11-Year-Old Violinist And "America's Got Talent" Contestant Tyler Butler-Figueroa Who Beat Cancer Aims To Be An "Inspiration" To Children

Sep 12, 2019 by apost team

A fight against cancer is one of the biggest battles in a person’s life. While many patients come through their cancer battle feeling like survivors, others feel like victims, marginalized and hurt by their struggle against the disease.

Such was the case of Tyler Butler-Figueroa. When Tyler was a four-year-old little boy, he was diagnosed with leukemia. Fighting the disease for years, Tyler was often made fun of by other kids in his school for losing his hair during treatments. Even worse were rumors swirling around Tyler that his condition was contagious.

To combat his reputation as the “kid with cancer,” Tyler began playing the violin, hoping that his ability with the instrument would encourage his peers to call him the “kid who plays the violin.” Tyler soon became so good with the instrument that he got a spot on America’s Got Talent. Among the top prizes for this season’s competition are $1 million and the chance to perform live shows in Las Vegas.

Soon after his debut on the show, Tyler became a fan favorite. Judges and audiences alike were inspired by his harrowing story of overcoming cancer. One of Tyler’s chief pillars of support on the show is judge Simon Cowell. Cowell says that Tyler is the little boy everyone wants to see win and awarded him his coveted Golden Buzzer.

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Tyler was incredibly happy to have Cowell’s Golden Buzzer, pointing out in an interview with People that he is one of the most difficult judges to impress on the show. Two of the acts before Tyler, a dance troupe called Light Balance Kids and a singer named Charlotte Summers, were reduced to tears by Cowell’s scathing critique of their performances. While Cowell says that he feels bad about their reaction, he also says that as a judge, he must be honest, calling his critiques “mentally positive criticism.”

Cowell wasn’t the only judge to praise Tyler’s performances on America’s Got Talent. Judge Gabrielle Union called Tyler an inspiration for kids everyone to put down their gaming consoles and pick up a musical instrument, per People.

What do you think of how Tyler overcame his cancer and became an amazing violinist? Are you looking forward to seeing who wins this season on America’s Got Talent?