that's ms. malubay if you're nasty

The Associated Press has a profile on Ramiele Malubay, the 20-year-old Filipino American singer who has hung in there and made it to the Top 12 of American Idol: Little 'Idol,' big voice: Malubay, baby. So far, she's gotten the most press for a stupid non-controversy involving "racy" photos of her goofing off with friends surfaced on Facebook. Psssh. Whatever. Talk about making a big deal out of nothing.

While Ms. Malubay hasn't gotten a lot of notice as the competition's strongest singer—judge Simon Cowell once pejoratively compared her to a "hotel singer"—she's got an immense online fan following, which no doubt translates into votes. She's definitely super-cute, and has the potential to be a star... though I gotta admit, I thought her performance this week was rather underwhelming. I don't think she's had that "wow" moment yet. She'll have to step it up a few notches to get noticed and keep herself in the competition.