Sky Elements has continuously wowed the “AGT” crowd with impressive drone shows, but for their semi-finals performance, the group carried out a breathtaking outdoor show which was dedicated to member Preston Ward's late infant daughter, Briley Rose.
As the song “Butterfly” by Liv Meola played in the background, the lit up drones depicted the image of a father and his little girl playing together. But as the father throws her up into the air, she turns into a butterfly and flies away.
Still, the poignant piece ended on a hopeful note, for as the father began crying, the butterfly flew around a giant rose, landed on the father’s finger and then transformed into an exalted phoenix.
When even the characteristically stoic Simon Cowell is left speechless, you know something profound took place.
After an immediate standing ovation, Cowell, visibly moved, could not find the words.
“That was, uh … That was, um — oh, gosh,” were all that came out before he let the other judges have their turn speaking.
Howie Mandel managed to share his appreciation for the loving tribute, noting how fitting that it came on Sept 11, marking a day in which so many people lost loved ones.
"I can't thank you enough for this," he said. "And I'm looking at your family members... There isn't an act that just moves your heart this much, and you just broke us."
Meanwhile, Vergara eloquently said what we’re all thinking:
“I mean, who knew that drones could make you so emotional? That was a surprise. That was so beautiful! That was, like, heartfelt, and I mean, I don't even know what to say. Congratulations! What a beautiful, beautiful job.”
Even host Terry Crews would later open up about how much the performance resonated. In an exclusive interview with People, he shared “Me and my wife, we know what it's like to lose a child. We've had three miscarriages. It's one of those things where it was so meaningful and special because the dedication is just, it's a way to process these things.”
It wasn’t just the live audience or judges moved to tears by Sky Elements’ performance. Just take a look at some of these comments from Youtube .
“This act really made me cry because we are living in a world where we are dealing with the loss of our people, our family, our friends who have passed and to those who lost someone in their heart, my heart goes out to all of you.”
“I was crying this whole act. It depicts the sadness of losing the people we loved most.”
“Gosh! The loss of her daughter and put into this spectacular drone show is just heartbreaking. Got me in tears.”
“OMG! I had a lump in my throat and tears were flowing. I was sobbing. What a sad story told in a beautiful way.”
“They really outdid themselves with this performance. This isn't the type of thing I would watch much of but the pairing of the song and the imagery turned on some tears. It was magic. Well done.”
After the performance, Ward shared that the group hoped their act “we really hope and wish that somebody that needs a little hope got something from that.”
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Local News
