gt.com: how do you feel about the way you were portrayed on Popstars? was the editing on TV compared to the actual events accurate?

NICOLE: Well, it's hard, because we never knew how they were going to portray us every week. We all sat down in front of the television wondering what was going to happen each episode, because the editing room works its own little magic. A lot of things were in different spots and had happened at different times. They pieced them together a little differently than what we had done and what had actually happened. I thought that the editors did a pretty good job. I think that they had a lot of footage of us, so that theygot a sense of our personalities and shared that with the rest of the country. I think that they did a pretty good job, however, there's only so much you can show from hours and hours and hours of footage and actually really living the experience as opposed to only showing twenty-two minutes of it a week.

gt.com: maile, what was running through your mind when you were knocking on the door and about to meet your new groupmates?

MAILE: I was really nervous! Not apprehensive, more excited and nervous at the same time. I didn't know what to expect. I had all these different visions in my head. I just wanted to get through that door, I guess you could say!

gt.com: do you find it difficult to form a relationship now that you're in the public eye?

ROSANNA: Yeah, I think so. To maintain it -- you're always busy, always on the go. This is definitely my priority, and you have to be able to find someone who can understand that.

gt.com: how about you, Nicole? you're dating Nick Hexum of 311. we saw a beautiful ring on your finger at your Orlando show. what's that all about?

NICOLE: That's just a ring, a present that he gave me. Not anything really serious, just a boyfriend and girlfriend ring. That's as far it's going right now! He's touring right now in Europe. He's actually coming into New York to visit me and see our show. But, he's busy with his career and I'm busy with mine, and we both are best friends and we're not trying to rush into anything serious, because this is where our main focus and energy goes towards.

gt.com: ana maria -- how difficult was it to leave your family's band to join Eden's Crush?

ANA MARIA: That's something I'd been doing my whole life! The only life I knew was singing with my family band. Making the decision to even go audition and do something else had to be one of the biggest decisions I've ever made. It wasn't easy. I miss my family and singing with them all the time, and I'm always thinking about them and the band. But my parents are really happy for me and so are my sisters and everyone. Just knowing I have their support is great. It's okay, but it was really hard at first.

gt.com: speaking of the pre-Eden's Crush days...Ivette, you've done a lot of theater productions on Broadway. how hard was it for you to make the transition from acting to music?

IVETTE: It was a difficult transition in the sense that I've never been in a recording studio before. And that was a process that I had to go through. It's not different in the sense that you're still on stage and you're still performing for an audience. It's just different in terms of playing a character. It's not a play that I'm in, but I'm still singing and dancing!

gt.com: how about you, Maile -- you also have had a past in acting. have you thought about going back?

MAILE: Oh, yeah! I have so many dreams and aspirations. Acting in musical theater was always my first love. During college and after college I got into TV, and I really would love to go back to that. I think that my heart is open to all aspects of performing, whether it be my singing or my acting. I have tons of plans to go back and do that!

gt.com: okay, starlets -- imagine you were given the opportunity to choose your role on Broadway. what would it be?

IVETTE: I have many dream roles! I'd eventually like to play Anita from Westside Story if that ever came back to Broadway.

MAILE: I would love to play Kim in Miss Saigon...I aspire to do so much! I would love to play a role that is challenging, something that is completely opposite of me. Somebody who has been though a lot in their life and has to keep soul searching. Somebody who has to fight for what they believe in, because not everything comes easy in life. I'd love to play a role like that!

gt.com: have you ever forgotten a line on stage or missed a dance move? how do you cover that up?

NICOLE: Of course! It happens all the time. And that is the beauty and magic of being in front of a live audience on stage, and I love it! My teacher always told me "If you mess up, mess up big." I'm very fortunate that I feel very at home and comfortable with the stage, so if I do miss a step or line, I come back pretty fast with something. Actually, if you must know, the other day we were at the House of Blues...every night, I have this whistle range where I sing like Mariah Carey on this song called "1,000 Words (Mil Palabras)." And, I don't really work at it or warm up. It just sort of happens every night. I just open my mouth praying every night that it comes out successfully and without fail, (and it never has). On the House of Blues night, I opened my mouth, and I pushed and nothing came out. I took another breath, and nothing came out! And, I just had to lower my head down and smile...give a huge cheesy smile and just stare as if I didn't know what I was doing but I sorta knew what I was doing. Times like that you just have to go with the flow. There's nothing you can do about it -- you can't regret anything!

gt.com: rosanna, you've danced for many years. what is your earliest memory of performing?

ROSANNA: That's a good one! I was three years old, and it was my first recital. I remember we were rehearsing for a while, and I think the recital had something to do with the theme of spring. I was supposed to be a sunflower, and there were sunflowers and butterflies on stage and everyone had a different character. For some reason, I didn't appreciate being casted as a sunflower, so you can imagine being three years old, telling your teacher you wanted to be a butterfly and being rejected. It was pretty funny, but I think the reason why was because I had to sit on my knees the whole time, and just sway back and forth. The butterfly got to dance around the stage with little clipped on wings. It seemed way more interesting! I have a lot of pictures of me pouting!

gt.com: adorable! Ana Maria, you model, sing, and dance, so it's easy to say you're a triple threat. which of the three is most fulfilling for you?

ANA MARIA: ::laughs:: Singing, for sure!

gt.com: what has been the most memorable experience for the five of you as a group?

