Linkin Park took the stage with Nene Royal in the “America’s Got Talent” final on Wednesday, September 23, shortly before the 16-year-old singer and guitarist from Phuket, Thailand was crowned winner of the 21st season.
The performance
The collaboration happened on the results show, after voting had closed. Royal took the first verse of “The Emptiness Machine” before Emily Armstrong came in and the two finished the song together, with Royal between Armstrong and Mike Shinoda. Shinoda called her performance incredible and Armstrong wished her good luck, telling her everyone is on her side.
The victory
Later that same night her win was confirmed: she took $1 million and a concert in Las Vegas. Magician Geno Ploeger finished second and Hundred Fingers third.
And The Warning
The second rock collaboration of the week was with The Warning. The Mexican trio of sisters met them for a jam on “Kerosene”, which had been filmed in advance: a short clip was played on Tuesday’s show and NBC then gave out more extensive material.
More on the same side of metal: Linkin Park: Live video for «Waiting For The End» and the «Unshatter» soundtrack.
How she reached the final
Royal’s run in the competition was built on rock songs. She drew attention in the second round of auditions with The Cranberries’ “Zombie”, continued in the callbacks with Muse’s “Hysteria”, won a live Golden Buzzer in the semifinals with Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” and in the final played The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army”.
“The Emptiness Machine” from 2024 was the first song Linkin Park released with Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain. The performance was also to promote “Unshatter”, their upcoming concert film and live album.
See also: Linkin Park: Colin Brittain learned “Hallowed Be Thy Name” | Linkin Park: “Faint” live from the “Unshatter” documentary
See also: Linkin Park are already working on their next record after «From Zero»
