--- title: Next Taylor Swift Is Grace VanderWaal, Simon Cowell Says description: Notoriously hard-to-impress 'America's Got Talent' judge Simon Cowell called contestant Grace VanderWaal, "the next Taylor Swift." canonical: https://time.com/4362496/simon-cowell-grace-vanderwaal-americas-got-talent/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-06-09T14:39:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:33:11.110Z og:title: Is This Girl 'The Next Taylor Swift?' Simon Cowell Says So og:description: Meet Grace Vanderwaal of 'America's Got Talent' og:url: https://time.com/4362496/simon-cowell-grace-vanderwaal-americas-got-talent/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdcf55cded23b4ce9/6988971cfb4eac561788ddb1/grace-vanderwaal-americas-got-talent-simon-cowell.png?branch=production&width=551&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 551 og:image:height: 310 og:image:alt: Grace-Vanderwaal-Americas-Got-Talent-Simon-Cowell og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Is This Girl 'The Next Taylor Swift?' Simon Cowell Says So twitter:description: Meet Grace Vanderwaal of 'America's Got Talent' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdcf55cded23b4ce9/6988971cfb4eac561788ddb1/grace-vanderwaal-americas-got-talent-simon-cowell.png?branch=production&width=551&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Is This 12-Year-Old Girl 'The Next Taylor Swift?' 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Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically.  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Jun 9, 2016 2:39 PM UTC  (Courtesy: NBC Universal)  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Jun 9, 2016 2:39 PM UTC She might only be 12, but Grace VanderWaal’s powerhouse vocals and ukulele skills have already caught the attention of some of music’s toughest critics, including one Mr. [Simon Cowell](http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1984685%5F1984940%5F1985514,00.html). The precocious singer appeared on [_America’s Got Talent_ ](http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/07/04/texas-housewife-wins-tvs-heart-with-talent-and-adorable-personality/?iid=sr-link2)on Tuesday night, where her flawless performance of an original song, “I Don’t Know My Name,” earned Grace an endorsement from [Howie Mandel](http://entertainment.time.com/2013/06/02/qa-howie-mandel-on-the-definition-of-talent/)‘s golden buzzer, with judge going so far as to call her “a living, beautiful, walking miracle.” However, the biggest compliment of the night came from the infamously hard-to-impress Cowell, who told the aspiring chanteuse that she reminded him of one of America’s biggest pop stars. “Grace, you know what I predict for you? I think you are the next Taylor Swift,” Cowell said. 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