2006–2011: Career beginnings In 2005, Sanchez performed "
Respect" by
Aretha Franklin on the music television show
Showtime at the Apollo. A year later, she competed on the
first season of
NBC's talent show competition ''
America's Got Talent'', Sanchez collaborated with the label once again in 2010 for a cover of "
I'd Rather Go Blind" by
Etta James for YouTube and was released as an exclusive download on the label's website. Earlier same year, she collaborated with Brandon Kane for the single "Just You and Me". Additionally, she was among the fifty-seven singers who contributed in a YouTube edition of the charity single "
We Are the World 25 for Haiti", which was produced by
Lisa Lavie.
2012: American Idol On July 8, 2011, Sanchez auditioned for the
eleventh season of
American Idol in San Diego, California. She progressed through subsequent rounds prior to being eliminated in the twenty-eighth episode on April 12, 2012, which the judges overturned by drawing the "Judges' Save" for her to remain in the competition. Sanchez ultimately finished as the runner-up in the grand finals behind
Phillip Phillips on May 23, 2012. She subsequently performed three songs ("The Star-Spangled Banner," "
God Bless America", and "
The Prayer") at the
PBS'
National Memorial Day Concert from the west lawn of the
United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., on May 27, 2012. On June 29, 2012, it was announced that Sanchez signed a record deal with
Interscope Records. Furthermore, the performance was succeeded by four events towards the end of the year: the City of Hope Spirit of Life Awards Gala on October 10, 2012, the 26th Annual Carousel Ball of Hope on October 23, 2012, the 2012
Brittania Awards on November 7, 2012, and Trevor Live on December 2, 2012.
Performances and results 2013: Me, You & the Music " by
Irving Berlin during a Memorial Day concert on the west lawn of the
United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. on May 26, 2013.|alt=|301x301px "
Tonight", the lead single from Sanchez's debut studio album, was released on March 22, 2013. The song featured vocals from
Ne-Yo. The song enjoyed minor domestic commercial success, where it debuted and peaked at number 48 on the
Digital Songs chart. Elsewhere, "Tonight" debuted and peaked at number 42 on the ARIA Top 100 Singles Chart in Australia. On April 1, 2013, she performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" for then
United States president Barack Obama and
his family at the
White House for the Easter Egg Roll. Sanchez released her debut album
Me, You & the Music on April 30, 2013. The album underperformed, debuting and peaked at number 26 on the
Billboard 200 chart and sold 14,000 copies in its first week. Due to
Me, You & the Music's aforementioned results, Sanchez quietly parted with Interscope Records. Approximately a year since the announcement of her casting on Fox's comedy drama television series
Glee, she ultimately made her first appearance on the series as a guest star in the episode "
Lights Out", which premiered on April 25, 2013. Sanchez portrayed the role of Frida Romero, a student from a rival school. Sanchez performed "
Feel This Moment" by
Pitbull and
Christina Aguilera during the grand finals of the
sixteenth season of
ABC's dance competition
Dancing with the Stars on May 21, 2013. She performed "
God Bless America" in a
Memorial Day concert at the
United States Capitol on May 26, 2013. Sanchez performed "
The Star-Spangled Banner" and "
Lupang Hinirang" at the
Manny Pacquiao vs. Brandon Ríos match in
The Venetian,
Macau on November 23, 2013. She subsequently contributed two tracks for the
Heartbeat of Home original soundtrack: "Lead Me Home", which was released as a single with an accompanying music video on November 27, 2013, and "The Night I Dance with You", which was a duet with
Jencarlos Canela.
