Morissette Amon

2010-2012: Career beginnings and TV5's Star Factor

Johanne Morissette Daug Amon, also known as Morissette or Mowie, was born on June 2, 1996 in Cebu City, Philippines to her mother Analie Daug and father Amay Amon. She's the first child and has one sibling, Jeremy Mattheu Amon. Her family has always been into music, or musically inclined. Her father is a rocker, and his favorite singer was Alanis Morissette. Her name "Johanne", which is pronounced as "Yohan", was coined by her father from German composer and musician of the Baroque period, Johann Sebastian Bach, while "Morissette" was taken from the famous singer Alanis Morissette. She was 3 years old when her family discovered her talent in singing. When she was left alone with a karaoke machine, she sang the Regine Velasquez song, "You are My Song". As she grew up, she sang Jessa Zaragoza songs like "Paano Na Kaya".

She joined her first singing contest held by a radio station in Cebu and sang Christina Aguilera's "Reflection". Thereafter she became a frequent singing contestant in Cebu, joining competitions such as Young Star Singing Idol. At 9 years of age, she became a finalist in the Little Division of Little Big Star Cebu, hosted by Sheryn Regis.

She also did front acts in mall tours for different artists like Sarah Geronimo and Kim Chiu, among others, back in Cebu.

At the age of 14, she tried her luck on TV5's Talentadong Pinoy but lost. She then was asked to join the new Artista Search of TV5, the Star Factor. Because of her strong desire to become a singer and performer, she joined the audition held in Cebu, wherein the judges picked her as one of the finalists. She then moved to Manila together with her mother to try her luck in the said competition. Lack of sleep, tiredness, and sacrifices paid off when she reached the top 4 as one of the grand finalists. She was the first runner up to Eula Caballero, the Star Factor grand winner. Mr. David Cosico saw the potential in her and decided to manage her career on TV5. She eventually appeared in several TV5 shows, such as Kapitan Awesome and Cassandra: Warrior Angel.

In the middle of 2012, Morissette auditioned for Repertory Philippines' Disney's Camp Rock: The Musical and scored the lead role of Mitchie Torres - a smart, talented, passionate girl who fights for what she believes in. She starred alongside Markki Stroem, who played Shane Gray. The musical play was held at Onstage, Greenbelt 1, Makati City from November 16 until December 16. Amon enjoyed this first stint in theater thoroughly, but using her voice at full tilt during rehearsals and the play itself took its toll. She started losing her voice after performances, prompting consultation with a doctor who diagnosed her with vocal cord nodules.

2013-2014: The Voice of the Philippines and transfer to ABS-CBN

2013 marked Morissette's departure from TV5 and that Cassandra: Warrior Angel would mark her last project with the network. Her work at TV5 gave her the means to sustain her family; while she enjoyed acting, singing was Amon's true passion. With the blessing of TV5, she decided to join ABS-CBN's new singing competition, The Voice of the Philippines. She considered this to be a risky move because it meant starting over again, and because there was the risk of failing in the blind auditions.

During the blind auditions, she impressed Sarah Geronimo with her rendition of the song "Love on Top", and became part of Team Sarah. She made it into the live shows when she won over her fellow Team Sarah competitor, Lecelle Trinidad. Sarah chose her over Lecelle when they both sang "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)" during the Battle Rounds.

Morissette impressed the audience during the first live show of The Voice of the Philippines with her powerful rendition of Christina Perri's "Jar of Hearts". She received the highest percentage of votes in Team Sarah, with 57.16%, that made her safe from the bottom two of each team and had her advance to the next level of the competition.

For the second live show, Morissette went head to head with former South Border member Maki Ricafort. She sang "What About Love", Sarah Geronimo picked her over Maki giving her 60% for her performance while the remaining 40% went to Maki. Her score was then added to her public vote of 50.41% giving her a total of 110.41 points that made her to advance again to the next round of the competition.

During the semi-finals, she chose to sing Jessie J's "Who You Are". Unfortunately she failed to advance, losing to Klarisse De Guzman who also belonged to Team Sarah. Her rival Klarisse then went on to represent Team Sarah at the Grand Finals and lost to Mitoy Yonting of Team Lea.

