America’s Got Talent Winner Jessica Sanchez Reflects on Her Emotional Victory & How It Felt to Achieve a Lifelong Dream

America’s Got Talent has crowned a caller winner, and her sanction is Jessica Sanchez. The 30-year-old vocalist capped disconnected a moving, decades-long comeback travel connected Wednesday nighttime (Sept. 24) and edged retired freestyle rapper Chris Turner to triumph AGT‘s 20th season. Sanchez had archetypal auditioned for the amusement backmost successful 2006 erstwhile she was a kid and told Billboard her hard-won affectional triumph came aft a lifelong imagination of wanting to triumph the legendary endowment competition.

“This has been 20 years successful the making for me,” Sanchez tells Billboard. “I was connected play 1 erstwhile I was 10 years old, and conscionable going done each those years of feeling rejected and feeling similar a failure, I had to prime myself backmost up and judge successful myself again.”

Sanchez, who embarked connected this travel portion 9 months pregnant, perfectly dominated her past show connected Tuesday nighttime (Sept. 23), moving done a moving rendition of Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With A Smile.” Judge Sofía Vergara called the show “perfection,” and clearly, the fans agreed. Sanchez had besides joined forces with aerial specialists Sirca Marea for 1 past show of “Golden Hour” by JVKE, revisiting a opus that snagged her a spot successful the Finals.

Sanchez bushed retired a precise beardown last 10 that included Mama Duke, Micah Palace, Steve Ray Ladson, Team Recycled, LightWire, Jourdan Blue, Leo High School Choir, and the high-flying Sirca Marea — and, of course, Chris Turner.

Now, with the competition’s $1 cardinal champion’s cheque successful hand, arsenic good arsenic an all-expenses-paid travel to Universal’s caller taxable parkland Epic Universe, Sanchez couldn’t beryllium much excited for this adjacent chapter.

Check retired Billboard’s chat with Jessica Sanchez below.

You made your archetypal quality connected AGT erstwhile you were 10 and returned again and won it this clip around. What relation has AGT played successful your upbringing and your childhood? Why did it substance truthful overmuch this clip astir for you to spell retired and effort again?

The imagination truly started connected the AGT stage. It was the biggest signifier I had ever been connected astatine that time, and it ignited a occurrence wrong of maine that conscionable made maine privation to imagination bigger for myself. So aft I didn’t marque it through, I was devastated and heartbroken, but I didn’t fto that halt me. I continued to combat for my dreams, and passim the 20 years, it’s been truly hard trying to find myself arsenic an creator and arsenic a woman.

Now, being 30 years aged and becoming a caller mom, it’s transformed me. Being centered successful my faith, my family, and my enactment strategy is ace important. Everything has been specified a blessing — it’s truthful similar, the feeling, but it’s decidedly been a antithetic journey.

Take maine done those last moments connected stage. You’re lasting determination adjacent to Chris, Terry is taking the fans done some of your journeys up until this point. What was going done your mind?

Of course, everybody is determination to win, and you person that anticipation you’re gonna win. But to beryllium determination arsenic the last 2 aft seeing each of these astonishing talents dilatory locomotion disconnected the stage, you’re conscionable like, “Wow, I truly made it this far. After truthful galore years of trying truthful hard.” I was getting flashbacks of ten-year-old small me. I was soaking up that infinitesimal of: “Whatever happens, I’m ace arrogant of myself.” And doing this 9 months large with each of the challenges and hoops and hurdles I’ve had to get through…

But then, erstwhile I heard my name, I was deed with conscionable a flood of emotions. Like, “Wow, is this truly happening?” I’m conscionable sobbing, and I look crazy, dependable crazy, but I inactive cannot judge what has conscionable happened.

What was it similar taking this travel portion pregnant? What were immoderate challenges you faced arsenic a result?

You know, the breathing, the carnal challenges, the affectional challenges of being truthful pregnant&md...