Jessica Sanchez wins America’s Got Talent

MANILA, Philippines —  Filipino-American singer Jessica Sanchez was declared the winner of America’s Got Talent Season 20, according to a report in PhilStar Life yesterday.

“Besting nine other finalists, Sanchez won by live audience voting. Aside from major exposure to millions of viewers worldwide throughout the season, she brings home $1 million (P58 million) in prize money,” PhilStar Life reported.

In the finale, Sanchez, who is nine months pregnant, was up against Mama Duke, Micah Palace, Steve Ray Ladson, Team Recycled, Chris Turner, LightWire, aerialists Sirca Marea, Jourdan Blue, and the Leo High School Choir.

Now married and expecting a baby girl, Sanchez powered through this season.

At her audition, she belted out a soulful rendition of Benson Boone’s Beautiful Things and earned not just a standing ovation from all four judges — Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Mel B and Howie Mandel — but also the famed Golden Buzzer from Vergara. With the Golden Buzzer, Sanchez bypassed the standard voting process for auditions and went straight through to the live shows.

On Sept. 24, Sanchez, resplendent in all white, stunned with Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ duet Die with a Smile, drawing another standing ovation from the judges.

“It was so important for our 20th anniversary that you came back,” Cowell said after Sanchez’s performance. “You sound amazing. I think it was the best performance we’ve heard so far.”

The two-hour finale, the night of Sept. 24 (morning of Sept. 25, Manila time), filmed at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California, saw finalists sharing the stage to showcase each other’s talents.

An hour into the show, Sanchez performed JVKE’s Golden Hour, the same one she stunned with in the semifinals, as aerialist duo Sirca Marea soared over her.

Sanchez first appeared on America’s Got Talent Season 1 in 2006 at 11 years old. She made it through to the semifinals before getting eliminated.

Looking back at that experience, Sanchez recalls being devastated. But it also opened up a whole new world for her, making her realize that she wanted to sing.

“AGT was the beginning of that fire… inside of me,” she said during her audition for AGT Season 20.