He walked onto the America's Got Talent stage in 2017 looking like a guy who might have a decent voice, maybe a nice vibrato. Then he opened his mouth. Within seconds of tackling Whitney Houston’s “I Have Nothing,” the atmosphere in the room shifted. It wasn't just good; it was “how is a human doing that” good.
But if you think Johnny Manuel is just another reality TV singer who vanished into the "where are they now" bin, you’ve got it all wrong. His story isn't a straight line from a viral audition to a record deal. It’s a messy, fascinating, international journey that started way before Simon Cowell ever saw him and continues long after the AGT confetti was swept away.
The Lil' Johnny Days You Probably Forgot
Most people saw Johnny Manuel for the first time on Season 12 of AGT. However, the music industry had already chewed him up and spat him out once before. At just 14 years old, he was "Lil' Johnny." He wasn't singing Whitney ballads back then; he was a teenage R&B hopeful signed to Warner Records.
He was touring with Lil' Bow Wow. He was in the studio with Jermaine Dupri and P. Diddy. Imagine being a kid from Flint, Michigan, and suddenly you're the next big thing. And then, just as quickly, the label drops you. By 17, Johnny was back home, locked in his room, dealing with the kind of rejection that would break most adults. He spent years working retail, just another guy with a "used to be" story. That’s the baggage he was carrying when he stood in front of the judges.
That Viral America's Got Talent Moment
When Johnny hit that high note in his audition, the look on Simon Cowell's face was priceless. Simon actually made him sing it again—acapella—just to make sure there wasn't some trickery involved.
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Then came the Judge Cuts. Seal was the guest judge that night. Johnny performed Stevie Wonder’s "Lately," and Seal didn't even hesitate. He slammed that Golden Buzzer. Honestly, it was one of the most earned buzzers in the show's history because it wasn't about a sob story; it was about raw, undeniable technical skill.
He made it all the way to the Semi-Finals. In the Quarter-Finals, he tackled "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going." If you know anything about vocal difficulty, you know that song is a graveyard for singers. Johnny didn't just survive it; he turned it into a "diva" moment that Simon Cowell, usually the harshest critic of big ballads, absolutely loved.
Why Didn't He Win?
People still argue about why he was eliminated in the Semi-Finals. He chose to sing an original song called "Blind Faith." In the world of reality TV, that’s a massive gamble. The audience usually wants the hits they can sing along to. While "Blind Faith" showed his range, it didn't have the same emotional hook for the casual voter as a Whitney or Mariah cover. He was eliminated alongside Yoli Mayor, leaving fans pretty salty.
The Eurovision and Australian Twist
Here is where the story gets wild. After AGT, Johnny didn't just stay in the U.S. waiting for a call. In 2018, he joined a group called Equinox to represent Bulgaria in the Eurovision Song Contest. Yeah, Bulgaria. They performed a track called "Bones" and finished 14th in the final.
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But he wasn't done with the "Got Talent" or "The Voice" circuit. In 2020, Johnny showed up on The Voice Australia.
You’d think the judges would recognize him, but he walked out there like a total stranger. He joined Team Guy Sebastian and dominated the season. He hit notes that felt physically impossible. He eventually finished as the runner-up, losing to Chris Sebastian. It felt like deja vu—incredible talent, massive fan support, but just missing the top spot.
Where is Johnny Manuel in 2026?
Honestly, he’s finally finding his own lane. For years, people just wanted him to be a "vocal athlete"—someone who could just scream high notes on command. Johnny has been pretty vocal lately about how limiting that felt. He’s been focusing heavily on his own songwriting, trying to bridge the gap between that massive "diva" voice and the R&B roots he started with as a kid.
Recent releases like his Blue EP and Younger Skin show a much more nuanced artist. He isn't just trying to shatter glass anymore. He’s singing about identity, loss (he lost family members during the pandemic), and the reality of being a "perennial contestant" on these shows.
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His Current Discography (The Post-TV Era)
If you're looking for what he's been up to lately, check out these tracks. They aren't the over-produced reality TV covers you might expect:
- "I Remember (Reimagined- 2024 Mix)": A 2025 release that shows his matured tone.
- "Again": From the Younger Skin EP; it’s basically his anthem about starting over.
- "Molotov": A 2023 single that’s way more experimental than his AGT stuff.
- "Sober": A raw, vulnerable track from 2021 that really started his transition into a serious indie-soul artist.
What You Can Learn from Johnny's Journey
Johnny Manuel is a masterclass in resilience. Most people would have quit after the Lil' Johnny era ended in 2002. He didn't. Most would have quit after the AGT Semi-Finals loss. He went to Bulgaria. Most would have stopped after The Voice Australia. Instead, he moved to Australia permanently and started grinding as an independent artist.
If you want to support what he’s doing now, stop watching the 2017 YouTube clips on loop—though they are great—and go find his original work on Spotify or Apple Music. He’s finally making the music he wanted to make when he was 14, before the industry told him who to be.
Next steps for fans:
Go listen to the Younger Skin EP. It’s the best representation of who Johnny Manuel actually is when the TV cameras aren't shoved in his face. If you're a singer yourself, study his 2020 performance of "A Change Is Gonna Come" from The Voice Australia; it's a technical clinic on breath control and emotional phrasing that surpasses his AGT work.