Garcia Channels Joan Jett on “The X Factor”

The X Factor finalist Jennel Garcia loves rocknroll… And, she’s not afraid to sing about it…

The 18-year-old half-Puerto Rican singer, who named Pat Benatar as one of her idols during her impressive initial audition for Fox’s reality singing competition, performed another female rock superstar’s music during Wednesday’s episode.

Jennel Garcia

Singing live for America’s votes for the very first time this season, Garcia – dressed in an all-black outfit, including glittered pants and a leather jacket, and yellow Dr. Martens – performed Joan Jett & The Blackheart’s “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” as part of the show’s “songs from the movies” theme.

Garcia’s performance received a mixed response from the judges. L.A. Reid said it was “good,” but said it lacked originality, while Simon Cowell said it was a “parody.”

“I think you’ve got to challenge yourself on these songs, because it was a pretty much a straight cover,” said Cowell. “And you’re better than this.”

But Garcia’s mentor, Demi Lovato, had a rebuttal ready.

“Look around in this audience, all of the girls are going crazy,” said Lovato. “And I guarantee that they would buy a ticket to her concert.”

Meanwhile, the other two Latinas in the competition, Camila Cabello and Ally Brooke, showed great improvement over last week’s performance.

Now called FifthHarmony, Cabello and Ally’s all-girl group performed Christina Perri’s “A Thousand Years” to rave reviews from the judges.

“I have to tell you that I was impressed with your singing,” declared Reid. “I think you guys nailed it; I think you figured out exactly how to start the song and who should finish the song.”

Britney Spears concurred.

“This week from last week it’s night and day,” said Spears. “You guys just shined the whole way, you really did. I was really impressed.”

FifthHarmony’s mentor Cowell, too, was impressed.

“The transformation week on week has been enormous; I think there’ something incredibly exciting about your potential,” said Cowell. “I really genuinely can feel something special. I thought the vocals were stunning, the performance was fantastic. I could not be more proud of you.”

Boneta Featured in First “Rock of Ages” Clip

It’s no wonder Diego Boneta received CinemaCon’s Rising Star of 2012 Award, especially after the release of the first clip of his highly anticipated musical Rock of Ages

Aimed at building buzz for the U.S. release of the film, Warner Bros. Pictures released the snippet, which shows the 21-year-old Mexican singer/actor and his co-star Julianne Hough shopping for vinyl at a record store before breaking into a head-banging rendition of Foreigner‘s “Jukebox Hero.”

Diego Boneta

Rock of Ages, an adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, centers on small town girl Sherrie (Hough) and city boy Drew (Boneta) ,who meet on the Sunset Strip while pursuing their Hollywood dreams. Their rock ‘n’ roll romance is told through the classic hits of Def Leppard, Joan Jett, Journey, Bon Jovi, Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Poison, Whitesnake and more.

Along with Hough and Boneta, Rock of Ages stars Tom Cruise as rock star Stacee Jaxx, Sherrie and Drew’s idol. Other members of the ensemble include  Malin Akerman, Russell Brand, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Alec Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, Paul Giamatti and Bryan Cranston.

Directed by Adam Shankman, Rock of Ages will open in theaters nationwide on June 15.