Jessica Elizabeth Sanchez (born August 4, 1995) is an American singer-songwriter. She rose to prominence following her finish as the runner-up on the eleventh season of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

''.

Early life

Jessica Elizabeth Sanchez was born in Chula Vista, California on August 4, 1995, to Edita Sanchez (née Bugay), whose family is from Samal, Bataan in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, and Gilbert Sanchez, a Mexican American originally from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and is an aviation ordnanceman First Class Petty Officer in the United States Navy Reserves. She is the eldest of three children, having two younger brothers. Sanchez was raised in Eastlake,

Chula Vista Chula Vista (; ) is the second-largest city in the San Diego metropolitan area, the seventh largest city in Southern California, the fifteenth largest city in the state of California, and the 78th-largest city in the United States. The popu ...

Career

2006–2011: Career beginnings

In 2005, Sanchez performed " Respect" by Aretha Franklin on the music television show ''

Showtime at the Apollo ''Showtime at the Apollo'' (formerly ''It's Showtime at the Apollo'' and ''Apollo Live'') is an American variety show that first aired in syndication from September 12, 1987 to May 24, 2008. In 2018, the series returned on Fox with Steve Harvey ...

''. In 2006, she competed on the first season of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's talent show competition '' America's Got Talent'', in which she became a wildcard act but ultimately did not qualify for the grand finals. During the 2008 NFL season, Sanchez performed "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the b ...

" prior to the San Diego Chargers' match against the New York Jets. In 2009, she recorded a cover " Don't Stop the Music" by Rihanna for iTunes with independent record label Spin Move Records. 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 "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup Artists for Haiti in 2010. It is a remake of the song " We Are the World", which was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and was recor ...

", which was produced by Lisa Lavie.()(click video description to expand and see participant listing)

2012: ''American Idol''

On July 8, 2011, Sanchez auditioned for the eleventh season of ''

'' 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 "God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin during World War I in 1918 and revised by him in the run up to World War II in 1938. The later version was notably recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature son ...

", and " The Prayer") at the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

National Memorial Day Concert ''The National Memorial Day Concert'' is a free annual concert performed on the west lawn of the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., in commemoration of Memorial Day from 1989-2019 and in 2022. In 2020 and 2021, the concert was ...

from the west lawn of the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

in Washington, D.C. on May 27, 2012. On June 29, 2012, it was announced that Sanchez signed a record deal with Interscope Records. She later performed "

You're All I Need to Get By "You're All I Need to Get By" is a song recorded by the American R&B/soul duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell and released on Motown Records' Tamla label in 1968. It was the basis for the 1995 single "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Ge ...

" by Marvin Gaye and

Tammi Terrell Tammi Terrell (born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery; April 29, 1945 – March 16, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known as a star singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, notably for a series of duets with singer Marvin Gaye. ...

, where she was accompanied by God's Appointed People Choir at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

on September 6, 2012. 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''

" Tonight", the lead single from Sanchez's debut studio album, was released on March 22, 2013. The song featured vocals from

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...

. The duo previously performed "Tonight" on the twenty-first episode of the twelfth season of ''American Idol'' March 21, 2013. 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 former United States president

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

and his family at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

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 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of ar ...

'' 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 rivaling school. She reprised the role in the episode " All or Nothing", which premiered on May 9, 2013, during which she performed "

Clarity Clarity may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Clarity, a magic spell in the online game ''EverQuest'' * Clarity, a fictional drug from the film '' Minority Report'' Music Albums * ''Clarity'' (Jimmy Eat World album) ...

" by

Zedd Anton Zaslavski (russian: Антон Заславский; born 2 September 1989), known professionally as Zedd (), is a Russian-born German DJ, record producer, and songwriter. Zedd grew up and began his musical journey in Kaiserslautern, G ...

and

Foxes Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

and "

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

" by Little Mix as a part of The Hoosierdaddies. Sanchez performed " Feel This Moment" by

Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...

and

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

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" at a Memorial Day concert at the

on May 26, 2013. Sanchez performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" and " Lupang Hinirang" at the

Manny Pacquiao vs. Brandon Ríos Manny Pacquiao vs. Brandon Ríos, billed as ''The Clash in Cotai'', was a boxing welterweight championship fight for the vacant WBO International Welterweight championship. The bout was held on 24 November 2013 at the Venetian Macau resort & hote ...

