America's Got Talent is one of the top talent competitions on television that literally welcomes any sort of talent.  This could be anything from singing to sword swallowing or magic to comedy.  Whatever unique gift or skill you have,  America's Got Talent is the stage to show the world.

Many people from across the country have been part of America's Got Talent including a Spearfish woman, Kristina Young who was part of the first-ever YouTube audition series for the NBC show. She represented South Dakota as a singer.

At the time of Kristina's audition in 2010, YouTube was still a new media platform. America's Got Talent decided to use this tool to find new talent during Season 5.  Out of thousands of video submissions, Kristina was chosen as one of the top 20 finalists to compete for a Semi-Finals spot.

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In front of judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne, Howie Mandel, and an audience, Kristina belted out Carrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats."  If you skip ahead to the 56-minute mark of this video, you will see that Kristina is truly giving it her all on stage.  The judges from America's Got Talent actually selected Kristina to move on to the next round. This means she would be performing on live television.

Kristina Young was truly putting South Dakota on the map during her time on America's Got Talent.  I wish I could say that Kristina's Semi-Final performance blew everyone away.  Unfortunately, I can't.

Kristina took a risk with her rendition of Lady Gaga's "Poker Face."  Piers, Sharon, and Howie buzzed Kristina in the middle of her set.  The judges did tell Kristina that they appreciated her effort, but it was just too late in the competition to test new styles. You can watch the judges' comments around the 55-minute mark of this next video.

Kristina showed a lot of heart when she was competing on this national stage.  You have to applaud her for her resilience.  Season 5 of America's Got Talent was just a tough season overall.  Kristina was competing with some huge names on the coveted AGT stage. Competitors included Prince Poppycock, the Season 5 Winner Michael Grimm (one of my personal favorites),  Lindsey Stirling, Future Funk, and finalist Jackie Evancho.  Jackie was even one of the YouTube contestants on America's Got Talent.

Let's hope we see another South Dakotan grace the AGT stage very soon!

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