Nepotism babies are a hot topic these days thanks to a viral New York Magazine article exposing Hollywood’s very own. To be a “nepo baby” means to be born with connections that benefit one’s career. These kids get fame and fortune handed to them on a silver platter because of their last names or because they already know someone in the industry.

Your favorite non-nepo celeb. I’ll start with Kathryn Bernardo. 😊

— Paul MD (@DocPaaaul) December 21, 2022

In the Philippines, nepo babies are common too. If you look closely at our pool of local celebrities, you won’t be surprised to find that most of them are related, benefitting from each other’s fame. But who are the celebrities who worked hard to earn a name for themselves? Here are the Internet’s favorite non-nepo female celebrities:

Kathryn Bernardo

Kathryn is undoubtedly one of the best actresses of her generation. What she has made of herself is impressive considering how she built her career based on pure talent alone. ABS-CBN’s It Might Be You in 2003 kickstarted her career followed by Super Inggo in 2006. But it was her role as Mara David/Mara Del Valle in the 2010 drama Mara Clara that paved the way for dozens of high-ticket projects in the coming years. And now, Kathryn is hailed as Asia’s Superstar.

Julie Ann San Jose

Julie Anne is another hardworking woman whose achievements are all her own. She is a singer/songwriter, actress, host, content creator — you name it! Julie Anne was born to a computer operator and a gym instructor in Quezon City. Even as young as two years old, she began entering singing competitions and winning too. Since then, Julie Anne has had a string of achievements under her belt — teleseryes, films, TV shows, hosting gigs, anthologies, albums, and even solo concerts.

Nadine Lustre

President Nadine Lustre is not a nepo baby — she’s a self-made woman. Nadine lived a simple life as the eldest of four children. She took her first few steps into the limelight when she was 8 years old as a TV host in the children’s show Storyland. A few years later, she signed up with Viva Entertainment and landed the role of Eya Rodriguez in the movie Diary ng Panget (2014), the movie that propelled her to fame. To date, Nadine has a long list of movies and TV series under her belt, not to mention an album and a handful of singles.

Sarah Geronimo

Sarah Geronimo had humble beginnings living in Sta. Cruz, Manila with her parents — a retired PLDT employee and a beauty salon owner — and as the third of four children. At the ripe young age of 2 years old, she started singing and joining auditions and shows. In 2002, Sarah won the TV singing contest Star For a Night, her prizes included P1 million and a contract with Viva Entertainment and the rest is history. Today, Sarah is an award-winning singer and an exceptional actress.

Maris Racal

Maris grew up in Davao del Norte as the fifth of six siblings. She had a talent for singing and displayed her vocal prowess on the streaming platform Soundcloud. In 2014, she took a shot at fame and joined Pinoy Big Brother: All In where she ended up as the runner-up. From there, she became part of Star Magic Circle 2014 and her career took off. Maris starred in a handful of films including Halik Sa Hangin and The Breakup Playlist in 2015. Today, she’s also a successful recording artist with two studio albums to her name.

Barbie Forteza

This actress is not a nepo baby, she’s just talented! Barbie was born in Laguna and lived a humble life until she entered showbiz in 2007 with a minor role in Shake Rattle and Roll 9. Things started to get busy for her in the early 2010s when she starred in films and TV shows like Stairway to Heaven (2009), Si Agimat at si Enteng Kabisote (2010), and Tween Academy: Class of 2012 (2011). Today, Barbie leads the hit series Maria Clara at Ibarra as the eccentric protagonist Klay.

Kim Chiu

Multimedia Idol and Chinita Princess Kim Chiu is another female celebrity who isn’t a nepo baby. She is a Cebu native whose life changed when she won Pinoy Big Brother: Teen Edition in 2006. Then she became part of Star Magic and starred in a number of shows, TV series, and movies that established her as a household name. Kim is currently one of the hosts of the noontime variety show It’s Showtime. 

Liza Soberano

Don’t make the mistake of brushing Liza off as a nepo baby just because she’s half-Filipina. This woman had to start from scratch and climb her way to the top. Liza was born to a Filipino father and an American mother and was raised in California. When she was 10 years old, she flew to the Philippines to live in Manila. Liza modeled for print ads for a while before a talent scout discovered her in 2011 and launched her showbiz career. She made her acting debut in Wansapanataym and went on to become a phenomenal actress (and recording artist) in her own right.

Do you know other non-nepo female celebrities? Share it with us in the comments!

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