On just two hours sleep, the 16-year-old runner-up from Chula Vista, California, told Speakeasy she was amazed she was able to share the stage with one of her biggest idols.
“The first time I saw her the day before, I wanted to cry,” said Jessica. “It was bunches of fun. I’ve never been able to sing with anybody like that ever in my life. We took every emotion in our body to sing that song.”
Jessica said Holliday’s vocal ability is amazing, and was moved by the fact that most said the contestant and the superstar were pretty much on par.
“It’s insane people said we meshed together so great. I’m glad.”
Jessica’s final performance last week might have sealed her fate, though she once stared down elimination due to lack of America’s votes before being rewarded the judges’ one save. She sang her single, “Change Nothing,” and while she said she was always in control of her song picks each week, this one was a challenge.
“The songs they presented me with weren’t winning songs, said Jessica of the single” That was the closest thing to a winning song.”
And while not winning the title won’t stop this diva-in-the-making’s potential for superstardom, the experience proved a serious lesson for girl with pipes that have been compared to those of the late Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and Mariah Carey.
“I’m going to be doing songs that are 100 percent me,” she said. The single created for her, she said, was not her.
Jessica Sanchez wants to finish high school, but will continue to do so through home schooling, so she can pursue music and not slow down her momentum. “I’ll take it on the road with me.”
After all, this teen’s world is music and it’s in that place that she feels most comfortable.
“It’s like a different world from what I lived before. I used to be quiet girl, and I still am quite. I didn’t have many friends. Now I’m with these people who share the same passion. It’s like home to me.”