2014–2018: Stand-alone singles and Christmas with Jessica " by
Rihanna during Crustacean's Red Hour Jam Session in
Beverly Hills, California on June 25, 2014. Accompanied by
Jake Zyrus and
Jennifer Hudson among others, Sanchez performed "
Let It Go" by
Idina Menzel at the Pinoy Relief Benefit Concert on March 11, 2014, where all the proceeds of the concert would be donated to Filipino citizens that has been affected by
Typhoon Haiyan. With judge
Jennifer Lopez,
season 8 alumni
Allison Iraheta, and
season 10 alumni
Pia Toscano, she performed "
I Luh Ya Papi" on the twenty-first episode of the
thirteenth season of
American Idol on March 20, 2014. The group reunited for Crustacean's Red Hour Jam Session in
Beverly Hills, California on June 25, 2014, during which Sanchez performed "
Pour It Up" by
Rihanna. Sanchez featured on "Vacation" by DJ Komori, which was released on October 6, 2014, in conjunction of its lyric video. "This Love", a single teased during an interview with the online magazine
She Knows on December 22, 2014, was released on January 7, 2015 with an accompanying music video, which was directed by
Gabriel Valenciano. Sanchez headlined a concert billed as "Jessica Sanchez: Up Close and Personal Live in Manila" at the
City of Dreams,
Pasay on August 9, 2015. She performed two songs with the finalists ("
Dance with My Father" by
Luther Vandross with Charlene Su and ''Clarity" by Zedd and Foxes with
Jermaine Leong) of the
second season of
MediaCorp Channel 5's singing competition
The Final 1 on August 21, 2013. Sanchez collaborated with
Christian Bautista for the song "Two Forevers", which was released on November 5, 2015, in conjunction of its music video, from his studio album
Kapit. Sanchez released the Christmas extended play
Christmas with Jessica on December 8, 2015. The record was composed of covers of famed Christmas songs including "
Santa Baby" by
Eartha Kitt and was recorded within two days. and of
Justin Bieber and
Halsey's "
The Feeling" on March 30, 2016. Sanchez subsequently returned to
American Idol for the grand finals of the
fifteenth season on April 7, 2016, during which she performed "The Prayer" by
Celine Dion and
Andrea Bocelli. Her performance was lauded by the audience. Sanchez released the single "Call Me" on May 10, 2016. She performed the song during the Tubathon 2016 in
Burbank, California on April 20, 2016. The song was played following
Hillary Clinton's acceptance speech at the convention. The song was remixed by Tracy Young and re-released on November 2, 2016, with an accompanying music video. Sanchez appeared as a featured artist on "
Beauty and the Beast" by Matt Bloyd from his extended play
Covers, Vol. 2, which was released on July 20, 2017. She performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" prior to
Los Angeles Chargers' match against the
Oakland Raiders on October 15, 2017. Following her performance, Sanchez knelt in support of the
U.S. national anthem protests. and became her first single since "Stronger Together", which was released two years prior. Sanchez performed the song during the June 3, 2018 broadcast of
ABS-CBN's musical variety show
ASAP, and again inside of the
Wish Bus on June 7, 2018. She subsequently reunited with
Jake Zyrus for his concert billed as "Music & Me" as a musical guest on May 25, 2018, at the
Sky Dome in
Quezon City,
Metro Manila. "Millionaire" was released on June 1, 2018. Sanchez performed at the Filipino Community of Guam’s 64th Anniversary ball at the Dusit Thani Guam Resort in
Tumon on October 19, 2018. It was announced that she would be reuniting with Christian Bautista for the Christmas single "Another Silent Christmas song" on October 23, 2018. with a music video premiering on November 16, 2018. Sanchez co-headlined a concert with
Martin Nievera at
Solaire Resort & Casino in
Entertainment City,
Bay City on November 10, 2018. The concert was her second at the resort and casino since 2014 for the first anniversary of its grand opening.
2019–2024: "Love You", "Angels", "Us", and "Baddie" Sanchez performed for the
House of Bolkiah during the Crown Prince Haji
Al-Muhtadee Billah's birthday celebration on February 18, 2019. Under the mononym Jes, she released a single titled "Love You" on April 22, 2019. In an interview with
The Philippine Star on May 15, 2019, Sanchez revealed that she would be releasing her third extended play within 2019. Sanchez released the single "Angels" on June 21, 2019. She reunited with Matt Bloyd for a duet of "
Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from his extended play
King, which was released on July 17, 2019. Sanchez performed "
And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" by
Jennifer Holliday during the grand finals of the
first season of
Idol Philippines on July 28, 2019. She became an ambassador of Frontrow on July 29, 2019, and performed at its Thanksgiving event,
Frontrow All In, on November 9, 2019. Sanchez held concerts, which were billed as
In the Spotlight: Jessica Sanchez, on November 22 and 29, 2019, during which she was accompanied by
Lance Busa and Lucas Garcia. Sanchez collaborated again with Bautista, who was one of the judges of the
second season of
GMA Network's reality talent competition show
The Clash, on December 6, 2019, to reprise their Christmas single "Another Silent Christmas Song" prior to performing "
All I Want for Christmas is You" by
Mariah Carey with the seven remaining contestants. On May 8, 2021, she released a single titled "Us" as a response to the
xenophobia and racism related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its music video premiered on the same day and featured guest appearances from
Apl.de.ap and
Mark Cuban.
2025: Winning ''America's Got Talent'' season 20 In 2025, Sanchez auditioned for the
twentieth season of ''America's Got Talent''. In the auditions round, she received a golden buzzer from judge
Sofía Vergara, sending her directly to the live shows. Sanchez advanced to the finale where she won the show on September 24, becoming the first former contestant to win in the show's history, the first solo female winner since
Darci Lynne in 2017, and the fourth female singing contestant to win the competition. At 30 years old, Sanchez became the oldest female winner in the show's history.
Performances and results == Personal life ==