RAMIELE MALUBAY
Aww, isn't she cute? It's a natural reaction when watching 20-year-old Ramiele Malubay — what with her pint-size stature, hula-dancing background, and general giggle-licious spirit. She can't help but bring to mind another Filipina: season 3's Jasmine Trias. However, unlike Jasmine, Ramiele can actually sing. Twice she has conquered the wide register of Aretha Franklin by unleashing a gallon-size roar that belies her fragile frame. Ramiele leaves us in a constant state of wonderment: Did she really just take on Dusty Springfield's ''You Don't Have to Say You Love Me''? How'd she teeter so fabulously between sultry and partied-out with ''Don't Leave Me This Way''? Shouldn't we give Ramiele the credit she's earned? Aww, yeah. —Tanner Stransky