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Baton Rouge man goes from wrongful prison sentence to ‘America’s Got Talent: All-Stars’

BRProud, Jan. 26, 2023. https://www.brproud.com/features/entertainment-...

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Archie Williams, a Louisiana native, was wrongfully incarcerated for 37 years for aggravated rape, battery and murder. On Monday, Jan. 30, the Baton Rouge singer will perform on “America’s Got Talent: All-Stars.”

Williams was exonerated in 2019. He told Prison Legal News in a 2021 interview, “I knew I was innocent, I didn’t commit a crime, but being a poor Black kid, I didn’t have the economic ability to fight the state of Louisiana.”

He shocked the world with his voice during his debut appearance on “America’s Got Talent” in 2020. Williams auditioned using Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me.” Judges were amazed, and he proceeded through the challenges, making it to the finals.