Don't cry, Ramiele!

This week's departure of Ramiele Malubay came as no surprise to me. I did come in late to the Idol game this season due to a work project, missing all of Hollywood week and the elimination of the first twelve. So, I didn't get to see the early performances that earned her top twelve status. But, that being said, as I watched the diminutive and undeniably cute Rami perform, I had her pegged for an early elimination.
I just got the feeling while watching her, that she's just not a performer. She has an incredible voice, no doubt about that. She just seemed to not know what to do on stage. She gave off a look that seemed to say, "I've seen other singers do this, so this is what I'm supposed to do!" as she stood awkwardly or tried to look as-cute-as-can-be for the camera. That always reads across the TV airwaves, and sooner or later, the audience will lose interest and stop voting. I imagine her fanbase was a good percentage of Filipinos and other Asians giving her support (and valuable phone votes!). At the very beginning of the season, during her audition phase, she'd remarked that she aspired to be the first Asian-american Idol. Or did she say it without the hyphen; the first Asian American Idol? I couldn't tell... Either way, it was a very admirable aspiration.
Coincidentally, Ramiele's departure episode displayed video clips of "What-are-they-doing-now" clips of previous seasons' finalists. Most of them seem to be doing really well (The clips did not feature Jessica Sierra), and following their musical dreams in some capacity. Not to mention, being a top 10 finalist, Rami gets to go on the American Idol tour. With that kind of exposure, and the right kind of planning and representation, she has a great chance of continuing as a successful performing artist. After all, that's what it's all about, right?
This led to one of my patented "bright ideas™"... I mentioned to the lovely Mrs. Shoehead that Ramiele could not only be an "American" Idol, but she could go global with this. If she started representing herself as an example of Asian-american pop music talent, and also started booking concerts and releasing albums in the Asian nations, and the Pacific Rim, I believe she'll be hugely successful! A truly global talent, representing America, Asian-America, and the American Idol franchise to over a billion people! I hope her representation and management have at least entertained the possibilities. I told the lovely Mrs. Shoehead that I would be willing to represent Ramiele, if she needed me. So, cheer up my diminutive cutie, you could be bigger than Miley Cyrus, and not even have to concoct a "Hannah Montana" persona.

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