Jill O'Rourke
Jill O’Rourke is a contributor at Talent Recap, writing news stories and recaps for shows like ‘AGT,’ ‘The Voice,’ and ‘American Idol.’ She graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and Film Studies, and has been writing about pop culture since 2012, with previous bylines at Crushable and A Plus. Jill spends her free time binge-watching sitcoms and daydreaming about life as a hobbit
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| June 9, 2023 SIGN IN TO SAVE POST
Trae Patton/NBCReading Time: 2 minutes
America’s Got Talent has shared an early release audition from next week’s new episode of Season 18, featuring a comedian named Ahren Belisle. He shared that he has cerebral palsy and used a text-to-speech app to deliver a hilarious stand-up routine.
Ahren, who is an engineer by day, told the judges that he started doing stand-up about a year ago. He explained that using a text-to-speech app “builds tension during a set, and I think people enjoy watching me laugh at my own joke that I’m writing.”
“I know what you’re thinking: ‘Who ordered Stephen Hawking off of Wish.com?'” Ahren joked at the start of his set. “He might be smarter than me, but I would beat him in a race. Unless the race is downhill, then I’m screwed.”
He went on to share the story of when “some random white lady” messaged him about having “handicapped” in his social media bio, saying it’s “offensive to disabled people.” Ahren joked that she was “probably commenting on her phone from a handicapped bathroom stall.”
SEE ALSO: ‘AGT’ SINGER MITCH ROSSELL HITS NO. 1 ON ITUNES WITH EMOTIONAL SONG
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYZL0se4jKo
The Judges Loved Ahren’s Performance
All four judges gave Ahren a standing ovation for his hilarious performance. Judge Simon Cowell called it a “great, great, great audition,” predicting that America’s Got Talent will change Ahren’s life.
“From the moment you started, you were funny,” Sofia Vergara told Ahren. “Making fun of yourself, your energy, you’re having such a good time up there. I hope that you are the one comedian that finally wins AGT.”
Howie Mandel said he couldn’t believe Ahren has only been performing stand-up for one year, telling him, “You seem to have a grasp of timing and humor. You open up the conversation and normalize humanity and originality, and you’re funny.”
Ahren earned four “yes” votes from the judges to move on in the competition. AGT returns for a new episode Tuesday night at 8/7c on NBC.
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