Mackenzie Sol Wins Mel B’s Golden Buzzer on AGT Tonight With “back to friends” — 21 Years After Meeting Simon Cowell at Age 4

Twenty-one years ago, a four-year-old boy from a small town in the North East of England stood in front of Simon Cowell on The X-Factor and sang his heart out. Simon told him to come back in twelve years.

On Tuesday night, June 24, 2026, that boy — now 25-year-old Mackenzie Sol — finally made good on that promise, walking out onto the America’s Got Talent Season 21 stage and earning one of the most emotionally charged Golden Buzzer moments of the entire season.

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British singer and social media star Mackenzie Sol performed “back to friends” by Sombr in tonight’s episode, delivering a vocal performance that left the judging panel speechless and moved Mel B to slam the Golden Buzzer — sending him straight to the AGT 2026 Live Shows without a single public vote.

Here’s everything you need to know about who Mackenzie Sol is, why this moment matters, and what happens next.

Mackenzie Sol’s AGT Audition: What Happened Tonight?

The atmosphere in the auditorium fell quiet as Mackenzie Sol stepped onto the stage. Visibly nervous — he later admitted backstage with host Terry Crews that the scale of the audience rattled him — he steadied himself and launched into his performance of “back to friends” by Sombr.

What followed was a vocal performance that brought the audience to its feet. Before the standing ovation had even finished, Mel B rose from her seat and pressed the Golden Buzzer. Gold confetti exploded across the stage. Mackenzie sank to his knees, overwhelmed.

Mel B’s reaction said it all: she declared him “absolutely, extraordinarily fabulous” and said she was glad she got to speak first — because she intended to hit that button before anyone else could.

What Is “back to friends” by Sombr? Why This Song Choice Was Brilliant

“back to friends” is an indie pop song by American artist Sombr (real name Shane Boose), released on December 27, 2024 through Warner Records.

The song became one of 2025’s biggest breakout hits, going viral on TikTok in March 2025 before entering the Billboard Hot 100 and eventually peaking at number seven — after an extraordinary 52-week run on the chart.

The song tackles the emotional complexity of navigating romantic feelings between people who were once just friends. It’s deeply personal, sonically raw, and carries the kind of emotional weight that translates perfectly to a live audition stage. Rolling Stone named it one of the best songs of 2025.

For Mackenzie Sol, the song choice was strategically and emotionally smart. It’s a culturally current, widely recognised track that resonates across age groups — but it also showcases vocal range and emotional delivery without defaulting to the power-ballad clichés that frequently dominate AGT auditions. It was a statement of artistic identity as much as a performance.

Who Is Mackenzie Sol? His Full Story

Mackenzie Sol Williamson was born on September 4, 2000, in Sunderland, North East England. He grew up in a deeply musical household — both his parents were singers who performed across England, and Mackenzie travelled with them as a child. Music, in his own words, has been the only life he’s ever known.

He trained at Stagecoach Theatre Arts College and later spent two years at the Royal Ballet School in London.

By age six, he was already appearing in stage productions in London’s West End. At 13, he performed alongside Jennifer Hudson, Josh Groban, and Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds at the 2014 Carousel of Hope Ball in Los Angeles, an event directed by David Foster.

Despite this remarkable early career, breaking through as a solo recording artist remained elusive. “It’s just really hard to make it where I come from. It’s such a small town,” he told Terry Crews backstage at AGT. “I did a lot of singing back home. I did what I could.”

From American Idol to AGT: His Reality TV Journey

Many AGT viewers may not know that tonight’s Golden Buzzer recipient already has serious reality TV experience.

In 2024, Mackenzie Sol competed on American Idol Season 22, auditioning in Santa Barbara with a cover of “Bring It on Home to Me” by Sam Cooke — earning a standing ovation and three unanimous “yes” votes from Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and Luke Bryan.

He made it all the way to the Top 20, a remarkable achievement for a first-time US television competitor.

In the Hawaii Round, he was mentored by Jelly Roll and delivered an emotional performance of “Jealous” by Nick Jonas.

However, after performing “I’ll Never Love Again” from A Star Is Born in the Top 20, the public vote wasn’t enough to carry him forward, and he was eliminated from the competition.

