Sometimes dreams do come true. One Indiana janitor finally got his chance to shine with an amazing cover of "Don't Stop Believin'" on America's Got Talent.
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Speaking with People, Richard Goodall opened up about what it was like to appear on the show. Goodall said he works as a middle school janitor. "I was that kid up in my bedroom with the Radio Shack stereo," he said. "My favorite thing was just to sit up and listen to my music, and I just belt it out. Eventually, I was like, I gotta find me a job. So I become [sic] a janitor at Chauncey Rose Middle School, which is only three blocks away from my house."
He always had a passion for singing though. He said he would sing while doing his work at the school."I'm not a fancy person. I take out the trash. I wipe off the tables, I sweep the floors. I'm just having fun and I'm trying to make people happy," he explained. "The kids would hear me sing and they tell me that I I've got talent. That's why I'm here, that's why I got on a plane."
Goodall's rendition of "Don't Stop Believin'" surprised the judges thanks to his uncanny vocal resemblance to Steve Perry. "Richard, you are my hero! Cause that was special, genuinely special. I think America is gonna love you," Simon Cowell said. Meanwhile, Sofia Vergara said, "That was spectacular, that was fun, this was an amazing surprise. You were perfect to come to AGT."
Dream Come True On 'America's Got Talent'
Howie Mandell also added, "Maybe it's because you've been doing it for 23 years, but you just cleaned up! I would imagine that every kid who's ever been in a school with you is just screaming." However, ultimately, it was Heidi Klum who gave him an America's Got Talent golden buzzer.
"We all had the best time with you up there on that stage. I really, really feel something when I see you up there and hear you up there, and now this is what I'm gonna do for you because I love you," she said before pressing her buzzer.
Richard got emotional over the moment. He said, "I've never even been on a plane. This was not on my radar to come to California. It's just a dream come true."
He opened up about what it means to get the America's Got Talent honor. "Golden Buzzer [winners] are an elite group of people. I never in a million years expected to be in that class," Richard said. "And I still can't believe Heidi did that!"
