Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Jessica recently released her first Christmas EP, the six-track “Christmas With Jessica.”

The EP includes covers of “Jingle Bells,” “O Come All Ye Faithful,” “Joy To the World,” “Silent Night,” “Ave Maria” and “Santa Baby,” which Jessica calls her personal favorite.

“I went with the earlier version, the classic, which is very soft spoken but sexy at the same time,” she told Billboard. “It was the most fun to record. There is so much room to mess around with the song, but I tried to keep it as classic as possible.”

Now 20, Jessica finished second behind Phillip Phillips on Season 11 of American Idol.

She released the video for a single, “This Love,” earlier this year, but has yet to release a followup to her 2013 debut album, “You, Me and the Music.”

That might happen in 2016, Jessica told Billboard. She said previously her new music will have more of an urban pop, R&B / soul sound.

As for the holidays, Jessica will also be a featured performer at The Orange County (Calif.) Christmas Extravaganza on Wednesday.

The event benefits the Jessie Reese Foundation, an organization that supports children fighting cancer. And organizers have pulled together quite a bit of Idol talent.

Other performers include past Idol winners Kris Allen and Ruben Studdard, plus four other finalists — Tamyra Gray, Paris Bennett, Elliott Yamin and Pia Toscano. Former Idol judge Randy Jackson is supposed to participate as well.