Year in Review 2021: Top 10 most-searched female celebrities in Philippines
Yahoo Philippines gives you a rundown of the most searched female celebrities in 2021.
10. Kathryn Bernardo
Kapamilya actress Kathryn Bernardo made the headlines this year. Kathryn and her boyfriend Daniel Padilla had KathNiel fans excited with the announcement of their new TV series "2 Good 2 Be True", which will be released next year. The pair also marked their 10th anniversary as KathNiel couple.
Fans also circulated hilarious posts, comparing Taylor Swift's All too Well video to KathNiel's movie, "The Hows of Us".
The famous actress and her boyfriend found themselves in the middle of controversy when "KathNiel" fans threatened a boycott after Daniel's mother, Karla Estrada, teamed up with a party-list that voted to reject the ABS CBN franchise renewal.
9. Ara Mina
In June, actress Ara Mina went viral after tying the knot with her non-showbiz beau Dave Almarinez. The fairy tale wedding was popular online, with Ara Mina donning a stunning crystal embellished wedding gown designed by Leo Almodal. The bride also wore a second, equally beautiful outfit into the reception.
Netizens swooned details of the wedding, from floral arrangements to the reception and even the couple's outfits.
8. Bella Poarch
Fil-Am Tiktok star Bella Poarch released her first single, with the music video Build a Bitch, building on her popularity on the short-form video social network platform that currently has 85.7 million followers and 1.97 billion content likes.
The 24-year-old sensation's catchy music video featured other internet stars like Mia Khalifa, Bretman Rock, and top YouTube PH Content Creator of 2021 Ivana Alawi.
The influencer-turned-musician opened up in an interview about her painful past in the Philippines before moving to the United States. She also described how she suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Bella also won as the Breakout Creator of the year in the 11th YouTube Streamy Awards.
7. Julia Barretto
Young Kapamilya actress Julia Barretto continued to be the center of controversy this year, following rumors of her relationship with actor Gerald Anderson since 2019. Sightings of the celebrity couple circulated on social media until Gerald went public about their relationship in March, earning mixed reactions from Filipino netizens. Since then, Julia and Gerald have openly shared their sweet photos on Instagram.
In May, the actress also opened up about her relationship with her father, actor Dennis Padilla in a vlog. However, more gossip ensued when fans noticed that Julia deleted a video featuring her father after his comments about Gerald. There have been no new updates on their father-daughter feud.
6. Sarah Geronimo
After being on hiatus from TV and film for a year, "Popstar Royalty" Sarah Geronimo had thousands of fans hyped with her activities this year.
In March, the singer had her first digital concert called Tala: the Film Concert. The film concert trended worldwide, becoming the Philippines top-selling digital concert of all time.
Then, in August, Sarah collaborated with various artists from Southeast Asia for the anthem of ICT giant Acer's yearly event, Acer Day 2021, called "Live Your World."
In the same month, rumors on the singer's pregnancy sparked online, with husband actor Matteo Guidicelli hinting on Instagram that he wanted to buy a family car in preparation for a baby in the future. However, the couple has not confirmed this, as fans continued to speculate online.
In November, fans were delighted with the announcement of a digital Christmas concert on December 18 hosted by Sarah and her husband named "Christmas with the G's".
5. Angel Locsin
Actress Angel Locsin made headlines throughout the year. Angel, a philanthropist, launched a community pantry for her birthday in April, but the event led to chaos, leading to the death of a senior citizen. The actress apologized for the incident and paid damages.
Angel and her partner film producer Neil Arce surprised fans in August, announcing that they were both married.
The two tied the knot in a simple civil wedding with a few friends and family members. The couple's simple affair went viral, where Angel wore a white blazer and top, black pants, and a pair of comfy white sneakers. They also had an unconventional reception, serving milk tea, fries, fishballs, and kikiam.
The Kapamilya A-lister and her husband once again found themselves in the center of controversy in October. Her husband challenged the director-general of the Presidential Communications Office-Philippine Information Agency Mon Cualoping in a fistfight, after the official insulted the actress in a post, saying that she had "no brain cells." The official denied this request.
4. Rabiya Mateo
Miss Universe Philippines 2020 Rabiya Mateo made waves earlier this year as the country's representative in the Miss Universe pageant. The contest was delayed to May 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rabiya looked stunning throughout the competition, landing on the pageant's Top 21 candidates.
In November, Rabiya signed with GMA Network as an actress. Rabiya made her acting debut in Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho's Halloween special episode "Gabi ng Lagim IX," which aired on Oct. 31. The actress will also join "Agimat ng Agila Book 2".
3. Catriona Gray
Miss Universe 2018, model, and singer Catriona Gray continued to be popular in 2021, with a flood of projects locally and internationally.
In July, it was announced that Catriona is one of the judges of Supermodel Me. She was part of the judging panel from episode 6 onwards, along with Singaporean actress Ase Wang.
Catriona also partnered up with Nas Academy for an online course called "How to Be a Queen.” However, the Catriona Gray Academy was put on hold in August, following the controversy between Nas Academy and Whang-od. Catriona resumed applications in November after the conflict was resolved by the parties involved.
In October, the beauty queen also debuted her first single called Love Language, a lo-fi, R&B song that she both wrote and sang. Love Language marks Catriona's first attempt at songwriting and entering the music industry.
2. Ivana Alawi
The popularity of actress-model-YouTuber Ivana Alawi continued to soar in 2021. Ivana was hailed top YouTube PH Content Creator of 2021, with a staggering 14.5 million subscribers to her channel. This is the second year in a row that the actress got the top spot. One of the viral videos was when she gifted her mother with P1 million ($20,000) in November.
In August, Ivana also had a cameo in Fil-Am TikTok star Bella Poarch's "Inferno" music video. Bella thanked the actress for being in the video and commented, "Angganda mo po (You are so beautiful)." Fil-Am influencer Bretman Rock, also in the music video, praised Ivana's look.
Ivana became the talk of the town once again in October when photos of her and actor Marco Gumabao looking quite cozy circulated on social media. However, Alawi denied the rumor the following month, saying, "Never kami nagkaroon ng kahit anong relasyon (We never had a relationship of that sort)" in one of her live streams.
1. Bea Alonzo
Celebrity A-lister Bea Alonzo topped this year's list of most-searched female celebrities. Bea's career flourished, bagging multiple projects and endorsements and signing with GMA Network in July after 19 years with ABS CBN.
Bea is set to star with Kapuso actor Alden Richards in a local adaptation of the 2006 Korean film "A Moment to Remember". The story is about a young couple's relationship tested by a rare disease. She also joined Richards as one of Lazada's brand ambassadors in December.
Bea Alonso confirmed her relationship with fellow celebrity Dominic Roque in August, after months of speculations.
In September, Bea was also offered a role in the Manny Pacquiao-produced Hollywood movie "Angel Warrior." Bea will portray "Tala,”", the "she-devil" nurse that aided Filipino and American soldiers in World War II.
The new Kapuso actress made a buzz in November, showing a sizzling hot side as Tanduay's 2022 calendar girl. Alonzo was featured in Tanduay's teaser video, in sexy outfits, for a sultry Latin telenovela-inspired campaign.
Thousands of fans also rejoiced in late November, following the announcement of the "One True Pair", where Bea teamed up with John Lloyd in a reunion movie for Jollibee.
Anna is a freelance writer and photographer. She is a gamer who loves RPGs and platformers, and is a League of Legends geek. She's also a food enthusiast who loves a good cup of black coffee.
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