Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Dustin Rowles | News | June 25, 2025
Last night, an old post I’d written — Tom Sandoval Is a Despicable Human Being — inexplicably started picking up traffic. It only took a few seconds to figure out why: the Vanderpump Rules star, best known for cheating on Ariana Madix (currently seen as the host of Love Island), had appeared on America’s Got Talent.
And he advanced.
Sandoval is attempting some kind of redemption arc, though let’s be honest — the guy never really left. He’s been a regular reality-TV fixture, popping up on Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, The Masked Singer, and the last season of The Traitors, where he actually brought some much-needed — and very sweaty — villain energy.
That he advanced with his cover band on America’s Got Talent isn’t all that surprising. Audiences love a good villain, and they love a good redemption story even more. Mostly, though, he delivered a semi-competent rendition of A-ha’s crowd-pleaser, “Take On Me” — the karaoke equivalent of singing Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” in Boston. Unless you completely botch it, people are going to eat it up. And he didn’t botch it. After 20 seasons of America’s Got Talent, apparently all it takes is a recognizable face, a familiar song, and a legitimately good backing band to move on.
The performance didn’t exactly warrant the standing ovation it received, though at least Simon was honest — “the vocals are not particularly good” — before voting to advance him anyway. Because Simon knows a ratings grab when he sees one.
It’s a cover band with a horn section — it doesn’t take much to spark joy in a live audience. Maybe try a Mighty Mighty Bosstones cover in the next round, if only to expose how limited Sandoval’s range truly is. Actually, that’s the best way to close out this post.
Actually, we’ll leave with a number from a legitimately great cover band: Ken Marino and David Wain’s Middle Aged Dad Jam Band.
