‘I am Cebuano. I am Bisaya’: Reinventing Morissette
Nearly 15 years ago, a young and bright-eyed Morissette Amon packed up her things and moved to Manila to go all-in on her dream of becoming a singer.
The rest, as they say, is history.
With a career spent directly in the spotlight, it seems that we know everything there is to know about Asia’s Phoenix; to say anything less would be a grave understatement. Ever since she was 14, her rise to prominence in the Filipino music industry has been well-documented, from TV5’s Star Factor to The Voice of the Philippines. To top it all off, you have her army of loyal fans who are dedicated to her every move.
Despite this, Morissette is determined to show the world that there’s still so much about her that we, as the audience, have yet to see. One of those things is her identity as a Cebuana.
“A lot of people forget that I’m from Cebu,” she shared with Rappler, in a mix of Bisaya and English. “Karon (now) I’m [going] on my fourteenth year in the industry and one of the things that I haven’t really done is put out songs that are in my [language].”
“Labi na (Especially) when I was doing The Voice back in 2013, I was already based here in Manila kay I was already with TV5 for three years…so when I was auditioning, I auditioned here in Quezon City. Sa ato nga (during that) time, ang gi-butang nila (what they put in my introduction) was Quezon City. But what people don’t realize is that I was really born and raised in Cebu.”
If you look back at Morissette’s career thus far, you can definitely see why people miss out on that detail. Aside from being physically based in Manila, most of the songs that she’s best known for interpreting — “Gusto Ko Nang Bumitaw,” “Akin Ka Na Lang,” and “Di Mapaliwanag” — are all in Filipino. She revealed that early on in her career, people in the music industry made it very clear that it was Filipino or bust: if she wanted to make it big, if she wanted to “connect with the masses” (as they say), she had to learn how to speak Filipino well. So, she took Filipino classes, sang in Filipino, and gave interviews in Filipino.
Then, as the pandemic froze the entertainment industry worldwide, the singer found the perfect opportunity to explore her artistry even more. She dipped her toes into songwriting, working closely with her husband and singer-songwriter Dave Lamar to create original songs. They created their side project, From The Sea (a play on the English translation of their Spanish last name, Lamar), and released both an EP and album of original songs. The two also worked together in creating original songs for her EP, Signature, which saw her experimenting with genres and sounds.
Morissette also joined and got involved with the independent record label Underdog Music. With this came more opportunities to exercise her advocacy of providing a platform for music from the Visayas and Mindanao regions.
“One of the things that I wanted to do was help out sa [Visayas and Mindanao] region,” she said, as she talked about gaining full creative control over her career when she joined Underdog.
It felt like the stars had aligned for her to literally and figuratively go back to her roots. It was figurative in the sense that she had the creative control to not just experiment with her sound, but also go back to the genre that she’s best known for — ballads. On the other hand, it was a literal return to her roots because she had the opportunity to sing original songs in Bisaya as well as collaborate with Visayas- and Mindanao-based producers and songwriters.
She released her first-ever Bisaya-English song, “Undangon Ta Ni” (translated as ‘Let’s End This’) in 2022. The song was pitched by Cebuano singer-songwriter and fellow Underdog artist Relden. Then, in 2024, she premiered “Ang Paghuwat” (The Waiting), which was written by Vispop juggernaut Ferdinand Aragon.
“I have been a fan of Ferdinand since forever,” she gushed. “And so to have had a chance to collaborate with him on ‘Ang Paghuwat’…ga-fangirl jud ko ato. Unya ang story sa song, murag comforting jud kaayo [I was really fangirling over him. On top of that, the story of the song is so comforting.]”
In December 2024, she premiered her third original Bisaya song, “Ihilak Lang Na” (Just Cry It Out), a song written by critically-acclaimed Cebuano songwriters Therese Villarante-Langit and Jude Gitamondoc. Gitamondoc is also the founder of the Visayan Pop Music Festival (Vispop).
Villarante-Langit, who has won both Vispop (the songwriting competition) and Himig Handog, revealed on Facebook that she had actually written the lyrics for the song with Morissette in mind.
“It was magical too that as soon as the ideation for this song began, I imagined [Morissette’s] powerful voice and resonant storytelling,” the lyricist wrote. “I imagined the vulnerability in the palpable melodic turbulence, and her voice daring to rise above it whilst still bearing pain and hope. Yes, both. The song and Morissette were inseparable to me. My gut told me this was the ultimate, most epic thing to happen for this song.”
