Sheldon Riley, who finished third on Season 7 of the Australian edition of The Voice in 2018, covered Billie Eilish on Tuesday’s episode of America’s Got Talent while his face was covered with a sparkling chain mask.
The 20-year-old Sydney native, who is half-Filipino, auditioned for AGT in March with his version of “idontwannabeyouanymore.”
Before he started singing, Riley declined to answer when judge Simon Cowell asked his name. After his performance, he explained his look.
“I'm really passionate about fashion, and I'm really passion about music, but... I didn't really talk that much, and people didn't really want to talk to me,” he said. “It wasn't really until I started doing this that people really looked at me or really cared, to be honest with you.”
Cowell and fellow judges Sofia Vergara and Canada’s Howie Mandel were impressed and voted Riley through to the next round.
“The fact I don't even know what you really look like, I love," said Cowell. Vergara told Riley: “I wish I could see your face, because I think you're very handsome. I can see those eyes.”
Mandel said the singer has “an amazing voice.”
Riley told the judges: “I’ve always kind of shied away from big things like this, and what's bigger than America's Got Talent?” But, in fact, he was not only a finalist The Voice Australia but returned for an "all-star" season last year. Among Riley's roughly 89,000 Instagram followers are singers Adam Lambert and Sam Smith.
The openly gay performer, whose real name is Sheldon Hernandez and who is in a relationship with fellow Aussie and equestrian Zachary Tomlinson, performed songs like Cher’s “Believe” and Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” on The Voice as well as “Scars to Your Beautiful” by Canada’s Alessia Cara.
On AGT, Riley told host Terry Crews he hoped to inspire others who felt different. “I guess me coming to this stage, I just want to show to all the little kids out there, if you just want to be authentically yourself, you can be, and you don't need to be afraid to be that,” he said.
MORE: Gay Country Singer Kameron Ross Auditions For AGT
Half of the winners in AGT’s first 14 seasons were singers but only one – Season 11 winner Grace VanderWaal – went on to have any notable success.
Although AGT boasts that its winner receives $1 million U.S., the grand prize is, in fact, a taxable $25,000 a year paid out over 40 years. (The winner can choose to take a lump sum instead, estimated to be a little less than $200,000 after taxes.)
The Judge Cuts episode of AGT airs July 28 and the live shows are set to begin Aug. 11.