Ten of the top 20 have performed, so how's it looking for Neal E. Boyd?

Tonight 10 of the top 20 "America's Got Talent" contestants performed.

It's pretty easy to tell some of them will no longer be in the competition next week, like the ZOOperstars! and probably The James Gang.

But what about Neal E. Boyd?

The Sikeston, Mo., native had a special night, since his mother Esther was in the audience to see him perform for the first time during the "America's Got Talent" competition. Boyd said in his introduction that people in his home town raised the money for the ticket.

The performance, dedicated to Esther, was rather touching, and as he has before, Boyd got rave reviews from the show's three judges and the audience in Los Angeles.

Voting is happening as I write this, about 9:10 p.m. central time Tuesday night. But 10 of the top 20 acts are yet to perform. They'll take the stage Wednesday night.

Yet, it's probably safe to say that Boyd's performance of the Il Divo song "Mama" will get him into the finals. I've seen the entire field of 20, and I can really only identify about three other acts I think have a legitimate chance to challenge him: Eli Mattson, the piano player and singer; Nuttin' But Stringz, the duo of hip hop violinist brothers; and Queen Emily, the diva-style singer with a huge voice.

But viewers' tastes can be hard to discern sometimes, and no one can really say how the home audience will vote. I sure don't know. I never thought a bunch of teenage girls would vote David Cook the winner on "American Idol." I was wrong about that one.

Results of our poll

After Boyd's last performance, I asked you about the tenor's song choice. Here's the question and how you answered:

Should Neal E. Boyd stick to arias (operatic pieces) or continue to put operatic turns on popular American songs?

Arias: 17.3% (24 votes) Popular songs: 7.9% (11 votes) Both of them are amazing when he sings them.: 73.4% (102 votes) I'm not a fan of either.: 1.4% (2 votes)