“She pitched this song, and it was like love at first sight. Naa jud siya’y certain nga magic. For me, as someone who could understand the language, makarelate gyud ko dayon sa lyrics. Murag, da, mao ni akong gi-agian as a newlywed nga adulting kaayo, mao jud ning kanta na i-banner nako.”
(There was a certain magic to the song. For me, as someone who could understand the language, I was able to relate immediately to the lyrics. It was like, this is exactly what I went through as a newlywed, figuring out adult life…this is like a song that I could basically put on a banner and wave around.)
While her husband Dave couldn’t understand the lyrics, the melody, the arrangement, and the structure of the chords felt haunting. You couldn’t help but feel drawn in.
This whole journey of learning, and singing original Bisaya songs feels like a reintroduction to Morissette — not just as the singer, but also the artist. The creator. The collaborator. Through her work with Bisaya songwriters and lyricists, she feels like she’s learning more with the poetic side of the language, going beyond just using the conversational parts of Bisaya.
“[Even though] I have been speaking the language, lahi pud siya [It’s really different] when it’s singing…and with a lot of these songs that I’ve put as well as the ones we’re working on, ang iyang Bisaya is laum sad gyud kaayo (laughs). I try to make it a point nga mangutana jud ko sa ila Ferdinand, sila Sir Jude, nga ‘unsa’y pagkasabot nimo ani?’ kay naa man ko’y idea of what it means, pero basin lahi ilang interpretation kay sila pud ang ga-suwat, ba.”
(The Bisaya words in the songs are really deep (laughs). I try to make it a point to ask Ferdinand, Sir Jude, ‘what are your interpretations of this word?’ because while I have the general idea of what [the word] means, maybe they have a different interpretation as the songwriters.)
While she’s not confident writing in Bisaya or Tagalog yet, she asserts that she has no problem with receiving song pitches from Bisaya songwriters. For Morissette, lending her voice to these songs is her own way of helping these artists gain a larger platform for their music. She hopes that with every Bisaya song that she puts out, she gets to push for original Bisaya music in the national mainstream.
“As a listener, I’m always drawn to whenever I hear Bisaya music played, especially here in Luzon. It’s still kind of a rare occurrence. I’m just happy to be one of the artists in Manila who is helping push for VisMin pop and our amazing songwriters and creatives in the South,” she shared.
Morissette goes on to reveal that when she looks back at the start of her career, if there were opportunities back in Cebu when she was 14, she probably wouldn’t have moved to Manila with her family. “For us, Cebu is always home.”
“Now, with the internet, there’s so many ways to connect with people and artists, creatives, producers [all over the country]. [We] might as well help those creatives who aren’t based in Manila and give them a spotlight as well,” she continues, in a mix of Bisaya and English. “I am well aware of how much talent there is in the Visayas and Mindanao, and I’m sure there are so many talented creatives who we haven’t heard of because they haven’t had the opportunity to put out their art on a wider scale.”
“I’m also very grateful sa tabang, sa trust pud sa ani mga musicians sa Visayas ug Mindanao nga, naa sila’y salig nako ug sa mga naa diri nga ipadayon ang pag-raise pud ang VisMin pop, para madungog siya all over the world, all over the Philippines…It’s just a matter of time before VisMin pop will be heard all over the country.”
(I’m very grateful for the help, for the trust of these musicians from Visayas and Mindanao, that they can trust me and others here in Manila to raise VisMin pop so that our music will be heard all over the world, all over the Philippines…It’s just a matter of time before VisMin pop will be heard all over the country.)
That’s why it seems apt that Morissette’s forthcoming album is explicitly about her showcasing who she is as a Cebuana. In her nearly 15 years in the industry, she has yet to release a fully-fleshed out album — not just a compilation of songs and covers, but one with a central theme and artistic concept. In a way, all the stars aligned: they started Underdog Music to uplift artists who didn’t have a platform especially those from Visayas and Mindanao, they received numerous pitches from Bisaya songwriters, and she wanted to make an album that was true to who she was as an artist and as a person. And an unmistakable, unshakeable part of who she is is her heritage.
“I want to proudly say in this compilation of work: I am Cebuano. I am Bisaya.” – Rappler.com