Sharon Osbourne on America's Got Talent Season 6: Harder, Wiser, and Unapologetically Herself

Sharon Osbourne said it plainly: "Cancer stopped me from being so selfish in thinking that the business I work in is the most important thing in the world…" — and Premier Guide Miami was in the room when it happened.

On June 6, 2011, NBC Universal hosted a press call with Sharon Osbourne ahead of new audition episodes of America's Got Talent Season 6, airing June 7 and 8 from Seattle and Houston. The season had debuted to strong ratings on May 31. Premier Guide Miami's Daedrian McNeal was among the journalists on the call — and asked two rounds of questions.

A harder judge — and comfortable with it

Osbourne acknowledged early in the call that she had shifted her approach: "I am definitely harder than I've been in previous years. And I'm actually comfortable in that position of being a little more judgmental and not so tolerant — really making it about the talent and not about somebody's life story." She cited the previous season's finalists as raising the bar: "Michael Grimm and Jackie Evancho — their level of professionalism was very, very high. You don't want to go down from that level. You want to go above it."

What makes the show different

Osbourne was emphatic about what separates AGT from the crowded field of talent competitions: "It's not just about singing. How many times can you hear another rendition of 'Hallelujah' or 'Hero'? You can have a little girl that sings like an angel with an unbelievable operatic voice, and then you can have the best drag queen in the world — all on the same show. You can see somebody on a bike jumping across makeshift bridges on the stage, and then somebody flying on a trapeze. The next act is totally different from the one you've seen before." On the question of balance — juggling AGT , The Talk , the music industry, and writing — she was equally direct: "I don't. I mess up on a lot of things. I definitely packed it too tight this year. You can't do it all at the same level. Something has to suffer."

Premier Guide Miami's Daedrian McNeal asked the following questions:

There's a British invasion on TV with you, Nigel, Simon, Piers. What is your next conquest? And were you satisfied with Martyn Lawrence Bullard's work on your apartment?

Sharon Osbourne: There is a kind of British invasion here. I think it happens every decade. But I just think that Americans love English accents — that's all it is. And I think that America, for English people, has always been the ultimate goal. To any entertainer, making it in America is the dream. Many come over and try and make it. And many go home again. But I'm blessed that I'm in the lot that has made some sort of dent here. And I love this country. I don't ever want to go back to live in England. My home is here. As for Martyn Lawrence Bullard, the interior designer — he's quite fabulous. And especially as a person, he's a very, very good friend of mine.

On talent, reality television, and Reese Witherspoon

Asked about the impact of talent shows on young people, Osbourne referenced a speech she had heard the previous day: "Reese Witherspoon said something which is so true — that you can make it, you can be a success, without making a sex tape or without being in a reality show. It's really about talent. It's about knowing your craft and learning your craft and determination. I admire her so much." She added a note of caution about the reality television path: "A lot of people might make it through reality shows in the short term. You get there very quickly. But ultimately you have a short career. It doesn't last long. You have your five minutes, as Andy Warhol would say."

Daedrian McNeal returned for a follow-up later in the call:

You're a cancer survivor and so is my mom. I'd like to know how that experience changed your life. And will we see you on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills?

Osbourne: Oh God, you'll never see me on the Beverly Hills Housewives because I have never been a housewife, ever. From the age of 15, I have always worked. I've never been a woman that spends her day deciding, am I going to go for a facial or a pedicure — that is not me. As for surviving cancer — it did change my life. It stopped me from being so selfish in thinking that the business I work in is the most important thing in the world, because it is not. In the big picture, it's just a little grain of sand. When you work with amazing people who dedicate their lives to saving others, it makes you realize that we're very unimportant — when there are doctors and nurses who just dedicate their whole lives to helping other people. So it makes you feel very small.

The mother hen of the panel

One journalist asked whether Osbourne saw herself as the "mother hen" of the show, particularly with young contestants. She accepted the title without hesitation: "I suppose so — because I am the oldest. I think it's something that comes with age." She described her approach to judging children: "When the younger contestants are on, it takes so much courage to get up there and perform. I always think — if that was my kid out there, how would I want them treated by a judge? So I always think of them as being my kids. You have to be very, very careful when it comes to kids."

America's Got Talent Season 6 aired on NBC through the summer of 2011. Sharon Osbourne served as a judge alongside Howie Mandel and Piers Morgan, with Nick Cannon as host. — Premier Guide Miami also spoke with interior designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard, referenced by Osbourne in this interview, in a separate exclusive conversation.

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