The clip of the little girl in the black-and-white dress her father had bought her at Macy's became a wildly popular video on the Web site YouTube.com. She came back a month later to sing "Piece of My Heart," which Janis Joplin had made popular.
Her win snaps a stubborn losing streak among Philadelphia-area reality-show contestants that extends from Justin Guarini (the Doylestown-bred runner-up on the first season of Fox's American Idol) to Helene Eksterowicz (the South Jersey school psychologist who "won" the second season of ABC's The Bachelor - only to break it off when her betrothed turned out to be a world-class cad).
Like American Idol, America's Got Talent used a panel of three judges: actor David Hasselhoff, singer Brandy, and, playing the snotty British naysayer, Fleet Street journalist Piers Morgan.
Last night's series finale at Paramount Studios in Hollywood featured an assortment of performers, including Philbin singing/speaking "There's No Business Like Show Business" in a style that gave new meaning to the expression "Don't give up your day job."
Bianca, who said she counts Mariah Carey, Celine Dion and Patti LaBelle as inspirations, was a clear judges' favorite.
After her performance Wednesday, Brandy marveled: "This girl makes me want to go practice." Bianca was coached this week by singer Yolanda Adams.
Bianca was accompanied in California by her mother, Janette, and her father, Shawn. In a July interview, Shawn Ryan said Bianca got her start in show business in 2004, when she asked him to take her to an audition of Star Search in New York. She won a slot but lost.
She later appeared on Showtime at the Apollo and sang the national anthem at an Eagles game.
Her biggest prize, before last night's win, was a trip to Walt Disney World, which she picked up in a talent contest sponsored by WOGL-FM (98.1).
Contact staff writer Michael Klein
at 215-854-5514 or mklein@phillynews.com.
