AGT Audience Overthrows The Judges' Votes In Season 17 Premiere — Watch

To say that Tuesday's premiere of America's Got Talent ended on a high note would be an understatement.

The opening round of auditions built to an emotional crescendo, concluding with the well-deserved first Golden Buzzer of Season 17, which went to 21-year-old saxophone master Avery Dixon. Not only did Dixon put on an incredible performance, but the judges were touched by his story of finding strength through music in the face of bullying from his peers.

Heidi Klum put it best, telling Dixon, "When you play with your instrument, you play with your heart, and we feel it."

Terry Crews certainly felt it, interrupting the judges to let Dixon know just how much he appreciates his art.

"You touched the heart of every human being in this building right now," Crews told an emotional Dixon. "You've been bullied all your life, but you tell every bully that you have a big brother named Terry Crews who has your back, and all those bullies are going to have to watch you succeed, my friend."

Boom. Golden Buzzer time!

Of course, Dixon wasn't the only act to receive the judges' approval in Week 1. Read on for a breakdown of Tuesday's other successful auditions, including the one demanded by the studio audience, then drop a comment with the act(s) you're already rooting for this season.

Part drumline, part dance crew and all heart, this Chicago-based group — which was originally formed as an after-school program for at-risk youth — received the first standing ovation of the season, and deservedly so. A little DMX is never a bad thing.

Quoth the prophet Sofia Vergara, "I think you guys are gonna do really, really good in this competition."

Formed by JoJo Siwa and her mom Jessalynn (both of whom were cheering from the wings), this high-energy girl group treated us to a performance that was the equivalent of putting a Lisa Frank notebook in a blender with six pounds of sugar. When that one girl sang "all I eat are M&Ms," I believed her.

This 33-year-old magician promised us "something we've never seen with a deck of cards," and he did not disappoint. The judges were hanging on his every lyric from the moment the beat dropped. Yes, I said "lyric" and "beat," because this love-spreading magician also raps! As someone who can neither spit rhymes nor properly shuffle a deck of cards, I was very impressed.

"You could put that on the radio right now!" Crews exclaimed, and not just because Vera threw in that line about how jacked the host is.

It's safe to say this British singer's days of putting up fences for a living are numbered. His rendition of Dermot Kennedy's "Better Days," which he dedicated to a friend he lost in lockdown, was absolutely beautiful. It was polished, professional and pretty close to perfect. Maybe it's because I'm not very familiar with this song, but if you told me that Collinson wrote it himself, I'd believe you.

Unquestionably the cheesiest audition of the night, this singer-songwriter performed a ridiculous original number about being embarrassed to want more parmesan at restaurants. ("I just want more cheese, is that so wrong?") The judges weren't feeling it, but Klum and Simon Cowell both changed their votes to "yes" after seeing how much the crowd loved Lapidus' quirky tune.

Howie Mandel stuck to his guns, but Vergara was also pressured into taking back her "no." ("It was a horrific song, and now we're going to have to hear this guy again!")

No puppets? No problem. This unconventional ventriloquist managed to sing "Once Upon a Time" from the musical Brooklyn while flossing, drinking a glass of water, taking a phone call, you name it. She even nailed the high note! The overall performance was so mesmerizing, it was easy to forget that Munoz was even making the sounds herself. Mandel called it "the most original thing I've ever seen," while Klum spoke for all of us when she said, "It was refreshing not having some weird puppet come out of a box."

After a handful of flop animal acts, Cowell had one thing to say to this 12-year-old girl and her furry fivesome: "Please be amazing. We really need you to be great."

And they were! Seriously, poodles in overalls? Jumping rope? And doing quick changes? These dogs are more coordinated than I will ever be.

This charismatic comedian won over the judges with an authentic routine about his personal experiences, from quitting his "hateful" job at the grocery store to catching his stepson browsing naughty websites.

"You have a real star quality about you," Cowell told him.

Cowell was quick to remind Takada that previous yo-yo acts have been "boring," but that didn't turn out to be a problem. The Japanese yo-yo artist combined impressive dance moves with jaw-dropping tricks, leading me to wonder who flipped more — Takada or the judges.