Despite being raised in conditions of poverty within the U.S. state of Missouri, he achieved a degree in music and eventually entered the third season of America's Got Talent, winning that year's competition.

[4][5] Boyd was president of the Student Senate at Southeast Missouri State University,[6] where he was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

[3][9] This led to a role as the slave "York" in Michael Ching's World Premier Opera "Corps of Discovery, A Musical Journey," commissioned by University of Missouri.

[citation needed] While working as an insurance salesman in the spring of 2008, Boyd drove to Chicago without telling his mother or best friend, and stood in line with 20,000 people auditioning for America's Got Talent.

[citation needed] For his initial audition, Boyd performed Billy Joel’s "New York State of Mind", then followed it up with Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli’s "The Prayer".

On October 1, 2008, five contestants remained: Boyd, piano player Eli Mattson, violin duo Nuttin' But Stringz, classical music vocalist Donald Braswell and soul singer Queen Emily.

"[citation needed] Boyd was awarded the $1-million prize and a headline show at the MGM Grand Las Vegas hosted by Jerry Springer.

"[13] and later signed to Decca Records and released his debut album, My American Dream, on June 23, 2009 (the day of AGT's season 4 premiere).

[citation needed] In July 2009, Boyd then went on a ten-city tour from Dallas to D.C. with Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts [10] and was a guest performer on several television shows, including Today and Live with Regis and Kelly.

[citation needed] In 1998, Boyd was selected for the Missouri Legislative Internship Program and moved to Jefferson City where he worked for State Representative Paula Carter.

In 2015, to celebrate his education and experience and to support future students, he created the Neal E. Boyd Endowed Scholarship in Performing Arts.

The scholarship is awarded annually to a student majoring in performing arts who meets a GPA requirement and demonstrates financial need.

It concluded with: "Boyd lived a short life, but he left behind a legacy of making the most of his God-given talent through hard work, dedication and passion.

On November 18, on what would have been Boyd's 43rd birthday, friends and family gathered for a public memorial inside Academic Hall on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University.

The celebration included testimony from the former Missouri lieutenant governor Peter Kinder, a video clip of Boyd from America's Got Talent, music from his albums, a live performance, personal stories, and an audio recording he made about what he would want to say to family and friends if he had to say goodbye.