Even though Heidi is entering her ninth season as a judge on the talent competition, she says it is still fresh for her because of the people who come each year to audition and the fact that there is no script, so anything can happen! “There are no rules,” she told Parade.com. “Every day is different. I don’t know how many acts; I don’t know who’s coming. Everyone comes onto the stage. They tell you their life story or what their dream is, so that’s always interesting because everyone comes from different walks of life, different places in the world, and then they do their act, so it can never be boring because every day is always different.” Last season, Heidi had quick-change artist Léa Kyle as her Golden Buzzer because she wanted something different, not a singer or a close-up magic magician, which are the categories that most often get selected. “I always try to shine a light on someone who maybe is not looked at as much as others, you know?” she said. “So, this year, I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to hold out to the very end and I’m going to look for that special act.’ But then things always happen differently. All of a sudden someone comes onto the stage who you fall in love with, and you’re like, ‘I didn’t want to pick out of that category,’ but then you do in any case because you can’t help it. They’re amazing at what they do. Suddenly, your little heart starts beating faster and your stomach is like, ‘Push the Golden Buzzer.’ And so, I did.” Season 17 is Sofia’s third time around and she feels it’s a blessing because she loves her fellow judges, and the support they give her. “We make ourselves better judges because we’re not there just for ourselves,” Sofia told Parade.com. “We are a team, and we are having fun, which I think people like, but we don’t feel we’re doing a job. We’re here having fun and supporting these amazing talents.” When we spoke to Sofia on the AGT red carpet, she shared that, she, too, had already selected her Golden Buzzer for the season. “I can’t tell you specifics but I can tell you that it’s something so weird because you simply feel it,” she said. “This is my third season and the first and the second season happened exactly the same. You are anxious a little bit. What if I don’t find it? What is it that I’m looking for? And you have no clue. You don’t come for the first day of work and say, ‘I’m going to pick a dancer or I’m going to pick a singer.’ It’s just something that happens to you. You feel goosebumps and you feel something with that person. And then it happened to me already this season. I can’t wait for people to see it.” Simon, too, was on hand, but a little worse for wear, still wearing a cast on his left hand following yet another bike accident. “I’m just trying to add them all up now,” Simon said of his accident. “It was very boring. I just fell off my bike. I smashed my face up, broke my arm, and the only annoying thing about it was they put a cast up to here, which meant I couldn’t ride my bike for six weeks. The second I got this on [a smaller brace], I was literally back on my bike. So, I feel fit again now because I didn’t feel right. Just walking around. It’s boring.” Like his two fellow judges, Simon had already picked his Golden Buzzer, who he said is great, but doesn’t know if it is the winner. “There were about three of us all prepared to jump on that Golden Buzzer because the act is so good,” he said. “I wanted to do two [Golden Buzzers] each actually this year. So, we looked at the rules and we couldn’t change the rules. It was really frustrating because there were many, many times after we’d picked that I was, ‘God, that would be a great Golden Buzzer.’ But you know, maybe next year.” America’s Got Talent premieres tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Next, Summer Fun! Everything You Need To Know About America’s Got Talent Season 17
