‘America’s Got Talent’ sneak peek: Will teen singer Benicio Bryant get Golden Buzzer from Jay Leno?

When he auditioned for “America’s Got Talent,” teenage singer Benicio Bryant got the ultimate compliment from Simon Cowell who compared him to One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles. The tart-tongued head judge was won over by his cover of the Brandi Carlile hit “The Joke.”  The softly spoken 14-year-old readily admitted such praise “absolutely freaked me out.” Indeed, as he revealed in his post-audition interview, “I was really nervous about what he was going to say, and he was the first one to stand which made me happy.”

The other judges were equally enthusiastic about his audition on June 4, with Julianne Hough even dancing along to his song, and their four yeses put him through to the next round, judge cuts. Benicio will be among the 18 acts competing on Judge Cuts 4 this Tuesday, August 6.

Only seven of the acts will get a place in the live quarterfinals that kick off on August 12. Even if he doesn’t make the cut, Benicio says he will go home happy. “It just was so amazing to say that I’ve done that. It was like a dream. Oh my gosh, I can’t believe that I’m actually doing this right now.”

SEE Everything you need to know about season 14 of ‘America’s Got Talent’

While the four regular panellists have already used their Golden Buzzers, guest judge Jay Leno will have one to hand out to one of the acts. Take a look at Benicio in action in the video above as he performs an original song and then weigh in below with your thoughts on his chances to win season 14 of “AGT.”

SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s newsletter with experts’ latest predictions