“I am on cloud nine”: Jessica Sanchez says after winning America’s Got Talent and achieving a lifelong dream

Jessica Sanchez’s America’s Got Talent journey is one of determination and relentlessness. The 30-year-old singer had first auditioned for the show in 2006 and, determined to win, returned while nine months pregnant to clinch a hard-won victory in its 20th edition.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE published on September 25, 2025, Sanchez stated that she felt amazing:

“I don’t even know how to react right now, I’m just feeling on cloud nine. It just feels amazing.”

At the finals, Sanchez performed Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ hit track Die With A Smile. Her impressive vocals earned her the number one spot against runner-up freestyle rapper Chris Tucker.

Her performance of Benson Boone’s Beautiful Things at the audition caused Sofia Vergara to hit the golden buzzer.

Sanchez, who is expecting a baby girl with her husband, Ricki Gallardo, told PEOPLE that she hasn’t thought of what to do with the $1 million prize money:

“I haven’t really thought about it. Everybody keeps asking me. But I feel like from the beginning, when it came to winning, I was like, ‘If I win, I feel like it would mean more than the money.”

“I had to pick myself back up and believe in myself again,” Jessica says as she recalls “feeling like a failure” after AGT season one loss

Jessica Sanchez made it to the semifinals of America’s Got Talent in 2006 before she was eliminated. She spoke to Billboard about feeling rejected and like a failure before she picked herself up:

"This has been 20 years in the making for me. I was on season one when I was ten years old, and just going through all those years of feeling rejected and feeling like a failure, I had to pick myself back up and believe in myself again.”

Sanchez revealed that she got flashbacks of her ten-year-old self at the finale and felt grateful in that moment:

"But to be there as the final two after seeing all of these amazing talents slowly walk off the stage, you’re just like, “Wow, I really made it this far. After so many years of trying so hard.” I was getting flashbacks of ten-year-old little me

Being in a talent competition whilst being nine months pregnant was no easy task for Sanchez. She told the magazine that the breathing and physical challenges almost discouraged her from performing some songs.

Having realized her lifelong dream of winning the legendary competition, Jessica Sanchez looks forward to being a mom.