Leo High School’s choir is one step closer to winning “America’s Got Talent.”
After vying against 10 other acts in the quarterfinals of the NBC reality talent show Tuesday night, the South Side Catholic school for boys snagged enough votes to move on to the next round of competition. They were one of five acts that advanced. “America’s Got Talent” announced the semifinalists in a post to Instagram Wednesday night.
Winning “America’s Got Talent” comes with a $1 million dollar grand prize.
For its quarterfinals performance, the choir sang Imagine Dragons’ “Believer,” which earned high praise from the judges.
“You guys just lit up this whole entire place,” judge and former Spice Girls singer Mel B told the group. “The first audition was good. This time around you guys stepped it up, up — above and beyond.”
“This choir (has) come back, I think, stronger, better … I really, really feel this is what this show is all about,” fellow judge Simon Cowell said.
The choir had a certain amount of notoriety locally prior to “AGT” — from taking the stage at the Democratic National Convention last summer, to performing at Millennium Park’s Holiday Sing-Along this past December, to singing for the city of Chicago during Black History Month — but the “AGT” platform is its biggest yet.
The young men caught the attention of the show’s scouts when an Instagram video of their singing was posted by CBS Chicago in early 2024. The rest is history. By June of this year, the choir was performing at the Archdiocese of Chicago’s celebration of Pope Leo XIV at Rate Field and at a Juneteenth event at Wrigley Field.
Leo High School is due to return to the “America’s Got Talent” stage on September 16 to contend for a spot in the finale.
