Mariestella "Maris" Cañedo Racal (Tagalog: [maˈɾis kaˈɲɛdo ɾaˈkal]; born September 22, 1997) is a Filipino actress and singer. She rose to prominence in 2014 after joining Pinoy Big Brother: All In, where she finished as the runner-up. Afterward, Racal signed with Star Magic. She was previously a member of It's Showtime's all-girl dance group Girltrends and ASAP's sing-and-dance group BFF5.
Racal's breakthrough role was as Irene Tiu in the ABS-CBN romantic drama series Can't Buy Me Love.
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Early life
Mariestella Cañedo Racal was born on September 22, 1997, in Tagum, Davao del Norte, to Henry and Leony (née Cañedo) Racal. She is the fifth of six children. Racal grew up in Davao del Norte and graduated high school from St. Mary's College in Tagum. In school, she regularly sang the responsorial psalm and performed during Mass. She also uploaded cover songs on SoundCloud.
Racal pursued a degree in medical technology at Trinity University of Asia but discontinued her studies due to her busy schedule.
Acting career
2014–2022: Pinoy Big Brother and subsequent projects
After Pinoy Big Brother, Racal was launched as part of Star Magic Circle 2014 and had been quickly molded as a budding actress, starting off on the drama series Hawak Kamay, followed by more stints on several TV series including Maalaala Mo Kaya, Ipaglaban Mo!, Oh My G!, and Ningning, and on films like Halik sa Hangin, Just The Way You Are, and The Breakup Playlist. She also starred with Roberto "Fourth" Solomon Pagotan IV in the Dear MOR episode, the "Kate and Red Story". In April 2015, she released her first single "Tanong Mo Sa Bituin" as part of Star Record's compilation album "OPM Fresh". In June 2015, she played her first lead role in the film Stars Versus Me by Tandem Entertainment.
In February 2016, Racal was introduced as one of the members of all-girl dance group Girltrends on the noontime show It's Showtime, where was tagged as "Magnificent Girltrend Maris" and became the group's Team Young member. She also played a supporting role in the comedy-drama series We Will Survive. In October 2016, Racal performed in her first OneMusicPH's digital concert "Double Hearts", where she debuted her original song "Take It All Away". In the same month, she also appeared in the film The Third Party. In December 2016, Racal played the role of Maxine in the 2016 Metro Manila Film Festival box office entry film Vince and Kath and James.
In January 2017, Racal was launched as one of the members of ASAP's all-girl song-and-dance group BFF5 (pronounced as BFFs), alongside Loisa Andalio, Ylona Garcia, Andrea Brillantes, and Kira Balinger. Her inclusion in the new group led Racal to leave Girltrends. Later on, she made her guest appearance in the action drama series FPJ's Ang Probinsyano, and a starring role in Wansapanataym Presents: Annika PINTAsera. She also performed the song "Paano Mo Nalaman", a Tagalog version of "How Did You Know", for the romantic drama series Ikaw Lang Ang Iibigin. On July 8, 2017, Racal held her first major concert "4 of A Kind: The Un4gettable Concert" at the Music Museum, alongside Loisa Andalio, Sue Ramirez and Kristel Fulgar. She also starred in the horror-thriller film Bloody Crayons, drama series Hanggang Saan, and the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival box office entry film Haunted Forest.
On February 8, 2018, Racal headlined the first Star Events FanCon at Teatrino, Promenade with Iñigo Pascual as her special guest. Her original song "Tala" was released as her newest single during the event. A few days later, she debuted as co-host for Iñigo Pascual's online show One Music POPSSSS, appearing on the first episode of the fourth season. Her latest single "Ikaw Lang Sapat Na" was released in May 2018, as part of the soundtrack of romantic drama series Since I Found You. In September 2018, she became a certified recording artist with the release of her first album entitled "Stellar". In October 2018, she was one of the ten interpreters for Himig Handog 2018 with a song entitled "Sugarol" composed by Jan Sabili. In 2019, Racal joined the cast of family drama series Pamilya Ko in the role of Peachy Mabunga. Pamilya Ko was later canceled in 2020, following the loss of ABS-CBN's franchise in the middle of COVID-19 pandemic.