Her loss in The Voice of the Philippines did not stop her career as Morissette went on with TV guestings, mall tours, and other activities together with her fellow Voice of the Philippines finalists. Despite her departure from the competition, comparisons between her and Sarah Geronimo, her mentor, continued to hound her. This was not helped by the fact that the two have a striking resemblance to each other, an observation which Sarah herself acknowledged during the blind audition, and was noticed as early as her 2010 audition for Talentadong Pinoy. Moreover, even at the outset two judges in the audition noted similarities in the vocal style of the two singers, which was unsurprising given that Amon has always acknowledged Geronimo as a major influence on her, to the point of calling Sarah as her "idol". In an interview, Amon clarified that in the beginning she felt hurt from the comparisons, but at present she considers it an honor. She further elaborated that she will just have to do "something different" and find the means to break away from the shadow of her former mentor, and thus establish her own identity.

As January 2014 began, Morissette started recurring appearances on ABS-CBN's ASAP. They started to introduce her as one of the Divas, together with her former teammate from The Voice of the Philippines, Klarisse de Guzman. They were given a segment on ASAP called "HD" or "Homegrown Divas", along with Angeline Quinto. She also started performing in It's Showtime, ABS-CBN's noontime variety show. Unlike her performances in ASAP, majority of those in It's Showtime are solo numbers. This show provided Amon a venue to demonstrate her talent not only in singing but also in dancing, as some of her numbers require her to sing and dance at the same time. However, this also generated some controversy as Morissette was accused of lip syncing Ariana Grande's "Break Free", after judges praised her for keeping her voice steady despite dancing and singing from one side of the stage to another. She clarified that it was a live performance and that she owed it to the audience to give them one.

Before ASAP she recorded the theme song of the drama series Moon of Desire, the self-titled original song composed by Trina Belamide. This served as her first project for ABS-CBN and opened doors for more theme songs on ABS-CBN's "teleseryes".

On May 2014, Amon held her very first solo concert entitled This Is Me which also doubled as her 18th birthday celebration. Her repertoire included hits from international singers such as Katy Perry, Beyoncé and Christina Perri, as well as those from local singers such as Regine Velasquez. She even paid homage to the inspiration for her name by singing Alanis Morissette's "Ironic" and "You Learn," albeit altered to suit her singing style. During this concert she announced that she was already a part of Star Records, although her formal contract signing for a one-year contract was done later on 14 August 2014 at ABS-CBN.

On September 2014 Morissette performed in the 2014 finals of Himig Handog P-Pop Love Songs, the country’s most popular songwriting and music video competition. She interpreted "Akin Ka Na Lang," an original song written by Francis Louis "Kiko" Salazar which was chosen as one of the 15 finalists out of more than 6,000 entries submitted since November 2013. The song did not place in the competition but was included in Morissette's eponymous debut album. It has gained popularity and was chosen by Joylaine Canonio as her entry song in the Tawag ng Tanghalan singing competition, a performance she later reprised in the Wish 107.5 bus studio.

On November 2014 Morissette sang several Disney classics in a two-day concert entitled Disney in Concert: A Tale as Old as Time, along with Sam Concepcion and Karylle, with accompaniment from the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Gerard Salonga. Her performances included "Reflection" from Mulan, "Beauty and the Beast" as a duet with Sam Concepcion, and "Let it Go" from Frozen.

She had the rare opportunity to perform with an internationally-known singer during Jessie J's Live in Manila Concert on the 14th of July 2014 at Smart Araneta Coliseum. Morissette was tasked to interview Jessie J for the music channel MYX and during the interview she mentioned that she sang one of her songs when she joined The Voice of the Philippines. Jessie J then requested Amon to sing in front of her, and despite being hesitant, she sang a portion of the singer's hit song "Who You Are." This impressed Jessie J so much that she immediately decided to invite Amon to join her onstage during her concert later in the evening. The singer even took to Instagram to express her admiration at Morissette's talent, saying "“The moment @itsmorissette sang to me and told me she auditioned for The Voice Philippines and came 2nd... So great! So I invited her out to sing with me. Love when this happens.”

