From conquering the stage with their undeniable chemistry and melodious vocals through their duets, JM Dela Cerna and Marielle Montellano, who are fondly called by their ship name JMielle, are poised to further showcase their charm and talent as celebrity performers of the brand new season of “Your Face Sounds Familiar.”
But before we get captivated anew by their endearing stage presence and kilig performances—this time as local and international music icons—here are some interesting trivia about “The Birit Duo” that you may want to know!
Their careers both started in “Tawag ng Tanghalan”
Avid fans of “Tawag ng Tanghalan” are surely aware that JM and Marielle are both products of the long-running singing competition on television. However, they competed in different seasons. Marielle was among the finalists of the “Unang Taon,” or the inaugural season, in 2016; while JM competed in the third season in 2019 and finished in 3rd Place.
They may have fallen short in their respective bids of becoming grand champions of the seasons they belonged to, yet they were able to achieve redemption when they teamed up with each other in “Tawag ng Tanghalan Duets” in 2023 and called their pair “Sidlak Bisdak.” The vocals, chemistry, and authenticity that they had showcased were so powerful that they ended up as the grand champions.
Ever since their partnership started, Marielle and JM are now backed not only by their fans as individual artists but by their ardent shippers called “JMielles,” too. Over the past two years, the musical pair has already graced a number of live and TV shows together, including their latest concert, “Heartstrings: Timeless Tunes of Love,” as well as released their debut EP called “JMielle in Love.”
Both of them are loud and proud Bisdaks
JM and Marielle called their team “Sidlak Bisdak” (which translates to “Sparkling Visayans”) during their stint in “TNT Duets.” Well, that’s basically because they are both loud and proud “Bisdaks” or Bisaya-speaking people, with Marielle hailing from Cebu and JM coming from Davao.
And they were able to completely display their adorable Bisaya sides and talk about their respective roots during their guesting together on the ABS-CBN Studios online Bisaya talk show “Kuan On One” hosted by Melai Cantiveros in September 2024.
It's also their shared Bisaya roots that helped solidify their partnership and strengthen their connection, as the duo imparted in an interview with PUSH in June 2025. “Ang laking factor na nagkakaintindihan kami on the same level dahil we’re both Bisaya. So may mga humor na kami-kami lang din ang nakakaintindi,” Marielle explained.
Since Bisdaks are known to be talented and palaban, it can be said that JMielle is indeed a force to reckon with, right?
It was because of JM that their team-up was formed
For those who are curious about how they got paired up in the “TNT Duets,” JM and Marielle revealed during their “Kuan On One” interview that it actually started when JM was invited to participate in that special edition of the competition.
It was she who first came into his mind when he was told that unlike the past and regular incarnations, it was going to be done in pairs. Marielle, who was already living a normal life away from the spotlight at the time, was actually hesitant about joining the contest again since it had already been six years since her first attempt. Besides, she also felt a bit intimidated since JM had finished 3rd in his batch.
When asked why he specifically requested Marielle, JM explained that it was because he admires her vocal qualities, and he felt that their voices will jive with or perfectly complement each other, which is highly important in duets.
Are their promising singing talent, undeniable chemistry, and strong connection enough for JMielle to conquer “Your Face Sounds Familiar” and to eventually become its first-ever duo champion? Well, let’s just follow their journey beginning this October 4 and 5 by watching every Saturday and Sunday on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), A2Z, and TV5!