'America's Got Talent' Fans Are Taking Issue With Courtney Hadwin After Discovering Her Past
If there's one person who brought down the house Tuesday night during the first round of America's Got Talent live shows, it was Courtney Hadwin. The 14-year-old soul singer floored everyone with her explosive rendition of James Brown's "Papa Got a Brand New Bag."
At the end of her song, all four judges — Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, and Mel B — were on their feet. Simon, so elated with Howie for choosing her as his golden buzzer, even gave the Deal or No Deal host a big bear hug and suggested that the two begin a record label together.
While the majority of fans seem to agree with the judges, some are now bringing to light the fact that Courtney has competed on a major singing competition show before.
When America's Got Talent first introduced Courtney, they told her story about her growing up extremely shy in County Durham, England. But what wasn't mentioned was that just last year the English native landed in the top six on The Voice Kids UK. Prior to that, she had a stint playing young Cosette in Les Miserables.
Fans, apparently, aren't very pleased about these revelations ... or, at least, the fact that AGT didn't make her performing background very transparent:
.@AGT Courtney Hadwin was on Britain's The Voice Kids last year and Simon was a judge. Why wasn't that mentioned, especially since it comes up when you google her...
— Julie Briggs (@jbsets29) August 15, 2018
@AGT @howiemandel @SimonCowell @OfficialMelB I Love the show but it seems this year you are bringing in ringers from other shows & countries not America. Example - The Sacred Riana (winner of 2017 Asia's Got Talent) & Courtney Hadwin (Finalist The Voice Kids UK 2017). Why?
— Michael A Pecoraro (@mikedotcalm) June 19, 2018
@AGT Stop having your judges fake react to acts they are already familiar with. Most people watching are already familiar with Riana and others are familiar with Courtney Hadwin and the judges certain should know who they are but instead they act like they never heard of them!!
— VJose32 (@vjose32) July 25, 2018
Twitter outrage aside, Tom Storey, her grandfather, has addressed why Courtney opted to audition for the show after appearing on The Voice. He told the Daily Mail that he believes the "U.K. doesn't get her," but that they're "confident she will do well in the U.S." And indeed she has so far.
It's important to point out that Courtney isn't the only act who has competed on other shows before. Jeffrey Li, a 13-year-old singer who was eliminated in the judge cuts, has been on several programs before AGT, including Miss World 2017, Little Big Shots, and China's Generation of Sound. The Sacred Riana, who made it to the live shows this year, has also done her illusionist act in previous competitions.
Even though Courtney's from the U.K., she technically isn't breaking any eligibility rules for America's Got Talent. There are no stipulations that specifically state that candidates who have appeared on other shows before cannot compete on AGT. Further, performers from other countries are usually a-okay too.
"International acts are eligible to participate in the initial AGT auditions on visitor visas," a spokesperson for the show tells GoodHousekeeping.com. "If selected to proceed to the program live shows, AGT works with acts to secure appropriate performer visas which give acts authorization to perform throughout the series."
Besides that, acts must not be running for public office (or plan to until at least one year after their appearance on the show) and/or must not be a person who creates "impropriety." All ages and talents are accepted otherwise.
Bottom line: Courtney's doing her thing and following the rules. So let's just focus on how incredibly talented she is and be thankful she's graced our screens on AGT. Whatever show she's on, the girl was born to shine.
Catch the live shows of America's Got Talent Tuesdays and the result episodes Wednesdays on NBC at 8 p.m. ET.
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