2015-Present: First album Morissette released under Star Records to more opened doors

In March 2015, Star Records released her first studio album, the self-titled album, Morissette. The carrier single, "Di Mapaliwanag" was used as a theme song for the Koreanovela, "My Lovely Girl" on Kapamilya ABS CBN and won as Asianovela Themesong of the Year (2015). The album was launched at Shangri-La Plaza EDSA on April 12, 2015 and eventually reached platinum status.

Amon sang theme songs for big movies under Star Cinema including a cover of Starship's hit song "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" with Daniel Padilla for the film Crazy Beautiful You starring Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo and "Someone's Always Saying Goodbye" for the film You're Still the One starring Dennis Trillo, Maja Salvador, Ellen Adarna and Richard Yap. In 2016 she performed a duet with Piolo Pascual entitled "Something I Need" for the movie Everything About Her starring Angel Locsin, Xian Lim and Vilma Santos.

In the middle of 2015, she was tapped to be one of the main casts in Chuva Choo Choo - Mr. Kupido Musicale featuring the songs of Mr. Vehnee Saturno. She played Darla, who along with her sister Dina (played by Joanna Ampil of Miss Saigon fame) are talented amateur singers hoping to break into the entertainment business.

Morissette was awarded as the Best New Female Recording Artist at the 2015 PMPC Star Awards for Music. She was also recognized by the National Consumer Affairs Foundation's Seal of Excellence Awards as the 2015 Outstanding Female Performing Artist of the Year.

On December 2015, she performed a mini concert at the 26th St. Bistro, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf produced by Stages Sessions. Singing to acoustic accompaniment, she covered several artists such as Jessie J, Rihanna and Nina.

Morissette also was part of the concert Confessions: A Night of Secrets, Stories and Songs on February 2016 at the Music Museum by the Stages Sessions.

She was awarded at the 1st Wish 107.5 Music Awards (WMA) as Female Artist of the Year for 2016. Winners in WMA's major award categories were allowed to choose beneficiaries of financial assistance worth Php 100,000. Morissette choice was Home for the Angels in Sta. Ana Manila, a crisis center for abandoned infants. She commended this unique aspect of the event, and shared “I feel blessed because last year I’ve won awards but they recognized me as a new artist. This one is different because I’m giving away to a beneficiary…not just winning for myself”.

For the second time, she performed in the 2016 Himig Handog P-Pop Love Songs competition. She interpreted "Diamante", composed by Mr. Jungee Marcelo.

Morissette is a regular on ABS-CBN's Sunday afternoon show, ASAP, as one of the Birit Queens. Other members of this group include Angeline Quinto, Klarisse de Guzman, and Jonalyn Viray. There were speculations that the individual members of the group tried to outshine each other. Amon stated in an interview that ASAP assigned them songs to sing and that the group worked together for the various song numbers. She further clarified that when it was her turn she would give her all, but during the time the group merged voices they should blend together.

She was awarded as the Female Artist of the Year by ABS-CBN' s M.O.R. Pinoy Music Awards in 2016.

Morissette held her first major concert at the Music Museum on the 13 August 2016. During this sold-out show she sang a combination of old and new songs, including Beyoncé’s “Love on Top,” the ditty she did during her blind audition for The Voice, Barbra Streisand's “Papa Can You Hear Me” from the movie Yentl, as well as Basil Valdez's “Iduyan Mo,” and her singles, “’Di Mapaliwanag and “Throwback”. Her performance of "I'm Here" from the musical The Color Purple garnered praise from international Broadway star and The Voice Philippines coach Lea Salonga, who noted how she sang the song with authority. Prior to the concert Morissette revealed that she envisioned it to be a means where she could showcase her versatility as an artist. Specifically, she wanted to break free from her stereotype as a belter, and show her skill in dancing as well as demonstrating her softer side, which she did not get to show often.

