Neal E. Boyd faces a tough road on "America's Got Talent"

The early portion of Tuesday's episode of "America's Got Talent" had to make Neal E. Boyd's fans feel great. Several acts came and went, and we got pretty deep into the show before any of them gave a great performance.

But once Boyd took his turn on stage, singing "All By Myself" in a tribute to his old choir teacher, the competition changed. Things became much tougher for the Sikeston tenor.

After Boyd's performance came a trio of very strong acts, the kind that will make the finals very interesting, and far from a guaranteed win for Boyd. The three acts are Queen Emily, Eli Mattson and Nuttin' But Stringz.

All three came out and delivered. When Boyd performed, he was declared the frontrunner. But outstanding performances like Matton's turn on Elton John made the judges say similar things to the other three acts. No one is a clear frontrunner now.

Wednesday we'll know who survived. I believe Boyd will be one of them. Here's my top five:

Boyd

Queen Emily

Eli Mattson

Nuttin' But Stringz

Jessica Price

I'll post video of all these acts Thursday morning, so you can compare for yourself. Leave a comment and let me know who you think will be in the top five.

Poll results

When the top 10 was announced, I asked who was the biggest threat to Boyd. Here are your answers:

Who presents the toughest competition for Neal E. Boyd?

* Eli Mattson: 15.7% (32 votes)

* Queen Emily: 28.4% (58 votes)

* Nuttin' But Stringz: 23.0% (47 votes)

* The Wright Kids: 0.0% (0 votes)

* Jessica Price: 2.0% (4 votes)

* Donald Braswell: 9.8% (20 votes)

* Someone else not listed.: 1.0% (2 votes)

* Nobody in the competition.: 20.1% (41 votes)

Nuttin' But Stringz

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Neal E. Boyd

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Donald Braswell

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Eli Mattson

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Queen Emily

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