Spoilers ahead for the August 18 results episode for America's Got Talent Season 16.
The second round of America's Got Talent quarterfinals saw the elimination of five more of the best acts that the auditions had to offer after last week's heartbreak, and it was sadly the end of the road for revolutionary dance group Shuffolution. Bringing shuffling all the way to the AGT quarterfinals was an accomplishment for sure, even if they didn't get the results they were looking for. Following their final performance, dancers Darian Webb and Kento Moriguchi spoke about the critiques they received from the judges, the "underappreciated" dance style of shuffling, and more.
The Shuffolution dancers stopped by to chat with CinemaBlend and other outlets after their quarterfinals performance to "Good Times" and "Boogie Wonderland" by Mr. Belt & Wezol, as well as "Grapevine" by Tiesto. They explained what they would do to up their game in the future after the criticisms they received from the judges:
Darian Webb: Honestly, just bringing something new to the table and maybe introducing some newer styles that we haven't showcased yet.Kento Moriguchi: From the judges, we did receive some comments like it seemed a little repetitive. We do want to bring some more sauce, some more different variety, some more character, different kinds of energy. So we're looking forward to exploring that.
In all fairness, judges Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, and Sofia Vergara were pretty hard on many of the acts, with Heidi Klum as the only one of the four judges who even liked one particularly psychedelic act. Still, Cowell and Mandel both made mention of one of the dancers who took a spill toward the beginning of the act, and Klum praised their energy while stating that it was also "repetitive."
Despite the judges' criticisms, there's no denying that Shuffolution brought something to the quarterfinals that no other act had with their shuffling, and even making it as far as they did guaranteed that shuffling was showcased as a dance style on a very large platform. The dancers weighed in on their "underappreciated" dance style and what it has meant to them to complete on America's Got Talent:
Darian Webb: Honestly, it's an honor to be able to bring shuffling to the biggest stage in the world. It's been such an underground and I feel underappreciated dance style. So to be able to bring it to the stage is something that we're honored to be a part of.Kento Moriguchi: And opportunities like this don't come and go. It doesn't come so easy. So we're just trying to embrace every single moment, just be so grateful for it. Because, you know, you never know when it's gonna end.
Shuffolution just started shuffling together earlier in 2021, but their efforts as a diverse group of dancers to raise awareness and get shuffling recognized as a professional dance style haven't been in vain. Even though they were eliminated before the finals, they got pretty far in AGT Season 16. And frankly, unlike Simon Cowell and Howie Mandel, I didn't even notice the shuffler who fell in the act on first watch, considering the energy overall and how quickly he popped back up. In case you missed the performance, take a look:
While the quarterfinals performance was ultimately Shuffolution's final performance as Season 16 competitors on America's Got Talent, the ways they tackled the new kinds of challenges presented by the AGT stage were admirable and, if you ask me, downright fun to watch. They shared the biggest of the challenges in their final act following the performance:
Kento Moriguchi: So our group, you know, it's not normal to have more structure, more choreography to this type of dance style. It's something that's never been done with this type of dance style. So definitely working together and figuring out all these different like routines, these dance sequences, that was the biggest challenge.Darian Webb: Oh, I was just gonna say, just the stamina aspect of it. It takes a lot of stamina and endurance to do what we do. So, sometimes once you get to the end, you're just like, 'Whew,' just got to take a deep breath. Because you know, it's a workout. It's definitely a workout.
The quarterfinals were the end of the road for Shuffolution, and several of the dancers seemed to know it as soon as host Terry Crews announced that either they or Northwell Health Nurse Choir was going home, and it's hard to blame them. Other than the history-making 10-year-old Victory Brinker, Northwell Health Nurse Choir (who themselves were Howie Mandel's golden buzzer) may have caused the strongest emotional response of the night.
The competition for the top prize of America's Got Talent Season 16 is still heating up as the quarterfinals continue. See whose journey is still continuing with new episodes on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, followed by results episodes on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET. For more of what's on the way to the small screen in the not-too-distant future, be sure to check out our 2021 fall TV premiere schedule and start planning!
