A singer from Massachusetts who won over the hearts of millions with her incredible voice and personal anecdotes on “America’s Got Talent” did not walk away with the winning title.
Darcangelo performed “Only Love Can Hurt Like This” by Paloma Faith with Grammy and Emmy winner Diane Warren during the show’s Season 18 finale of “AGT” on Wednesday night, Sept. 27.
Darcangelo was among eleven contestants who took the stage during the two-part finale, which had final performances on Tuesday. Despite not being named the champion, Darcangelo did receive high praise from Warren herself.
“Keep singing like that Lavender,” she said. “You are amazing. That was an amazing performance.”
The season 18 winner was revealed as Adrian Stoica and his dog Hurricane. The trainer and his border collie won over the judges with their elaborate displays of various impressive tricks.
The winner of “AGT” gets $1 million and the starring role of their Las Vegas show.
Darcangelo rose to fame ever since the 27-year-old earned the golden buzzer from judge Heidi Klum for her rendition of Irene Cara’s 1980 hit “Out Here On My Own.” Her audition premiered on July 11.
For the finale, the Fitchburg native delivered a cinematic-like performance of “You Will Be Found” from the musical “Dear Evan Hansen.” Darcangelo chose the song because of the personal connection she has to it.
The singer told judges that she felt lost, unloved and unaccepted in high school, but now feels found because of the love from her dads, boyfriend and “AGT” viewers.
“I want to pay it forward to the viewers,” she said. “You will be found too. There’s hope out there.”
Darcangelo, who is blind and is autistic, has been singing since she was 3 years old, the singer told the judges during her audition. But Darcangelo did not start talking until she was 4, she added.
Music helped the 27-year-old find her forever family after she joined an after school program in 2010, according to her profile on the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism’s website.
While attending this program, Lavender met Wil Darcangelo who, along with his husband, Jamie, would become her adoptive fathers in 2017.
The singer has always been attracted to “America’s Got Talent” because it “has had many contestants who are diverse and have unique stories.” Her audition was the first time she sang in nearly three years.
“I am so very proud of you,” said judge Heidi Klum, who gave Darcangelo her golden buzzer. “I found you. You found me. We found each other and no matter what happens tomorrow you know that you always have me.”
Since appearing on “AGT,” Darcangelo has been flooded with support from members of the neurodivergent community.
“I am hearing from parents all over the world about how such a school would ‘help my son,’ and here I was thinking that I was alone in my thoughts about reinventing education,” she previously told MassLive.
“Also, I’ve always dreamed of being an audio book narrator,” Darcangelo added. “In fact, I’m a bit of a fangirl over some of the more prominent ones. A narrator named Madelyn Buzzard is one of my absolute favorites and I just found out she made the biggest donation of anyone to my GoFundMe campaign! I was completely stunned!”
The GoFundMe is to support Darcangelo’s debut album, expected to called “Mosaic” because a “mosaic is a metaphoric art form of life that involves lots of different individuals together making up a single community,” the campaign reads. The campaign has raised more than $11,000. People can donate by clicking here.
