America's Got Talent Tackles Parmesan Etiquette in Season Premiere

Mild-mannered sound engineer Ben Lapidus stunned the judges with his catchy song about Parmesan cheese on the season premiere of America's Got Talent on NBC. The tune left the judges initially baffled and unimpressed, but Lapidus was able to sway the crowd to his side enough to force the judges to change their minds.

AGT is a stalwart hit for NBC and while it doesn't always make the critic's Top 10 lists, it is still going strong in Season 17. The show still relies on auditions before a panel of four judges, Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara, and Simon Cowell, all of whom have the ability to hit a buzzer that lights up a giant red X at any time in the act if they are not entertained sufficiently. If all four judges hit their buzzers, the act is supposed to be stopped immediately and the contestant is sent home with four "no" votes (a contestant needs three "yes" votes to advance). Lapidus got all four X's but gamely continued on, to the delight of the crowd.

His repetitive ditty about Parmesan struck a chord with the audience, and eventually the judges, launching Lapidus to the next stage of the competition. The premise of the song was simple enough: wanting more Parmesan on your food at a restaurant but being too embarrassed to ask for more. The crowd instantly took to the cheesy populist message and the judges agreed with the relatable premise, even if they could not stand the music. The song quickly grew on them though and one can see Simon Cowell change from visibly annoyed at the act to visibly annoyed at how much he was enjoying it. Instead of being embarrassed or mimicking The Masked Singer and singing hidden behind a mask, Lapidus put the awkwardness on full display and was rewarded for it.

Lapidus's performance holds significance as it is the first time a contestant has ever made it through to the next round after receiving four X's. Judges have rescinded their X's before, even changing a "no" to a "yes" vote occasionally, but this is the first time that a contestant has changed the minds of multiple judges after getting four of the dreaded red X's. Even though it is not quite at the level of Moonlight getting an Oscar, the reversal still is a first for a show that has been around for multiple seasons and multiple different countries.

AGT acts often go viral and the singer/songwriter combination seems to be a common path for internet stardom. Acts like the dancing Stormtroopers have found success, but performers like Grace VanderWaal, Nightbirde, and Susan Boyle have racked up incredibly high view counts on YouTube. Seven of the most viewed Got Talent performances ever on YouTube belong to singers and now a song about Parmesan will try to make its way to the top of that list. Being a singer helps Lapidus going forward, but performers with humorous songs have had a tough go of things on the show after the audition stage, often struggling to capture the magic from their first performance.

NBC's AGT shows it has not lost a step by being able to turn a song about Parmesan into an internet sensation. Despite the leanings of the judges, the will of the crowd ruled this time and the show, as always, knows when to listen to the crowd and when to ignore it. Up next for Ben Lapidus, finding out if he is up to muster (Muenster?) after the auditions are done, and the judges select acts for the live shows.

America's Got Talent airs on Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m. on NBC.