Kentucky native Kevin Skinner has been declared the next winner of 'America's Got Talent.' Skinner, a 35-year-old chicken catcher who was compared to Susan Boyle after his first audition, beat opera singer Barbara Padilla to win the $1 million prize and his own headlining act in Las Vegas.
Recycled Percussion, the Texas Tenors and Voices of Glory rounded out the top five.
The night also featured guest performances from a handful of celebrities, including Leona Lewis, Rascal Flatts and Susan Boyle, who sang the Rolling Stones' 'Wild Horses' in her American television debut.
See the winning moment
Reader Comments (59)
ron at 2:36PM on Sep 17th 2009
O-MAN I AM SO HAPPY FOR KEVIN HE WILL MAKE US PROUD I KNOW HIS HOME STATE IS
Joan Cipriani at 4:41PM on Sep 18th 2009
I was so glad that Kevin Skinner won. I watched from the very first. So much heart. I wish him a great future.
Tipigal at 2:13PM on Sep 28th 2009
I'm very happy that Kevin will headline in Vegas. He is well deserving of the win and is a great representative for America! ~ Love you Kevin and his fans!
Sneakers Mom at 2:45PM on Sep 17th 2009
Apparently there were alot of people who were TONE DEAF who voted for Kevin Skinner. He was embarrassing last night when he sang with Thelma Houston. A bad "Kareoke" moment. So much talent, but he wasn't one of them.
Granted, Barbara belonged at the Metropolitan Opera house, not Vegas, and Drew should be picked up by a recording contract rather than putting on Vegas shows, but some of the others were "Pure Vegas".. I really thought Recycled Percussion was an act people would go to see and should probably win based on "Vegas style". Even Grandma Lee was a show you would more expect.
I don't think I'll be watching this show again. I'm embarrassed for America.
prehist51 at 7:05PM on Sep 17th 2009
Congratulations to kevin. Here's a prediction for all you naysayers that don't like country music. Kevin Skinner will out sale all other singers from this show. Country music fans are very loyal and they actually spend their money on buying the entertainers products. Mr. Skinner would have gotten a record deal even without winning and will end up a wealthy man.
When he sings a song it stirs something in a person, that's why he won and that's why he will be so successful.
Eleanor at 5:18PM on Sep 17th 2009
I must agree with you.Kevin can not sing nor does he have talent.Everyone in America has some sad tale to tell since the whole country is in recession. This show is such a joke.People with real talent they didn't give the time of day.Thats reality T.V. for you.Is there any honesty left in America anymore?????
proud american at 10:14PM on Sep 17th 2009
the best thing about being an american is that anyone can be whatever and whoever they want. Yes there was alot of great talent some fit better in vegas than others, but this just goes to show anything is possible in america
kitty at 10:44PM on Sep 17th 2009
I agree that Barbara is better than Skinner; I would've much preferred Lawrence Beamen (with different choice of songs) or Texas tenors or Hairo. I found it a bit unfair that people criticized Lawrence Beamen for not being as good as Barry White, but that nobody criticized Barbara Padilla for not being as good as Angela Gheorghiu, Renee Fleming or Anna Netrebko or any of the many great opera singers...
Barbara is undoubtedly talented, better than anybody on AGT, but she should be. She is a trained opera singer. You need talent just to get accepted into opera programs, much less get a scholarship as she did, and then she had Master's in vocal performance. Add to it the fact that most people nowadays don't go to opera and have no way to compare an opera singer on AGT to any other opera singer. I'd imagine there are many voice majors who'd have blown AGT audience away. Most of them don't get to the Metropolitan opera or even to regional opera theaters. So should we have these opera singers who didn't make it in opera on AGT every year and have them win simply because there are no better opera singers on AGT? Even if there are many better opera singers elsewhere? What do you think?
There is very little chance that Barbara Padilla will get to the Met. To get to the Met, she has to stand out not from amateur contestants on AGT, but from other very good lyric sopranos, and there are many of them. Excellent ones, young singers like Marjorie Owens, Anna Christi, Sarah Coburn, Ailyn Perez, students like Nadine Sierra, singers who become finalists in and win professional prestigious opera competitions. These are just some names, there are others. Several of these singers either won or were finalists at Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions, the mosst prestigious opera competition in North America; even regional finalists of this competition are very good. And still, even the winners aren't yet performing at the Met. In these opera competitions, singers sing several difficult arias in different languages without microphones, not one aria, one simple (by opera standards) art song, and one popular crossover song. Even had she been perfect in them, it still wouldn't have been enough, but by strict opera standards she was not. If you don't see how she wasn't perfect, I recommend listening to, for example, Renata Tebaldi or Leontyne Price singing Ave Maria, or maybe Cecilia Bartoli and then listening to Barbara Padilla again. Similarly, for "O mio babbino caro", this blogger kindly collected several excellent versions on one page: http://www.rickey.org/?p=22665 Barbara Padilla's is there as well for your easy comparison.
This is not to say she wouldn't have a career. Most likely she'll produce a CD, sell it, give popular crossover concerts and make money. POPera is popular nowadays.
What I wonder about is why all of you who are so impressed with an opera singer on AGT don't go to opera? There are many excellent young opera singers out there and they need you. 4 regional opera theaters closed last year; others had to cut the number of performances. These opera theaters give opera singers an opportunity to build a career, to learn repertory, to gain exposure. There are many excellent singers singing in these theaters, many are at least as good or better than BZarbara Padilla. Think about it. Also, Metropolitan opera has HD broadcasts to movie theaters all over the US, if you go to metopera.org, click on Met in HD, you'll see the schedule and be able to find a movie theater near you.
BJ at 11:07PM on Sep 18th 2009
You couldn't be more wrong. GOOD singing is about much more then singing proper notes at the proper time, consider Bob Dylan for example. Kevin has the rare ability to sing with genuine emotion and the sound of his voice is amazing. There are plenty of singers who sing proper notes but who lack the ability to input emotion into the song - which means the music doesn't reach out and touch one's soul - Kevin's does. America got it right!
margaret fuson at 4:16PM on Sep 18th 2009
ok!so turn your tv set off when it comes on.