" Nene Royal " (Nene Royal) announced her rock credentials as the champion of America’s Got Talent 2026. One notable aspect alongside her vocal power and guitar skills was the choice of songs used in each competition round. All were already well-known rock anthems with distinctive identities. However, reinterpreting globally familiar songs is no easy feat; it requires preserving the memorable essence of the originals while adding enough charm to avoid being mere covers.
Thairath Online invites you to decode and analyze the five songs Nene Royal selected to showcase her rock power on the AGT 2026 stage, through the perspective of Khun Gam-Saep Sakon —the admin of a music page with over 700,000 followers, holding a Master’s in Music Industry Studies from the University of Liverpool and extensive experience interviewing international artists—to explore how each song reflects Nene’s musical identity by choosing popular rock anthems that audiences worldwide can sing along to.
Behind the AGT 2026 championship lies not just good song choices or natural talent, but relentless effort and countless hours of practice. Throughout the competition, Nene Royal demonstrated her skills through five iconic songs asserting her rock prowess, as detailed below.
“Zombie” is well known in Thailand, especially among beginners learning guitar, as its chords are relatively simple. What set Nene’s performance apart was not just choosing a popular, widely recognized song but rearranging it with a clear personal imprint.
Khun Gam noted that from Nene’s debut on AGT, her distinctiveness was evident—her fierce energy, metal undertones, vocal style, and use of screams gave this version of "Zombie" a weight markedly different from The Cranberries’ original.
Another key point was adapting the song to the "competition stage" context. Playing the original version fully might not have allowed Nene to fully showcase her potential. By adding guitar flourishes, vocal dynamics, and new arrangements, she created a signature version uniquely hers.
While "Zombie" is familiar to many beginner guitarists, Muse’s "Hysteria" is technically challenging, with complex details and difficulty. Even seasoned musicians may struggle to play it fluidly. Choosing this song for the Judges’ Callbacks was another test revealing Nene’s advanced skills.
Khun Gamcommented, " Though it may not be as mainstream as the first song, it tells the world ‘Nene’s got it’ because she can handle such a technically demanding piece as if it were everyday routine, reflecting intense practice and mastery. " The remarkable aspect was not just choosing a tough song but making its difficulty appear natural on stage.
If "Zombie" introduced Nene’s character and musical signature, "Hysteria" raised the bar, confirming that beneath her rock power and fierceness lies a musician with rigorously honed skills confidently tackling complex material.
Arriving at "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden was surprisingly bold, as it’s not an easy song to cover, especially given Chris Cornell’s highly distinctive vocals. Imitating the original wouldn’t work; Nene instead interpreted it with her own touch—adding haunting, dark, and gloomy elements and rearranging the music to fit her identity and the contest stage.
" Black Hole Sun is an ambitious choice because, while well-known to international rock fans, it’s not among the first songs most would select in competitions, compared to more accessible classic rock hits. I didn’t expect it to work well in a contest; very few would choose it. Yet, Nene made it work beautifully, revealing her rock spirit. " This third song revealed another side of Nene: beyond technical skill, she showed courage in selecting a song with a unique world and atmosphere, not simply following the original but carving out her own space. The result retained the original’s charm while clearly bearing Nene’s signature.
4. Final Live Performance: "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes
" Seven Nation Army is a song of the people.
Khun Gam considered Nene’s choice smart and classic because this melody isn’t just famous within rock circles but is recognized even by those who don’t listen to rock, having heard it somewhere. " Instead of choosing a complex song to showcase skills in the final, Nene picked a simpler, widely familiar tune that instantly connects a large audience. "This made "Seven Nation Army" more than just a popular rock anthem used in sports cheering; it’s like an unofficial anthem for Americans, often played during celebrations. Its selection for Nene’s key final performance symbolized a Thai girl’s dream journey, standing as a representative of young dreamers winning global recognition.5. Grand Final: "The Emptiness Machine" by Linkin Park
"The Emptiness Machine" differed from the previous four songs, as it wasn’t part of Nene’s competition pieces but a special performance with Linkin Park in the Grand Final. The song is significant as the lead single marking Linkin Park’s 2024 comeback, featuring new vocalist Emily Armstrong as part of the band’s new chapter.Nene’s sharing the stage with Linkin Park, a world-class rock band, was a major milestone, boosting her recognition in the rock scene and opening potential new opportunities."Playing with Linkin Park is huge for a young woman," Khun Gam said. "I believe many other rock bands will want to collaborate or share moments with Nene going forward."
Decoding the strategy behind Nene Royal’s choice of 5 iconic rock songs on her path to America's Got Talent 2026 championshipWhat links these five songs is not just their "rock" genre but their high recognition value. Many listeners are familiar with their melodies, riffs, or iconic imagery. Selecting such songs offers advantages and challenges: it quickly draws viewers into the show but requires enough differentiation to avoid being mere covers.Another common thread is that "Zombie," "Hysteria," "Black Hole Sun," and "Seven Nation Army" were all released during the 1990s to early 2000s, a period when rock music strongly influenced mainstream culture. Many foreign bands’ songs became "teacher songs" for new musicians, appearing in songbooks and guitar tablatures, songs guitarists, bassists, and bands of that era aspired to master.
By the 2010s, Khun Gam observed that rock music did not disappear but evolved by incorporating synthesized sounds and electronic elements more prominently, as heard in "Can You Feel My Heart" by Bring Me the Horizon, "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons, and Linkin Park’s "Living Things" album, expanding rock’s sonic boundaries with modern production.
Returning to Nene’s five songs, it’s interesting that she brought listeners back to straightforward rock centered on guitar, bass, drums, and vocals before reinterpreting these foundations through the perspective of a new-generation artist.
Khun Gam said.
Ultimately, the strength of choosing "popular songs" isn’t about making audiences forget the originals but about using familiarity as a bridge to infuse personal identity and fresh interpretation into globally known tracks. This allows those who grew up with 90s-2000s rock to rediscover their charm. Simultaneously, it takes the audience along with Nene Royal throughout the competition journey, where every vocal note, every practice hour, led the 16-year-old girl from Phuket to claim the title of America’s Got Talent 2026 champion. Story by: Tatiya Kaewchan Photo credit: Nene Rooyal Music
