Kodi Lee Won 'America's Got Talent' and Folks Are Losing It

From Good Housekeeping

The 2019 America's Got Talent winner has officially been announced, and this year the champion is 22-year-old vocalist Kodi Lee.

Kodi, who is blind and has autism, amazed judges Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Gabrielle Union, and Julianne Hough from the very beginning. In his first audition, he hit every note beautifully while singing Leon Russell's "A Song For You." Gabrielle, so impressed with Kodi's incredible talent, wasted no time giving him the golden buzzer.

Then, in the quarterfinals round, Paul Simon gave Kodi special permission to sing his 1970 classic "Bridge Over Troubled Water," which again had everyone in awe.

"You are genuinely one of most extraordinary people and talents we’ve had the great fortune to have on any show we’ve ever made. God bless you," Simon said after Kodi's second performance.

After sailing to the semifinals, Kodi received a massive standing ovation for his rendition of Calum Scott's "You Are the Reason." It was enough to put him in the season 14 finale, where his most recent performance of "Lost Without You" by Freya Ridings ultimately won over the country.

While Kodi was definitely one of the favorites to win from the start, he did have to beat out some seriously talented acts to get to the number one spot, including: Voices of Service, Detroit Youth Choir, Tyler Butler-Figueroa, Benicio Bryant, Emanne Beasha, Light Balance Kids, Ryan Niemiller, V. Unbeatable, and The Ndlovu Youth Choir.

At the end of the day though, Kodi was America's top pick. And, needless to say, Kodi's fans were beyond happy that he was declared the winner.

So, what's next for Kodi? Kodi's mom, Tina Lee, previously told GoodHousekeeping.com that her son has long had a plan of what he would do if he won the competition and the $1 million grand prize. Besides preparing for his stint in Vegas, it sounds like Kodi would like to treat himself.

"Kodi would love to have a grand piano in every color possible," Tina revealed to us. "[But moreover] he would love to collaborate with other great musicians and bring love to the world through music and entertainment ... he would continue to achieve his lifetime goal of being a professional musician for as long as he can."

We have no doubt Kodi will have a long and successful career in the years to come. Congrats, Kodi!

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