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Why You Recognize AGT’s Adorable 8-Year-Old Dancer, Brody Schaffer
The social media star known for breaking gender norms through dance had a hilarious reason for why he missed the AGT stage back in 2020.
Season 19 of America’s Got Talent is proving to be “the season of the cool kids,” as Judge Sofia Vergara put it, and one adorable “superstar” is proving her right.
Eight-year-old Brody Schaffer of San Diego, California, wowed Vergara and the other Judges with what the boy called a “jazzy” dance routine to Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now.” The cute wavy-haired child, dressed in a red-sequined top and shiny black pants, said he had big Broadway dreams after being inspired by his mother to dance.
He said AGT provided “the biggest stage” he’d ever been on, and he hoped to win the $1 million prize to share.
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“I would give it to kids who can’t afford dance because when my mom was a little girl, her mom couldn't afford dance,” the child told Judges with an incomplete smile.
But in case you found yourself asking why Schaffer looked familiar, as AGT Host Terry Crews had, it’s (kind of) not his first time on AGT.
Here’s why:
Why this was Brody Schaffer’s second Audition attempt
“I have been dreaming to be on AGT. Do you know why?” Schaffer asked producers. “I came here on Season 15, but I didn’t make it to be on the stage.”
When producers asked why he didn’t perform in 2020, his answer was all too relatable.
“I felled asleep, and then we went home,” Schaffer cutely explained. “But now I’m back!”
For his recent performance, there was no stopping the youngster, who incorporated some snazzy gymnastics moves and perfect facial expressions to take over the stage and command everyone’s attention. Schaffer’s fast and fun dance was steeped in classical ballet and contemporary dance and, perhaps most impressive to Audiences, included plenty of on-the-ground and mid-air flips.
For Judge Heidi Klum, Schaffer’s “absolutely incredible” performance was “perfection.”
“You used that whole big stage all for yourself,” she told the child.
Judge Vergara seconded Klum’s statements, calling the high-energy routine “spectacular.”
“I feel like you were not only dancing, you were also doing gymnastics and a little bit of comedy with your face,” Vergara marveled.
Judge Simon Cowell said watching Schaffer’s dance was like pressing the fast-forward button.
“It was so fast, I was trying to catch up with you,” Cowell complimented.
Cowell commended Schaffer’s choice to use the Queen song because, like Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury — whom Cowell cited as one of the greatest showmen “on the plant” — the 8-year-old exuded “amazing showmanship and confidence,” to which Judge Howie Mandel agreed.
Schaffer was all smiles and air kisses when he left with four yes votes in his jazzy little pockets.
Brody Schaffer is a TikTok/Instagram star
Brody Schaffer is already making a name for himself in the dance world and on social media. Under the username “bossbabybrody,” the tiny dancer has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and millions of views of his dancing videos via his mother’s TikTok account.
What sets Schaffer apart from other child dancers is that he continues to break stereotypes as a child raised without gender norms, as featured in CBS News. In the 2021 interview with the dancer’s mother, Dani Schaffer said she wanted “the bridge to get him to where he needs to be instead of the roadmap dictating” which way to go.
“He is a child, and he is just exploring,” Dani Schaffer told the outlet. “I feel like the minute you let go and let your child be is when they are going to flourish anyway, and I would never want to clip his wings.”
In a 2020 interview with POPSUGAR, the mother said Schaffer — the youngest of four siblings — had no formal dance training but was “a born ballet dancer.”
“Brody is a child, and we as a family celebrate our children for who they are,” the mother said. “If Brody wants to dress in his sister’s costumes, so be it. If he wants to wear Elsa and Anna costumes, we will gladly put them on him. He’s a child, and as long as he’s kind, that’s all we care about.”
Fans might also recognize Schaffer from when he danced his way onto NBC’s The Kelly Clarkson Show and starred in Niall Horan’s alternate music video, “No Judgement.”
See more of Brody Schaffer’s dance moves as America’s Got Talent continues, airing Tuesdays at 8/7c on NBC and Peacock.
