Jackie Evancho

Jacqueline Marie "Jackie" Evancho ( born April 9, 2000) is an American singer. She gained popularity after performing in the fifth season of the America's Got Talent competition at the age of 10, and finishing in second place. With the subsequent release of her O Holy Night EP, she became the best-selling debut artist of 2010, and she went on the following year to contend for the top position on American album charts with her Sony Music debut, entitled "Dream With Me". In addition to performing vocal music, Evancho plays the violin and piano, and writes song lyrics. Evancho impressed musician David Foster with her large outpouring of original lyrics; and she co-wrote the title track on "Dream With Me", a record that Foster produced.

Evancho was born to Michael and Lisa Evancho. She has an older brother Jacob, a younger brother Zachary, and a younger sister Rachel. She resides in Richland Township, a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Although Evancho's parents always thought she had a nice voice, her dedicated singing began after seeing the musical The Phantom of the Opera at a movie theatre. Her mother subsequently purchased the DVD, and Evancho began singing the songs around the family home. Her mother heard her singing songs from the musical and allowed her to enter the 2008 Kean Idol, a local talent contest. She sang "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again", finishing, on the cusp of her 8th birthday, as first runner-up; the winner was 20 years old. Eventually Evancho participated in other talent contests and started a YouTube channel. She began taking vocal lessons for a short period of time when she was 8, in June 2008, after her success in the 2008 Kean Idol contest. She was also a member of the Children's Festival Chorus of Pittsburgh during its 2008–09 season.
Evancho competed in Las Vegas in the 15th annual U.S.A. World Showcase Talent Competition in early 2009, in which the winner received $100,000 and the opportunity to create a demo CD. She was invited to perform at the U.S. Open Tennis Championships in New York City, but due to scheduling conflicts with America's Got Talent, she could not attend.