.
Singing a moving rendition of Philip Philips’ song “Home”, the Jerusalem Youth Chorus earned four emphatic yeses from AGT judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara and Howie Mandel and received a standing ovation from the live audience.
One of the members described the Jerusalem Youth Chorus as a group of Palestinians and Israelis who "believe through music and through working together and talking to each other, we are taking a step forward into building that amazing future where there is justice and there is freedom and there is equality and there is inclusion.”
The Jerusalem Youth Chorus brings unity and harmony to @AGT! 🎶✌️ #AGT #AGTAuditions pic.twitter.com/tF236qptlJ
— AGT Auditions (@AGTAuditions) July 17, 2024
When asked by Klum what the groupould do with the prize money of one million dollars, another member of the choir said: “We will create more spaces just like these choruses so people can meet people who are different from them.”
Giving the singers two thumbs up, Cowell told the group after their performance: “You made something very complicated beautiful through friendship.”
Mandel told the group their performance gave him “goosebumps” and added: “This is a world anthem, and we all live in this world together. Thank you so much for appearing on this stage.”
Vergara called the performance “heartwarming” and “inspiring.”
The Jerusalem Youth Chorus, comprised of Israelis and Palestinians from East and West Jerusalem, advanced to the second round of America's Got Talent after their performance on Tuesday night. (Photo: Screenshot via AGT)
With nods of approval from all the judges, the Jerusalem Youth Chorus will advance to the second round of the competition.
The group has previously featured on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, BBC Newsnight, and PBS. According to its website, the Jerusalem Youth Chorus has toured Japan, the UK, the US and Switzerland and performs regularly in Jerusalem.
In 2014, the group starred in a viral music video covering the song “Home” with singer Sam Tsui.
Founder and artistic director of the choir, Micah Hendler, created the Jerusalem Youth Chorus in 2012 “as a synthesis of years of work in musical community-building and Israeli-Palestinian conflict transformation,” according to the group’s website. In 2017, Hendler was included in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for his music work and now writes on music, society and social change for Forbes.
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