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 Jencarlos Canela (born April 21, 1988) is an American actor and singer. Canela starred in the telenovela ''Mi corazón insiste en Lola Volcán'', and two other telenovelas. In September 2013, he began a new project called "Scan Me" on his offic ...

2014–2018: Stand-alone singles and ''Christmas with Jessica''

Accompanied by

Jake Zyrus Jake Zyrus (formerly known under the mononym Charice; born 10 May 1992) is a Filipino singer and television personality. In 2007, after some appearances on Philippine television, Zyrus sang on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', and the followin ...

and

Jennifer Hudson Jennifer Kate Hudson (born September 12, 1981), also known by her nickname J.Hud, is an American singer, actress, and talk show host. Throughout her career, she has received various accolades for her works in recorded music, film, televisio ...

among others, Sanchez performed "

Let It Go "Let It Go" is a song from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney's 2013 computer-animated feature film ''Frozen (2013 film), Frozen'', whose music and lyrics were composed by husband-and-wife songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert L ...

" by

Idina Menzel Idina Kim Menzel ( ; ; born May 30, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Particularly known for her work in musicals on the Broadway stage and having achieved mainstream success across stage, film and music, Menzel has garnered the honori ...

at the Pinoy Relief Benefit Concert on March 11, 2014, where all the proceeds of the concert would be donated to the Filipino citizens that has been affected by Typhoon Haiyan. With judge Jennifer Lopez,

season 8 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

alumni

Allison Iraheta Allison Iraheta (; born April 27, 1992) is an American singer from Los Angeles, California, who was the fourth place finalist on the eighth season of ''American Idol''. Prior to ''Idol'', Iraheta won the Telemundo competition ''Quinceañera: Mam� ...

, 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 "Pour It Up" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna from her seventh studio album, ''Unapologetic'' (2012). It was serviced to urban radio stations in the United States on January 8, 2013, as the second US single, and third overall single from th ...

" 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 Pasay, officially the City of Pasay ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasay; ), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 440,656 people. Due to its location j ...

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 "Santa Baby" is a song performed by American singer Eartha Kitt with Henri René and His Orchestra and originally released in 1953. The song was written by Joan Javits and Philip Springer, who also used the pseudonym Tony Springer in an attempt ...

" by Eartha Kitt and was recorded within two days. She frequently collaborated with

Leroy Sanchez Leroy Sanchez (born September 1, 1991, in Abetxuko, Spain) is a Spanish singer-songwriter. Early life Leroy Sanchez was born in Abetxuko, Vitoria, Spain, where he taught himself to play guitar. At the age of 15, Sanchez uploaded his first ...

in 2016, where the duo released a duet of " 1+1" by Beyoncé on January 27, 2016, and of

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

and Halsey's "

The Feeling ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

" 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 Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

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. Sanchez released the single "Stronger Together" for the

2016 Democratic National Convention The 2016 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention, held at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25 to 28, 2016. The convention gathered delegates of the Democratic Party, the majo ...

on July 26, 2016. The song was played following

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

's acceptance speech at the convention. "Stronger Together" debuted and peaked at number four on the Dance Club Songs chart, becoming her first charting single since "Tonight". 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 ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...

" 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 The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

' match against the Oakland Raiders on October 15, 2017. Following her performance, Sanchez knelt in support of the

U.S. national anthem protests Protests during the playing of the United States national anthem have had many causes, including civil rights, anti-conscription, anti-war, anti-nationalism, and religious reservations. Such protests have occurred since at least the 1890s, wel ...

. She collaborated with Ricky Breaker for "Caught Up", which was released on April 22, 2018, in conjunction with its music video, 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 ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Philippine commercial broadcast network that serves as the flagship property of ABS-CBN Corporation, a company unde ...

's musical variety show ''ASAP'', and again inside of the Wish Bus on June 7, 2018. She subsequently reunited with

for his concert billed as "Music & Me" as a musical guest on May 25, 2018, at the Sky Dome in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the seat of government and one of three defined metropolitan areas in ...

