Who Is Jennel Garcia? Eliminated X Factor 2012 Finalist Background Info

Age: 18
Hometown: Rochester, MA
Audition song: “Paris (Ooh La La)” by Grace Potter

We don’t meet Jennel Garcia until the end of The X Factor Season 2 premiere, but it sounds like the producers really saved the best for last. According to The Boston Globe, judge L.A. Reid called the 18 year old a “feisty little fireball” after her Providence, R.I., audition. Demi chimed in, gushing that Jennel’s audition was “the most promising act I’ve seen of this competition so far.” 

Turns out, Jennel didn’t just wow the judges in her audition; she wowed them all the way into the live shows!

Jennel hails from Rochester, MA, where she has been singing from a young age, first in American Juniors at age 10, and later in a singing troupe that performed at nursing homes. Jennel was once featured on “America’s Most Talented Kids,” reports South Coast Today. 

Although she got tons of praise from mentor Demi Lovato, Jennel was eliminated from the competition after a sing-off against fellow Young Adult contender, Paige Thomas on November 15, 2012. Britney Spears, L.A. Reid, and Simon Cowell all voted to send her home, while Demi voted to keep her. 

Sources: E!, The Boston Globe, Jork