0:58
- ABC News
- Donald Trump
- January 20, 2017
What to Know About Jackie Evancho
The 16-year-old performed at Donald Trump's inauguration.
After the announcement was made in December, Evancho faced criticism from those who did not want her to sing. However, she told ABC News earlier this week that her family and fans helped her get through the hard times.
\"I have a lot of positivity from my family and that’s really what matters to me,\" Evancho said. \"All of my true fans have been there for me and supportive and that’s really all I need, so I’m sticking to it.\"
If you still don't know who Evancho is, here are a few things to know.
After placing second on \"America’s Got Talent\" in 2010, Evancho got to meet Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
After \"AGT,\" Evancho was invited by President Obama to perform at the White House for the national Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Evancho sang for Pope Francis during his visit to the United States and was the youngest person ever to give a solo concert at Lincoln Center in New York City.
A classically trained soprano, Evancho was only 10 at the time she appeared on \"AGT\" in 2010 and quickly drew comparisons to Scottish singer Susan Boyle. Soon after \"America’s Got Talent,\" she released an EP, \"O Holy Night,\" which went platinum and made her the best-selling debut artist of 2010. That was followed by six albums, three of which debuted in Billboard 200's top 10. With her latest track, \"Apocalypse,\" released earlier this year, she has moved into a more pop style.
Born Jacqueline Marie, Evancho was raised in Pittsburgh with her three siblings. Her father owned a security company and her mother a fashion business. Last year, her oldest sibling transitioned from Jacob to Juliet and made her public debut beside her famous sister at the Global Lyme Alliance’s annual gala.
\"I actually cried because what worried me was that she was going to get teased,\" Evancho told People. \"She told me she was transgender, and I was actually very happy for her because she finally found herself, and she can be who she wants to be.\"
Evancho also has a younger brother, Zachary, now 13, and sister, Rachel, now 12.
Evancho counts \"Titanic\" and \"The Notebook\" as two of her favorite films. \"Without fail, love story types of movies can make me cry,\" she told the website SheKnows.
She even taught herself to play the piano because she was so moved by the \"Titanic\" theme.
","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/jackie-evancho-wholl-sing-national-anthem-trump-inauguration/story?id=44186698","legacySlug":"/culture/story/jackie-evancho-wholl-sing-national-anthem-trump-inauguration-44186698","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"18:30","publishDate":"01-20-2017","updatedTime":"20:48","updatedDate":"01-20-2017","socialImage":{"alt":"Jackie Evancho sings the U.S. National Anthem during inauguration ceremonies swearing in Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States on the West front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Jan. 20, 2017. ","credit":"Carlos Barria/Reuters","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Entertainment/RT-Jackie-Evancho-MEM-170120_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"1/20/2017 18:30:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":44186698,"headline":"What to Know About Jackie Evancho","mediaAssetTitle":"Jackie Evancho EYNTK","description":"The 16-year-old performed at Donald Trump's inauguration.","duration":"0:58","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/12/161215_vod_orig_eyntk_evanchoMIX_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["132488083","132306053","132266872"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"video","date":"April 29, 2026","headline":"Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","section":"News","slug":"/video/132488083","id":"132488083","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Grand jury indicts former FBI director over Instagram post","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260429_gma_thomas_comey2_706_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 23, 2026","headline":"Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","section":"News","slug":"/video/132306053","id":"132306053","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Trump orders Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boat laying mines in Strait of Hormuz","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260423_gma_scott_ceasefire3_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 22, 2026","headline":"Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","section":"News","slug":"/video/132266872","id":"132266872","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"What to Know About Jackie Evancho","description":"The 16-year-old performed at Donald Trump's inauguration.","duration":"0:58","uploadDate":"01-20-2017","publication":"01-20-2017","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/12/161215_vod_orig_eyntk_evanchoMIX_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/12/161215_vod_orig_eyntk_evanchoMIX_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/jackie-evancho-wholl-sing-national-anthem-trump-inauguration-44186698"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132714218","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132701634","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132706335","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132675442","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132665875","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132628890","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132569874","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132567885","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132510121","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132473181","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132497933","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132281378","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132283010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132273278","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132231169","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132206748","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132200241","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"What to Know About Jackie Evancho","pubTime":"13:30","pubDate":"01-20-2017","modTime":"15:48","modDate":"01-20-2017","taxonomyTags":"none","id":44186698,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"What to Know About Jackie Evancho","mediaAssetTitle":"Jackie Evancho EYNTK","videoId":44186698,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/culture/story/jackie-evancho-wholl-sing-national-anthem-trump-inauguration-44186698"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/44186698","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/44186698","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};