America's answer to Susan Boyle?

This summer, it's America's turn to discover its hidden talents, and along with the positively horrible auditions so far have been a few diamonds in the rough on the show "America's Got Talent". Chief among those that have impressed me so far is Kevin Skinner, 35, (left), from Mayfield, Kentucky. He told the audience he was a "chicken catcher", whatever that is, and that he was basically a country boy who liked hunting, fishing, mud trucking and some of the usual pursuits that one might come to expect from a down home southern guy. But he also showed a sensitive side when he spoke softly of sitting on the front porch gathering his thoughts and counting the stars in the night sky and strumming his guitar. Walking out on to the stage dressed simply and unadorned to introduce himself, he was naturally met with rather derisive looks from judges and audience alike, as if to say, "Who in hell is this hayseed and what business does he have coming out here to sing for us?" He has a thick southern accent that makes him sound like something of a back country hick, but once he began to strum his guitar and sing, none of that mattered. Kevin sang a tender ballad by country singer Garth Brooks called "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and wowed both audience and judges alike with his soulful singing and eloquent guitar strumming. What moved me was the emotion conveyed in the song, as if Kevin had gone through what the song spoke of - if you should die suddenly, would your loved ones know how much you loved them, and could they soldier on without you? Naturally, with the recent deaths of my cousin and an old childhood friend, thoughts like this have been uppermost on my mind, so the song moved me very deeply and I found myself tearing up listening to it. The audience was absolutely silent during the song, spellbound by this plain spoken Kentucky back country guy singing soulfully and emotionally, and by the end, the judges could not contain themselves with their praise and sent him on to the next round with ease. It's people like Kevin Skinner who come out of nowhere and blow everyone away that make shows like this fun to watch. I hope that he continues to do well in this competition and gains some apparently long overdue recognition for what is an obvious talent that he has. It was a pleasure watching and hearing him sing in a simple, heartfelt, unadorned and emotional way. Best wishes, Kevin, I'm sure that you've won many fans who are looking forward to your next appearance on "America's Got Talent". I know that I am!