. "Millionaire" was released on June 1, 2018. Sanchez performed at the Filipino Community of Guam ball 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. The single was subsequently released on November 2, 2018, with a music video premiering on November 16, 2018. Sanchez co-headlined a concert with Martin Nievera at

Solaire Resort & Casino Solaire Resort & Casino (formerly known as Solaire Manila) is a resort and casino in Entertainment City, a massive complex built along the Bay City area of Parañaque, in Metro Manila, Philippines. Overview Solaire Resort & Casino was the first d ...

Entertainment City Entertainment City, also known as E-City (formerly ''PAGCOR City'' and ''Manila Bay Tourism City''), is a gaming and entertainment complex under development by PAGCOR spanning an area of in Bay City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It was first envi ...

, Bay City on November 10, 2018. The concert becomes her second at the resort and casino since 2014 for its one-year anniversary since its grand opening.

2019–present: Upcoming third extended play

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 ''The Philippine Star'' (self-styled ''The Philippine STAR'') is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines and the flagship brand of the Philstar Media Group. First published on July 28, 1986, by veteran journalists Betty Go-Belmonte, ...

'' on May 15, 2019, Sanchez revealed that she would be releasing her third extended play within 2019. As of 2022, it has yet to be released. She subsequently reunited with Leroy Sanchez for a duet of "

A Whole New World "A Whole New World" is the signature song from Disney's 1992 animated feature film ''Aladdin'', with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Tim Rice. A duet originally recorded by singers Brad Kane and Lea Salonga in their respective roles as the ...

", which was released on May 24, 2019, with an accompanying music video. Sanchez released the single "Angels" on June 21, 2019. She reunited with Matt Bloyd for a duet of "

Can You Feel the Love Tonight "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" is a song from Disney's 1994 animated film ''The Lion King'' composed by English musician Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. At the 67th Academy Awards in March 1995 it won the Academy Award for Best Original So ...

" from his extended play ''King'', which was released on July 17, 2019. Sanchez performed "

And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" (also known in short as just "And I Am Telling You") is a torch song from the Broadway musical '' Dreamgirls'', with lyrics by Tom Eyen and music by Henry Krieger. In the context of the musical, "And I Am ...

" by

Jennifer Holliday Jennifer Yvette Holliday (born October 19, 1960) is an American actress and singer. She started her career on Broadway in musicals such as '' Dreamgirls'' (1981–83), '' Your Arms Too Short to Box with God'' (1980–1981) and later became a ...

during the grand finals of the first season of ''

Idol Philippines ''Idol Philippines'' (known as ''Search for the Idol Philippines'' in the first season or better known as ''Philippine Ido''l) is a Philippine reality singing television competition broadcast by Kapamilya Channel, A2Z, and TV5. As part of t ...

'' 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 GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...

's reality talent competition show ''

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

'', 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 Mark Cuban (born July 31, 1958) is an American billionaire entrepreneur, television personality, and media proprietor whose net worth is an estimated $4.8 billion, according to ''Forbes'', and ranked No. 177 on the 2020 ''Forbes'' 400 list ...

. On August 12, 2022, Sanchez released the single "Baddie", a self-written song about

women's empowerment Women's empowerment (or female empowerment) may be defined in several ways, including accepting women's viewpoints, making an effort to seek them and raising the status of women through education, awareness, literacy, and training.Kabeer, Naila ...

Discography

* '' Me, You & the Music'' (2013)

Filmography

Television

Tours

Joint tours

* American Idols Live! Tour 2012 (with American Idol season 11 finalists) (2012)

References

External links

*
Jessica Sanchez
on ''

'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Jessica 1995 births Living people 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American women singers American musicians of Filipino descent American musicians of Mexican descent American actresses of Mexican descent American models of Filipino descent American child singers American women pop singers American soul singers American television actresses America's Got Talent contestants American Idol participants Actresses from San Diego People from Chula Vista, California Musicians from San Diego Singers from California 19 Recordings artists Interscope Records artists 21st-century American singers Hispanic and Latino American women singers