2023–present: Breakthrough with Can't Buy Me Love
In 2023, Racal starred in the comedy thriller and Slamdance Film Festival entry Marupok AF (Where is the Lie?). She also appeared in the body-swapping comedy Here Comes the Groom. The film is an entry to the 1st Summer Metro Manila Film Festival and the sequel to the 2010 film Here Comes the Bride. She also led the series Simula sa Gitna opposite Khalil Ramos.
In the same year, Racal starred in the romantic drama series Can't Buy Me Love. She portrayed the role of Irene Tiu, a spoiled, alcoholic and sarcastic girl who has a rivalry with her half-sister Caroline Tiu, portrayed by Belle Mariano. Irene eventually develops a love-hate relationship with Snoop Manansala. Racal gained mainstream recognition for her role.
In 2024, Racal headlined the 49th Toronto International Film Festival entry Sunshine, directed by Antoinette Jadaone. A sports drama film, she did one year of gymnastics training for the titular role. She also appeared in the Metro Manila Film Festival entry And the Breadwinner Is..., led by Vice Ganda and directed by Jun Lana.
In 2025, Racal starred in the Netflix romantic comedy film Sosyal Climbers with Anthony Jennings. She also appeared in the action drama series Incognito. Racal then starred in the long-running Coco Martin-led series FPJ’s Batang Quiapo.
Music career
In July 2014, Racal and the Pinoy Big Brother: All In housemates released their own original album, composed of three songs ("Teen Love Song", "Turtle Song", and "Bibimbap") originally written and sung by themselves.
On October 28, 2014, she uploaded her cover of Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" song on her official YouTube account. The hashtag 'Thinking Out Loud Cover by Maris Racal' immediately trended worldwide on Twitter, as her fans expressed their delight for her cover song. The video garnered almost two million hits on YouTube since it was uploaded.
In February–March 2015, Racal shared her video blogs on YouTube known as "Maris My Song For You" episodes (with the direction of Alco Guerrero) where she gave her fans an opportunity to send her their messages and ask her to breathe new life to their favorite song. Her videos featured covers of songs "In My Life" and "True Colors", followed by "Firework", "Yellow", "Lost Stars", "'Til There Was You" and "Ordinary People".
In April 2015, Racal released her first single "Tanong Mo Sa Bituin", as part of Star Record's compilation album "OPM Fresh". The song became the official soundtrack for the film Stars Versus Me.
In August 2015, Racal covered Norah Jones' hit song "Don't Know Why" during the #HappyBirthdayWish1075 celebration. Her exclusive performance made her won the awards "Wishers’ Choice for Wishclusive Performance of the Year" and "Wishers’ Choice for Young Artist of the Year" in the 2016 Wish 107.5 Music Awards, held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on January 26, 2016.
On October 2, 2016, Racal was one of the four singer-performers (alongside Loisa Andalio, Sue Ramirez, and Kristel Fulgar) who headlined OneMusicPH's Double Hearts Digital Concert where she debuted her original song "Take It All Away".
During the grand press conference for the drama series Ikaw Lang ang Iibigin on April 24, 2017, Racal performed the song "Paano Mo Nalaman", a Tagalog version of "How Did You Know", and one of the soundtracks for the series, which premiered on May 1, 2017.
Personal life
Racal dated actor-singer Iñigo Pascual during their time as onscreen partners, but their partnership "didn't work out" and they remained as friends. After their split, Racal was linked to musician Rico Blanco from 2019 to 2024, after meeting at a friend's wedding. They announced their relationship in July 2021. Racal and Blanco later broke up in July 2024.
Besides her entertainment career, Racal also ventured into entrepreneurship and launched a prominent coffee shop on a popular beach in San Juan, La Union, called "Stream of Consciousness Coffee".
On September 21, 2025, Racal joined the 2025 Philippine anti-corruption protests in Manila. She also marched with the Philippine-Palestine Friendship Association.