Nene Royal: How a Phuket Street Busker Won America’s Got Talent 2026 l TNN World l 24 Sep 2026

"I still don't think I'm famous. I'm still me. Nene is still the same 16-year-old girl from Phuket, a southern girl. I still want to be the same person." Today, Nene Royal is the champion of America's Got Talent 2026, the first Thai ever to win the show, taking home the $1 million prize. But long before the world knew her name, she was a young girl standing at the edge of a street market in Phuket, Thailand, playing guitar with a hat on the ground. Nene picked up the guitar at the age of 7. Her first one came from a stationery shop. The strings were off, the tuning was never right. She taught herself by watching YouTube until she could play her first full song, "Zombie." There was a time when her fingers hurt so much that she put the guitar down and walked away from music. It was her parents who gave her the encouragement to pick it up again, and this time she never put it down. From a local market, she climbed the stage one step at a time. Provincial competitions, regional, national, and finally the stage of America's Got Talent, where she became champion. This is her journey. 📌 Note: This interview was recorded before the AGT grand final. We are sharing it again on the day Nene was crowned champion. Chapters 00:00 "I'm still the same person" 01:42 It started at age 7 03:59 The day she stopped playing 05:49 The first day busking at Naka Market 08:51 A dream that went global 11:29 The pride of Thailand #NeneRoyal #AGT2026 #AmericasGotTalent #AGTWinner #ThaiGuitarist #Phuket #StreetMusician ช่องทางติดตามสถานีข่าว TNN ช่อง16 https://www.tnnthailand.com https://tv.trueid.net/live/tnn16    / tnn16     / tnnthailand     / tnn16live     / tnnthailand     / tnn_online     / tnnonline   Line @TNNONLINE หรือคลิก https://lin.ee/4fP2tltIo ทันโลก ทันเศรษฐกิจ ทันทุกความจริง กับ TNNช่อง16 สถานีข่าวที่ถือหลักการของการนำเสนอข่าวตรงประเด็น รวดเร็ว ถูกต้อง แม่นยำ และเป็นกลาง โดยทีมข่าวมืออาชีพ