Every Act That Got a “Yes” and “X” During AGT 2025 Episode 4 Auditions (RECAP)
Here's what went down on AGT this week.
The fourth day of Auditions for Season 20 of America's Got Talent had some high highs and some low lows. From an Act that made Judge Mel B. wildly uncomfortable to jugglers so skilled they caused Judge Simon Cowell to rethink his entire stance on the trick, and a weirdly high concentration of Acts paying homage to house cats, it was truly an evening to remember.
And it all ended with a magic trick so confusing and impressive that it literally scared the Judges. No one can figure out how the masked mastermind behind it pulled it off, making it all the spookier. But the rest of the Acts were, thankfully, either impressive or plain fun.
The episode began with a totally unexpected delight: a Golden Buzzer from none other than Host Terry Crews!
Read on to see all the Acts that passed by the Judges' discerning eyes.
AGT Season 20, Episode 4 Auditions
The Funkateer Dancers
Act: Dance
Judge’s Vote: Terry's Golden Buzzer!
45 years ago, a group of high school friends in Detroit formed a dance group to enter their school's talent show and try to impress some girls. They won the talent show, but hadn't performed publicly since dancing at one member's wedding in 1989. But they figured, why not give AGT a shot? Supported by their families, they got everyone on their feet with some seriously impressive footwork to a Rick James song.
All the Judges were absolutely delighted by the Funkateers, but it was Host Terry Crews who gave them his Golden Buzzer — though Cowell said that if Crews hadn't, he would have.
Chase Varnes
Act: Musician
Judge’s Vote: Yes
13-year-old Chase grew up on a farm and learned the drums at a young age. He spent the last year teaching himself the guitar, and with the support of his parents, dreams of making people happy from a big stage. Though his first song got off to a rough start — Cowell stopped him and asked for another — playing "Life Goes On" by Ed Sheeran got the audience on his side. Mel B. thought he had potential but needed another year of practice to gain more confidence, but the other three Judges gave him Yeses.
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Moshow
Act: Rapper
Judge’s Vote: No
Baltimore-based "cat dad" Moshow performed a catchy but repetitive song called "Meow" about being a pet parent that almost immediately got an X from Mel B. "I’m gonna be singing this song for the whole day and night," admitted Sofía Vergara.
"It was not terrible. But for Season 20 you’ve gotta be better than not terrible," said Judge Howie Mandel fairly, and to his credit, Moshow seemed perfectly fine with this answer and happy to go home to his cats after being told "No" by the Judges.
Loco Pop Familia
Act: Dance
Judge’s Vote: Yes
Surprisingly, Moshow was followed immediately by another cat-themed Act. It was a dance group dressed all in cat costumes and cat makeup who responded to every question with meows, and entered and exited the stage by crawling on all fours. They performed a high-energy dance routine to a song from Japanese cat memes (the actual song is in Spanish), which annoyed Mel B. In response, Cowell growled at her.
"That was genius. One of my favorite dance Acts this year," he told the team and their choreographer, who was in her own "boss cat" outfit. With three Yeses, the happy cats crawled off the stage.
Duo Soma
Act: Movement
Judge’s Vote: Yes
This Argentinian duo pulled off amazing feats of strength, coordination, balance, and most of all, trust, performing tricks atop a long pole suspended by a chain attached to her up-do. What makes it even more impressive is that they are exes. The couple began working together eight years ago, and though they split romantically five years ago, they never gave up their dreams of performing, so they found a way to make it work.
Wes-P
Act: Novelty
Judge’s Vote: No
Wes has done his silly tricks on the AGT stage twice before, and has a particular love for Mel B., which is why he came back for Season 20. Not that she was happy to see him. The moment she saw him, she immediately cursed, though Cowell broke into a grin and said, "I'm so happy you're back." As she had during both of his previous visits, Mel B. buzzed him almost immediately, but Wes still performed tricks like moving a ping pong ball through hoops using an air blower attached to his groin.
His bravado and energy elevated his simple Act, and he did convince Mel B. to join him on stage to pull a red table cloth off of his naked body, revealing a message welcoming her back to the show. However, it wasn't enough to get him the necessary votes to move to the next round.
Jonglissimo
Act: Juggling
Judge’s Vote: Yes
Despite substituting one of the four performers just four days prior due to an illness, the jugglers of Jonglissimo pulled off their incredible routine flawlessly, creating a stunning, colorful array with synchronized club movements that dazzled and delighted. Even Cowell, who has gone on record as hating jugglers, had to admit they were really good.
Mama Duke
Act: Singer-Rapper
Judge’s Vote: Yes
A self-described "late bloomer," the singer/songwriter came to AGT to "prove to myself that it's time." By day she works at the YMCA playing Uno with kids, but once she got into the rhythm of her song "Feel So Good," it was clear that she was meant to be in music full-time.
"Your confidence, your swagger, I just love you," said Mel B.
Vergara agreed, telling the artist, "Your voice is spectacular, I'm so glad that you're here tonight."
Pub Choir (Astrid Jorgensen)
Act: Singing
Judge’s Vote: Yes
34-year-old Australian Astrid is a former high school music teacher who now directs "maybe the biggest choir in the world." Backed by a guitar player, she uses easy-to-understand visuals to get large groups of people — in this case, the AGT audience — singing in harmony in mere minutes.
The Judges watched, in real time, as she led them through Toto's "Africa," and it didn't sound half-bad, though there was disagreement over whether this was really her audition or the crowd's. But the audience, perhaps wanting to give themselves a win, cheered and chanted until Sofía Vergara gave the Act the third Yes it needed to move on in the competition.
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Steve Ray Ladson
Act: Music
Judge’s Vote: Yes
A true pioneer in every sense, cowboy Steve Ray Ladson has developed his own sub-genre of music, which he calls Blackgrass Brothercana, a play on Bluegrass/Americana. Originally from Hopkins, South Carolina, Ladson has been a professional musician for 15 years, but with his band for just a year, which surprised the Judges given how cohesive they sounded performing his original song, "Back Of My Truck."
All four Judges agreed it was a hit in the making and gave him not only their enthusiastic Yes votes but a standing ovation.
Mastermind
Act: Magic
Judge’s Vote: Yes
Just when the day was wrapping up, the AGT screen began to glitch, and a faceless figure with a distorted voice calling himself Mastermind took over the show. Using illusions and artificial intelligence, he unlocked Howie Mandel's phone without touching it, levitated Cowell's glasses while they were in Mel B.'s hands, and then had ChatGPT correctly predict a random series of words that audience members came up with on the fly.
Not only that, but the first letters of each of these words spelled out his moniker: mastermind. The Judges were stunned and delighted.
