Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-1609742-20150730191314/@comment-1609742-20150807053832

@JayDK

Haha, I was indeed dead-wrong. Having now seen the performances though, I still would have picked those 7. At least the judges no longer have a big say... will that be a good thing?

To be fair, Wendy Liebman had perhaps 10 times as many followers as AcroArmy on their Quarterfinals week, but Acro still had more votes and ended up in 3rd place. Twitter followers do help, but they're by no means by themselves especially in the early rounds. That said, Benton will and Siro-A will both have an easy time this week.

My Predictions (with rankings)

Fodder:

12. Craig and Micheline - We've only seen them once. And in a montage. They are competing without a fanbase in a week filled with fan favorites. I just don't see it happening even though they are talented.

11. The Gentlemen - They are, in my opinion, the least-deserving of all the Judge Cuts acts. I'm already bored of their girl schtick, unimpressed by their dancing, and ready to see them go.

10. Vita Radionova - Straight-up contortionists never do well on this show. She has other talents in acrobatics, but she will not stand out.

Dark Horses:

9. Showproject - They have talent, that's for sure, but we haven't seen them since their audition. Their lack of screentime will hurt them. They could blow us away, but I don't think enough.

8. Alondra Santos - She's a fine girl singer, but really nothing mind-blowing. I don't want to bring race into this, but I think viewers will feel a disconnect when she sings in Spanish. Remember Mariachi singer Sebastien "El Charro de Oro". He actually got out too, but he came back as a Wild Card. He only made it through after singing an AMERICAN song, "New York, New York." Also, don't fall for her "shy girl" backstory. She's performed on other reality shows, including "La Voz Kids."

Likely:

7. Paul Zerdin - Seven out of twelve is a HUGE percentage of acts making it, assuming the rumor is true. Paul's reputation as a Golden Buzzer will help him, though I'm not sure if he has as strong as a chance of the others.

6. Triple Threat - Their first audition went viral (over 3 million views). They should be easily able to get the teen vote. Great story, great sound, great talent.

5. Samantha Johnson - She's just another singer on this show that could perform on The Voice or American Idol. She's among the better singers on the show technically though. A good backstory should make it easy for her.

Shoo-ins:

4. Benton Blount - Despite having a montaged audition, he has some cred for performing last in a Judge Cuts episode. He has the country vote, and should be able to sail through this week due to lack of direct competition.

3. Drew Lynch - YoungGeezer makes a good point about splitting the votes, but I think the three comedy acts have different enough talents that it won't affect each making the Top 7. Drew had a viral audition (5 million), the full support of Howie Mandel, the reputation of a Golden Buzzer, and a compelling backstory. Plus, he's a very funny guy! I honestly think he stands a chane of making the Finals because he has a lot going for him. 60K Twitter followers (more than Benton, btw) doesn't hurt either. He has the casual fan support hands-down.

2. Siro-A - Golden Buzzer? Visually exhilirating talent? Full judge support? Siro-A has it all. America will eat it up (like they did Fighting Gravity, Team iLuminate, Lightwire Theater, Kenichi). They will lack in social media (the language barrier obviously hurts them), but that didn't hurt Kenichi when he kept doing well. If they keep blowing minds, they will make it far.

1. Piff the Magic Dragon - The overwhelming front-runner in all of Season 10. He has a viral audition (3.5 million views). He is the ONLY act in all of AGT to a have a Judge Cuts video with more than a million views (1.8 mil). He got a Golden Buzzer. He has a HUGE following on social media across the board (40K YouTube subscribers, 61.7K Twitter followers, 66K Facebook followers). He has good celebrity friends (Penn & Teller have openly TWEETED about Piff on AGT). The judges LOVE him. He has enough variety to attract the anti-singer crowd. Is he too famous for this competition? Yeah (he has had a Vegas show, and he has literally already performed in Radio City Music Hall before). But who really cares? He has the talent to back up his fandom, and with too many factors going for him, the competition is Piff's to lose.