She topped the 2017 2nd Wish 107.5 Music Awards with a total of eight awards, far more than any artist nominated. Amon won all the six categories she was nominated in, and joined the Wishclusive Elite Circle with two Bronze Awards for her version of Mariah Carey's "Against All Odds" and Little Mix's "Secret Love Song." It is awarded to any Wish artist garnering at least 10 million YouTube views. Four of her awards were for her cover of "Secret Love Song," which became viral and reached 1 million YouTube views only a week after it premiered. As of February 2017 this performance was the first to hit 25 million views in Wish 107.5's YouTube channel, and has guaranteed Morissette at least a Silver WISHclusive Elite Circle award for the next WMA.

Shows Abroad

Morissette is one of the most frequently invited performers to sing abroad for overseas Filipinos workers (OFWs) through The Filipino Channel (TFC).

1. Hong Kong 2011 with Sir Louie Ocampo, Sam Concepcion and Nikki Gil
2. ASAP Live in Dubai 2014
3. ASAP Live in Los Angeles 2014
4. TFC Live presents Martin N. in Doha, Qatar 2014
5. Barrio Festival in London 2015 with various Kapamilya Artists
6. Pistahan sa San Francisco 2015 (22nd Annual Pistahan Parade and Festival) with Geneva Cruz, Matteo Guidicelli and Matthew John Ignacio in San Francisco, California
7. Abu Dhabi 2015 with Daniel Matsunaga and Giselle Sanchez
8. TFC One Kapamilya Go 2015 USA with Pangako Sa'yo casts at Oakland Oracle Arena, San Francisco, California
9. MOR Live in Taiwan 2016 with Enchong Dee
10. One Kapamilya Go Toronto 2016 with Dolce Amore casts at Hershey Center Toronto July 23, 2016
11. Morissette Live at Bahrain July 29, 2016 Ramee Rose Hotel
12. ASAP Live in New York September 3, 2016 Barclays Center, Brooklyn NY, USA
13. ASAP Live in Toronto July 29, 2017 Ricoh Coliseum, Toronto ON, Canada

Vocal profile

One of Morissette's most distinctive vocal features is her ability to sing in the whistle register with ease. This has led to her being tagged as the "Mariah Carey of the Philippines". Amon revealed in an interview that Mariah Carey served as an inspiration to develop her talent in whistling, and to date she has done numerous performances of Mariah's songs. To showcase her talent Morissette occasionally adds whistles when doing covers, and songs from her debut album also includes whistles. Another distinctive feature is her use of intentional vocal breaks, which sound like high-pitched squeaks. This technique is used by some singers to add expression to their singing.

Cast as one of ASAP's "Birit" Queens (literally "Belter" Queens), most of her performances revolve around songs that require belting. This has led her to being described as a power belter. However, Amon has admitted that she wants to go beyond her stereotype as a belter, and has taken some opportunities to do so by performing songs not usually identified with her, such as in her debut solo concert and her Stages Sessions mini-concert.

Jonathan Manalo, the head of Star Records' audio content, has been quoted as saying "Morissette is not just like any traditional diva who can hit high notes. She has a very distinct tone that can adapt to many music genres. And that versatility is something that we will showcase in her debut album with us”. It was during the process of creating her debut album when Amon's record company discovered that aside from belting she had the ability to whistle, and asked her to include it in the album.

A Philippine Daily Inquirer article by Joseph R. Atilano, written in June 2016, praised Morissette for having a "very versatile singing voice", "flawless vocal registry" and "awe-inspiring vocal range". Atilano gave the opinion that in her song "Diamante" could be heard echoes of a very young Sarah Geronimo. He further opined that she was one of the more exciting singers to come around in the Philippine music scene, and that she would undoubtedly remain a key player for the next decade.

Amon has been touted to have vocal range of five octaves and five notes although another analysis pegged her vocal range at four octaves and two notes.

Performances/results

     Studio Version of song charted.

Concerts

1. This Is Me (a debut concert) - May 30, 2014 at Teatrino, Greenhills
2. MORISSETTE At The Music Museum - August 13, 2016
3. ASAP Birit Queens at Mall of Asia Arena - March 31, 2017