What happened next is where Mackenzie’s story becomes genuinely fascinating. Rather than disappearing from public view, he pivoted hard to social media.

In less than two years, he built an audience of 12.1 million TikTok followers, 2.51 million YouTube subscribers, and 1.8 million Instagram followers — releasing a steady stream of original music including “Graduation,” “You’re Still Mine,” “H8 December,” and “Anxiety.”

Despite those massive online numbers, his Spotify monthly listener count hovers around 27,000 — revealing the gap that still exists between viral social media presence and music industry traction. AGT represents his biggest opportunity yet to close that gap.

The Simon Cowell Full-Circle Reunion: 21 Years in the Making

The most emotionally powerful element of tonight’s audition wasn’t even the Golden Buzzer. It was the backstory.

In 2005, when Mackenzie Sol was just four years old, he auditioned for The X-Factor UK in front of a panel that included Simon Cowell.

He was twelve years below the competition’s minimum age requirement of 16, but the judges were charmed enough to give him two “yes” votes anyway. Simon Cowell, in what would prove to be a remarkably prophetic moment, told the tiny boy: “In 12 years time, you’re through.”

“That moment in that room was when I knew I wanted to be a singer,” Mackenzie told Terry Crews backstage at AGT, as they watched footage from that X-Factor audition together.

Twenty-one years later, Mackenzie stood in front of Simon again — this time on the AGT stage, alongside Mel B, Howie Mandel, and Sofia Vergara, with his mum and his whole family watching from the audience.

He admitted to Simon that they’d met before. Simon didn’t remember. “I was four years old,” Mackenzie replied to laughter from the panel. It was one of those rare television moments that feels genuinely unscripted and real.

The full-circle symmetry is hard to ignore: the man who first told Mackenzie Sol he had a future in music was sitting in the front row when another judge hit the Golden Buzzer and sent him to the live shows.

Mackenzie Sol on Social Media and His Original Music

Long before AGT, Mackenzie Sol built his online following through a combination of music content and comedic prank videos — particularly a recurring series of kitchen pranks involving his mum, which became a signature format on TikTok.

It was this content that first grew his audience into the millions, earning him a reputation as a prankster before his musical talent got the recognition it deserved.

His original discography has grown steadily since American Idol, with songs available on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube.

In October 2024, he teamed up with fellow American Idol Season 22 alum Jordan Anthony to release “Don’t Ya” as the duo J+M — marking the first time in American Idol history that two former contestants had joined forces to release music together.

Current social media stats (as of June 2026): 12.1M TikTok followers, 2.51M YouTube subscribers, 1.8M Instagram followers.

What Happens Next for Mackenzie Sol on AGT 2026?

The Golden Buzzer changes everything. Instead of needing to survive multiple public vote rounds during the audition phase, Mackenzie Sol is now confirmed for the AGT 2026 Live Shows — scheduled to begin in August 2026 on NBC, streaming next day on Peacock.

His chances of going far are strong. He brings exactly the combination of elements AGT tends to reward: an extraordinary backstory, a genuine emotional connection with the audience, a social media fanbase who can mobilise votes, and vocal talent that holds up under pressure.

His competition includes a deep pool of Golden Buzzer acts from AGT Season 21 across singing, dancing, and variety categories.

But as the only British singer in the mix carrying the full weight of a 21-year journey back to Simon Cowell’s panel, Mackenzie Sol enters the live shows with a narrative edge that very few acts can match.

The Bottom Line

Mackenzie Sol’s Golden Buzzer moment on AGT tonight isn’t just a feel-good audition clip. It’s the culmination of a 21-year journey that started with a four-year-old boy singing for Simon Cowell in 2005.

From the West End to American Idol to 12 million TikTok followers to the AGT stage — every step of this story has been pointing toward this moment.

With Mel B’s Golden Buzzer in his pocket and a direct ticket to the live shows, Mackenzie Sol now has the biggest platform of his career.

Whether he can convert that opportunity into an AGT victory remains to be seen — but one thing is certain: nobody in the competition has a better story to tell.

Watch Mackenzie Sol’s Golden Buzzer audition on NBC and Peacock. AGT 2026 Live Shows begin August 2026.