Emotional moment shy girl, 13, wows the judges with her performance on America's Got Talent and gets sent straight to the finals

A very shy British schoolgirl came on America's Got Talent stage looking like she couldn't sing to save her life, but when she opened her mouth and sang, the judges were so blown away that they hit the "golden buzzer", sending her straight to the quarterfinals. 

Courtney Hadwin, 13, from Hesleden, in County Durham, came on stage on Tuesday night and when judge Mel B asked how she was feeling, she said she felt "nervous". She looked it too, and Mel B tried to calm her down by asking what her best subject is in school and the girl said "Music". 

But the moment the girl started singing to Otis Redding's Hard to Handle, it was as though she had been replaced by someone else. The shy Courtney was gone, replaced with a very sure and confident performer who did not falter one bit and kept her audience entertained. By the time she was done singing, all four judges and the audience were on their feet. 

The teenager is no stranger to talent competitions, having narrowly missed out on the top prize on The Voice Kids UK last year. Her own grandfather describes her as "painfully shy". 

Watch her incredible performance in the video below.