Earlier this month, Celine Tam earned the coveted golden buzzer from guest judge Laverne Cox and captured the hearts of Americans across the country.
But on Tuesday’s episode of America’s Got Talent, the nine-year-old singer ran into a bit of a snag with the judges.
Celine, whose parents named her after Canadian vocal powerhouse Celine Dion, performed a rousing rendition of Whitney Houston’s When You Believe in her third appearance in front of the show’s panel.
Reaching for the stars: Celine Tam, a nine-year-old singer from Hong Kong, performed a version of Whitney Houston’s When You Believe on America’s Got Talent Tuesday
The pint-sized singer donned a floral ensemble and stood atop a glittering magenta pedestal for the performance.
She finished the power ballad to a standing ovation from the audience and judge Heidi Klum.
But when host Tyra Banks turned the audience’s attention to Mel B for her comments, they didn’t quite line up with the positive audience reaction.
‘Celine, you are nine years old!’ the former Spice Girl began.
‘You are very brave to be up there on that stage and just be singing in your element. But tonight, I just think the song was too big for you,’ she added, barely able to finish the sentence before being interrupted by Simon – and the audience – with loud boos.
Fan favorite: Celine, who was named after singer Celine Dion, put in an impassioned performance for the judges during her third appearance
With plenty of feeling: The pint-sized performer sang atop a glittering pink pedestal
Not on board: Mel B started off the judges’ comments by saying that she thought the song was ‘too big’ for Celine and that she should have ‘contained’ her voice a bit better
‘You’re amazing, but I think you should have chosen a different song and really contained your voice just a little bit better,’ she continued. ‘Because I love you!’
As Simon continued to interrupt with boos and disapproving sounds, Mel growled at him to ‘shut up’ before Heidi instructed Celine to ‘forget everything she just said!’
Heidi went on to praise Celine for the ‘innocence’ in her voice and added that ‘I see Broadway, I see movies,’ in her future.
Howie Mandell similarly praised her as ‘a little miracle,’ agreed that the performance wasn’t ‘totally polished’, but declared ‘that’s the beauty of it.’
Discord: The other judges didn’t agree with Mel, with Simon interrupting her critique with loud booing
Sweet girl: Heidi told Celine that she sees ‘Broadway’ and movies in her future
Simon went last with his comments, admitting that Celine let her nerves get to her a bit, but adding that she ‘did great’.
It wasn’t the only time the judges clashed during the evening, with Mel B dramatically storming offstage after Simon cracked a crude joke at her expense.
After a disappointing magic act, Simon, 57, likened the routine to Mel’s wedding night – saying it had ‘not much promise or delivery’.
Mel – who is going through a divorce with estranged husband Stephen Belafonte – threw a cup of water over Simon and left, splitting the back of her dress in her haste.