'America's Got Talent' journey ends for Utahn Alex Boyé

Nearly a month and a half after his first audition aired, a split decision sent Utah musician Alex Boyé home on Tuesday night's episode of NBC's hit variety show, "America's Got Talent."

The upbeat and unorthodox singer from Salt Lake City took to the stage with a unique rendition of Mark Ronson's "Uptown Funk," but it wasn't quite enough to put him over the hump as the show's five celebrity judges searched for the evening's top seven acts.

Boyé received mixed feedback from the judges panel, which consisted of comedian Howie Mandel, supermodel Heidi Klum, ex-Spice Girl Melanie "Mel B" Brown, shock jock Howard Stern and guest judge Piers Morgan. But in the end, the judges couldn't quite agree on putting Boyé and his band through to the next round of live auditions at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

As the judges began their feedback, Klum and Mandel stood out as Boyé's strongest supporters.

"I think that you are a great entertainer," Klum said. "I think the whole band is great, I think you're a great singer and I think that you deserve a spot on Radio City Music Hall. I do want to see you there. I loved it."

"Alex, you know that I'm a huge fan of yours," Mandel added. "I want to wish you the best of luck and hopefully we'll see you again."

Tougher to swallow were the comments from Brown, Stern and Morgan.

"The power and the energy that was coming off the stage was just undeniable," Brown said before commenting that she felt the act seemed a bit under-rehearsed.

Stern also felt underwhelmed by the performance, saying, "You do have tremendous potential, but sometimes I think you guys slip into the wedding band schtick, and you guys kind of did this time."

Morgan, who was a full-time judge on the show from 2006 to 2011, returned for one night only and spent the evening relishing his role as a notoriously grumpy critic. "Are you special?" he asked Boyé. "Are you a band that America will be watching tonight, thinking, 'That's incredible! I'm just going to pay to watch them'? I don't think you're at that level yet."

At the end of the night, the top seven spots were filled by a combination of dancers, acrobats, comedians, a young singer and, believe it or not, a professional regurgitator.

Boyé was shown briefly after being turned down by the judges, saying, "It's like heartbreaking because you think you're so close."

The musician took to Twitter after the show to thank his fans, tweet at AGT host Nick Cannon and tease a big announcement:

A door has just closed, but a bigger one just opened!! Will be able to talk about it in the next few weeks! #notover pic.twitter.com/iQr27UnhMZ

— alex boye (@alexboyereal) August 5, 2015

Certainly, an early exit on "America's Got Talent" isn't always indicative of failure. Twitter user @chonmage drew similarities to another local act with ties to AGT, pointing out, "@piersmorgan was wrong about @LindseyStirling.  He's wrong about Alex, too."

"America's Got Talent" airs Tuesday and Wednesday nights on NBC at 7 p.m., Mountain Time.

.@alexboyereal is bringing out the fierceness tonight! #AGT pic.twitter.com/59uq34whAv

— America's Got Talent (@nbcagt) August 5, 2015

For more information about Mormons on reality TV, click here to see the world’s most comprehensive list.

Watch Boye's full performance below:

LDS musician Alex Boyé thrills judges on 'America's Got Talent'

Mormon musician Alex Boyé appeared on the 10^th season of NBC’s hit variety show “America’s Got Talent” on Tuesday night, impressing all four judges and advancing to the second round of auditions.

Boyé, a British singer-songwriter known for his flamboyant African style of music, is a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a former member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. In recent years, he has become a YouTube sensation with his popular covers of songs like Disney’s “Let It Go” and Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk.”

On Tuesday night’s episode, Boyé performed his unique rendition of Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off” with his band, Changing Lanes Express, in front of a packed ballroom audience.  Boyé’s energy and enthusiasm quickly got the attention of the show’s four judges: Howie Mandel, Melanie “Mel B” Brown, Heidi Klum and Howard Stern.

Following the adrenaline-infused audition, Mandel kicked off the judges feedback with high praise. “I’ve got to be honest with you - in my six years here, this is my favorite music act ever. It really is!”

“That definitely woke everybody up,” Brown added. “You filled the whole room with your excitement and energy. Thank you for auditioning today. That was brilliant!”

“It was contagious,” Klum said. “You were rocking out on stage. It was awesome. … You guys are talented and so much fun.”

Finally, Stern said, “I could watch you all day. You’re terrific.”

The judges’ voting was unanimous, capped off by “an enthusiastic yes” from Stern, who later commented, “They’ve got a great sound. I’m very excited about them.”

An emotional Boyé reflected on the moment by telling host Nick Cannon, “When you’re on the older side of things, you start thinking that maybe it’s not going to happen. And then you have a moment like this – it just opens up opportunities again. It’s priceless. It’s been an honor.”

Boyé and his band will get a chance to showcase their talent in front of even more viewers as “America’s Got Talent” continues to air on NBC Tuesday nights this summer at 7:00 p.m., Mountain Time.

Watch Boyé's performance below:

Along with Boyé, other AGT contestants with ties to Utah and the LDS Church include now-world-famous violinist Lindsey Stirling (2010), Morgan County’s Fab Five clogging troupe (2009), and, most recently, musicians Josh Wright and Lexi Walker (2014).

For more information about Mormons on reality TV, click here to see the world’s most comprehensive list.