NICOLE: Wow -- this has been such an amazing experience all in itself that there's been a million memorable experiences! I have to tell you that last night the girls and I were watching a video a fan had sent us of a lot of our past performances. And, our first performance together was in Chicago at the Sam Goody store. And, I remember seeing that performance and I remember thinking, "That was such an amazing experience!" We'd been locked up in the house for so long and recording in the studio. And, I prefer stage over studio, even though I love the studio. And, that was our first time in front of an audience. These were our true fans: nobody paid them to be there, they didn't sign up anywhere. They actually came on their own. They were so supportive and had so much energy, it just blew us away. And, I'll never forget that!

gt.com: speaking of your first live performance in Chicago -- you received an overwhelming response of tears from fans that adore you and even did some crying of your own. now that you experience that on a day-to-day basis, has it become more realistic for you?

ANA MARIA: I don't feel like crying afterwards anymore. It's more a happy feeling! We do perform like every other day now, and it was our first performance in March. In the beginning, we were only performing a couple of times, now we have like a 35-minute show. As we go on, our fans still support us -- they come to our shows and we do signings to meet them. They're all still as special and touch as like the fans in Chicago.

gt.com: sunday night you dedicated your show to Aaliyah, whose life came to a tragic end last week. was she an inspiration to you?

ROSANNA: Yeah, it's actually very hard to hear that she passed away. I'm not very good with untimely deaths -- I had a friend that passed on at around the same age, and it's just very difficult to hear about any death, but especially one that was so unexpected. And I remember that I used to request a song of hers at a club I went to in Columbus, OH -- "Try Again." I'd always, always request that song, even AFTER they had already played it. I'd tell the DJ, "You need to play that song, it's my favorite!" It's extremely unfortunate and saddens me. It even makes me a little afraid now because we travel so much.

gt.com: "no drama" describes an individual that brings negativity into your life. has that ever happened to you, and if so, how did you handle it?

MAILE: I've had a situation in my life when negativity had been brought into it. I think the best way to overcome a problem like that is to just do everything in your power to stay strong. And, not let anybody get you down. People can try and get you down and work their hardest to make you feel like crap, and the best thing you can do is remember you're a good person. And, live your life as positively as you can. That's what I did!

gt.com: ivette, your hair absolutely rocks -- what's your secret?

IVETTE: Just add water and a bit of humidity! ::laughs:: I just condition my hair a lot. I leave the conditioner in, and I don't really put a lot of gel in. I just put in conditioner and leave it in!

gt.com: before you entered into the Dreamchaser tour, you lived every girl's dream: to be on tour with *N SYNC. how was that experience?

ANA MARIA: It was fun! That was like our first big tour, so we learned a lot. We had a really great time! It felt like it was over before we got to meet everybody on the tour, you know? But it was fun!

ROSANNA: We learned so much from watching them -- it was really incredible. Just imagine us going from being with 4,000 people kinda working those venues and then going to 70,000 people -- that was quite amazing!

gt.com: okay, fess up -- you've toured with *N SYNC, so you've gotta have a favorite by now. who earns that title?

ROSANNA: ::laughs:: Honestly, I think they're all really down-to-earth, cool guys, a lot cooler than I would of expected from people that are so famous. I had that assumption that once you're famous there's something about you that's maybe a little inaccessable. I guess the one I think I have the most in common with would be JC -- he's kinda artsy and funny!

gt.com: now you're with the irresistible Jessica Simpson. how's that going?

ANA MARIA: It's been going really well. This tour's a lot more laid back, a lot smaller. It's actually really cool, because you feel you can connect easier to the people...they're closer to you. It's interesting; it's just fun!

gt.com: have you gotten to meet Ms. Simpson or the other opening acts?

MAILE: Jessica actually introduced herself to us on the first day of the tour during our soundcheck. She's just very down to earth, very sweet, a very Southern girl. And, she's always been so cool and generous with us and the whole crew. We've also met the other acts: Youngstown, Toya, and Plus One. They are all very cool. It's a very mellow tour -- we're playing small cities, small venues, and it's just like we're all one big family! There's no negative vibe between anybody. No uncomfortable feelings -- everything is going really well! And, it's almost over -- I can't believe it's already been four weeks!

gt.com: did you have a memorable moment from the Dreamchaser tour? 

MAILE: I would say the first the day is one of the days that set an impression in my mind of what a great feeling to start the tour on. An artist at Jessica's stature or of anybody's stature that has been in the business a while, and have acclaimed some sort of praise for what they have done -- somebody with that kind of stature normally does not walk up and introduce themselves to artists that are just starting out. She was just so generous to come up and welcome us to the tour. On the first day, we got everyone on the crew and the cast, and we said a really sweet prayer. I think that's something I'll never forget.

gt.com: fill in the blank: "the best thing about being a girl is..." 

MAILE: Becoming a mommy! That's something that no man can do, and that is a great thing for some women!

gt.com: your CD is amazing. what motivated you to remake Sheila E.'s 1984 hit "Glamorous Life"? your version is definitely sassier!

ANA MARIA: Thanks! Well, we all love the song, and when it was pitched to us by one of our label reps it was kinda just like, "Okay, yep, we're doing it! Let's go in the studio!" We had such a fun time recording that.

gt.com: speaking of your wonderful debut album...which song from "Popstars" do you think you could sing over and over and never get sick of?  

MAILE: I think "Love This Way," our ballad, is a song that I can never get sick of, because it's such a beautiful song. It's a song about wanting to have that love that you've always wanted. It's just an easy-flowing song, and I haven't gotten sick of it yet. I think that if there's other songs I have gotten sick of, that's definitely the song that I haven't. That one will stick in my mind forever as being a winner!

gt.com: ivette, you're turning 25 on September 15th. how do you plan on celebrating? happy early birthday, by the way!

IVETTE: Thank you, my love! I don't know where we're going to be. Hopefully I'll be with my family and my boyfriend. That's all I ever really need!

gt.com: this is definitely one group that'll last past TRL! good luck, girls!