When 19-year-old Summer Rios walked onto the America’s Got Talent stage, she didn’t look like someone used to the spotlight. She introduced herself as a Pizza Hut worker from Ohio who usually sings on TikTok and in her car, not in front of thousands of people and four of the biggest judges on TV. Behind the shy smile was a girl who’d battled anxiety for years and rarely performed in public.
For her audition, Summer chose “Something in the Orange” by Zach Bryan — a risky move, because the song is beloved and demands real emotion, not vocal tricks. From the very first line, the whole room shifted. Her voice was soft but rich, cracked in all the right places, and carried that raw, honest tone that makes you feel every word. The arrangement was simple, but the sincerity in her delivery made it feel like you were listening in on a private confession.
Simon Cowell, who’d been quietly studying her, suddenly lit up. He called it a “great, great choice of song” and praised how believable she sounded, while the other judges raved about her tone and the emotion she poured into every phrase. By the end, the audience was cheering, the judges were smiling, and Summer walked away with four big “Yes” votes — and a brand-new chapter in her life.
She came in as the girl who makes pizzas and sings when no one’s really listening.
She walked off as the young woman who proved that sometimes, all it takes is one honest song to change everything.
