Neal E. Boyd (born November 18, 1975) is an American opera singer who is the 2008 winner of America's Got Talent, winning over Eli Mattson for the $1-million prize and a headline show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Boyd's operatic talent and potential were celebrated by both Il Divo (a European operatic pop quartet created by Simon Cowell) and Boyd's idol, world-renowned tenor Placido Domingo, who, in a video response after Boyd's win, proclaimed, "Congratulations, Neal. By participating in America's Got Talent, you have brought to America's ears, opera. So be proud of it. And I'm sure from today on that you are starting a brilliant career. All my best. Congratulations. All the best, Neal." A 33 year-old Aflac insurance salesman, he grew up in Sikeston, Missouri, where October 2008 was declared "Neal E. Boyd Month." He discovered operatic music in junior high school when his older brother Michael was forced to do a school project involving classical music and brought home a CD of the Three Tenors. His brother had little appreciation for the music, but Neal was so enamored by the passion and skill of the famous trio that he started practicing how to sing in Luciano Pavarotti's and Placido Domingo's operatic styles. A creative seed was planted, and Neal went on to study speech communications, political science, and music at Southeast Missouri State University and the University of Missouri-Columbia, graduating from both universities in May 2001. He was the winner of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Vocal Collegiate Championship in 2000 while in the voice studio of Professor Ann Harrell of UM-Columbia. This national win led to his solo debut at New York City's famed Carnegie Hall in March 2001. After teaching music for a year in his hometown of Sikeston, MO, he later attended the New England Conservatory in Boston, MA to study opera—which led to a lead role, the slave "York" in Michael Ching's World Premier Opera "Corps of Discovery, A Musical Journey," commissioned by UM-Columbia. Neal has hopes of finally realizing his dream of becoming an international opera star and inspiring the younger generations the way he was inspired. Boyd was his high school's student body president in 1993–94 and the president of the Student Senate at Southeast Missouri State University, where he was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity. He has a bachelor's degree in speech communications from Southeast Missouri State University, a bachelor's degree in music from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a master’s degree in management from the University of Phoenix. In 2001, he made his debut at Carnegie Hall. He had planned to attend Yale University, but his plans changed when he decided to study with Professor Mark St. Laurent of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. In 2000, he sang at the memorial service for former Missouri Governor Mel Carnahan. In 2005, he sang the National Anthem at the inauguration of Missouri Governor Matt Blunt. While in college, Boyd interned at the capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri. Various Missouri state and local officials nicknamed Boyd "The Voice of Missouri" due to his appearances at many prominent statewide events. Neal is signed to Decca Records (a Universal Music Company). His debut CD is scheduled for release on June 23, 2009.
