Highlights
- Simon Cowell knew exactly who Tonikaku was, having seen his act on BGT, and judges were left unsure at first but ended up loving the audition.
- Fans praised Tonikaku for his unique performance, with Simon Cowell singing along to a chant and Howie Mandel agreeing it should move on to the next round.
- Last season, Simon Cowell faced a struggle when he lost his voice due to acid reflux, causing major changes to the shooting schedule of AGT.
Whether it be American Idol, or America's Got Talent, Simon Cowell always has fans talking about his reactions. AGT is certainly unpredictable and fans have seen multiple examples of that in the past, including the instance that saw Howie Mandel take his prank too far.
In the current season, several memorable moments have already been created, and that included a recent audition from Tonikaku. Simon Cowell was the only judge familiar with his act given his run on BGT. Although the judges were confused at first, they ended up loving the audition. Simon Cowell also looked entertained throughout, but there was a particular moment that left him unsure.
We're going to reveal what that was, and how the fans reacted. In addition, we'll reveal another moment last year that left Simon Cowell speechless on the show... literally.
Related
Jennifer Hudson Was Finally Vindicated During This Awkward Simon Cowell Interview
Simon Cowell finally admitted he was wrong about Jennifer Hudson during her American Idol days.
Simon Cowell And The Other Judges Were Left Unsure Over Tonikaku's Audition
At the start of this particular audition, fans were confused as the brave Tonikaku made his way onto the stage wearing nothing but his underwear. However, Simon Cowell was one of the few that knew exactly who Tonikaku was. The performer had just appeared on Britain's Got Talent, with his skits landing millions of views.
- Cowell looked excited at the start. He said, "Do I know him? He was on BGT. I think you are my son's favorite ever Got Talent act."
Simon then asked Tonikaku the hilarious question of letting fans know who he was, without revealing what he was going to do.
- "I'm from Japan," he responded. "Body performance."
Cowell then laughed, thinking back at Tonikaku's performance on BGT, wondering if he could replicate that success. Tonikaku answers, "Yes, of course."
Fans and judges were genuinely confused at the start of the performance, really not knowing what to expect. However, soon enough, Tonikaku found his groove, and the audience was completely into it.
There was a moment in which Cowell, the audience and judges genuinely thought he was completely nude. At that point, it appeared as though Cowell was ready to exit the stage.
However, the performer revealed that he was wearing an additional pair of underwear underneath, which received a huge reaction from the audience.
Related
Simon Cowell Enjoys Date Night While Staying Silent On Paula Abdul’s ‘American Idol’ Accusations
Simon worked closely with the man who allegedly assaulted Paula for years, but he's not addressing the elephant in the room.
Not only did Simon react positively, but he was also singing along to a "Tony" chant with the audience. "I just had a feeling you would love this guy," Simon tells Howie Mandel.
Howie said Simon was spot on, and loved every minute of it. It was a unanimous vote to put Tony into the next round. In addition, fans on YouTube were full of praise for the act.
A fan wrote, "Trust me, Comedians are the bravest and confident people in this world."
Another fan also loved Simon Cowell's reaction, given that he knew what to expect, unlike the other judges. "I love how Simon was laughing the whole time, knowing he’s a comedian while everyone else is all scared."
A memorable audition, to say the least. Fans also loved the fact that Toni himself took to YouTube, and thanked fans for their support.
Tonikaku Himself Took To YouTube Thanking Fans For Their Support
Tony had some fun of his own on YouTube. Posted only five years ago, the video already went viral, with over 403K views. Tony's comment was liked by over 1.3K fans. He thanked everyone for all the love and support.
Tony wrote, "Hi, this is TONIKAKU!!! Thank you all for cheering me. That was amazing experience and I hope I will come back to this stage again Don't worry, I'm wearing underwear."
Tony received plenty of support from fans fans for his comment.
- Fans reacted, "I saw you in BGT, you can see the difference from the American crowd but loved how they liked you at the end. The “taking your pants off” was amazing, definitely made you stand out from last time!"
- "I have no idea why l find this so hilarious but I genuinely do when he trolled at the end and faked everybody out just to get the same gag AGAIN was PEAK comedy and I was legit in tears."
Related
America's Got Talent: The First 10 Winners, Ranked By Net Worth
America's Got Talent has made careers for a number of people right from the beginning. So who among those first winners is the richest today?
Tony certainly achieved what he needed to do and that's to get fans talking. It'll be an interesting season of AGT to say the least, with such unique acts.
Simon Cowell Faced A Major Struggle On Last Season's AGT
Almost a year ago exactly, Simon Cowell was struggling on AGT. Fans noticed Cowell wasn't talking, and it certainly wasn't part of the show. Instead, it was later revealed that Cowell lost his voice. Though in truth, Cowell's facial expressions alone could tell the story.
“I think what happened was the acid from my stomach literally burned my vocal cords,” Cowell told USA Today. “So this doctor came over and put a camera up my nose, down my throat, and I could actually see how badly burnt they were.”
In turn, this caused major changes to the shooting schedule of AGT.
“It was torture. There was so much I wanted to say, and I literally could not talk,” Cowell said, per USA Today. “We tried writing things. At one point, I used this kind of iPad device where I had things I’d said before. I tried to use Sofia (Vergara) to translate for me, and she deliberately said the wrong things, so it was just chaos.”
Credit to Sofia who had fun of her own during Cowell's struggles behind the scenes.
“Who would have thought that season 18 would have left Simon literally speechless? And of course Simon nominated me to give his reactions. He’s passing notes to me like we are back in school.”
Thankfully, during the current season, Cowell is doing just fine and as we saw with Tony's audition, he's in great form.
