Maria Lourdes Aragon is a singer from Manitoba

Manitoba

Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, of Filipino

Filipino people

The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....

 descent. Aragon gained fame after a YouTube

YouTube

YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 video of her performing Lady Gaga

Lady GaGa

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...

's "Born This Way

Born This Way

Born This Way is the second studio album by American recording artist Lady Gaga that was released on May 23, 2011, by Interscope Records. The album is a follow-up to her internationally-successful albums The Fame and The Fame Monster...

" went viral

Viral video

A viral video is one that becomes popular through the process of Internet sharing, typically through video sharing websites, social media and email...

.

As a YouTube sensation

On February 16, 2011, a video of Aragon performing a cover of "Born This Way

Born This Way (song)

"Born This Way" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga, from her second studio album, Born This Way. Written and produced by Gaga, Fernando Garibay, Jeppe Laursen and DJ White Shadow, "Born This Way" was developed while Gaga was on the road with The Monster Ball Tour...

" by Lady Gaga

Lady GaGa

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...

 was posted to her sister's YouTube

YouTube

YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 channel to showcase her talent to friends and family. The video caught Lady Gaga's attention when entertainment blogger Perez Hilton

Perez Hilton

Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr. , better known as Perez Hilton , is an American blogger and television personality. His blog, Perezhilton.com , is known for posts covering gossip items about celebrities...

 sent Gaga her Born This Way Cover, and she was so impressed by Maria's performance that she retweeted

Twitter

Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...

 a link to the video. In a week, her video reached over 11 million views. As of November 20, 2011, the video had over 44 million hits.

During an interview on HOT 103

CKMM-FM

CKMM-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting a top 40 format in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is known as Hot 103. Hot 103 is owned and operated by Astral Media...

 in Winnipeg, Lady Gaga called into the show to tell Maria how moved she had been by her performance. Lady Gaga then invited an already surprised Aragon to perform "Born This Way" with her at The Monster Ball Tour

The Monster Ball Tour

The Monster Ball Tour was the second worldwide concert tour by American recording artist Lady Gaga. Staged in support of her album The Fame Monster and comprising a set list of songs from that and her debut album The Fame , the tour visited arenas and stadiums from 2009 through 2011...

 concert in Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

. On March 3, 2011, Aragon joined Lady Gaga on stage at the Air Canada Centre

Air Canada Centre

The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....

, where they performed an acoustic duet of "Born this Way" with Maria sitting on Gaga's lap, playing piano and Lady Gaga working the pedals. Aragon later rejoined Lady Gaga and her team of back up dancers for an uptempo finale version of "Born this Way".

American talk show host Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen Lee DeGeneres is an American stand-up comedienne, television host and actress. She hosts the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and was also a judge on American Idol for one year, having joined the show in its ninth season....

 took notice of her from emails and petitions requesting for Aragon's appearance on the show and eventually invited Aragon to appear on her show

The Ellen DeGeneres Show

The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...

 on February 21, 2011, where Aragon again performed "Born This Way" on the piano earning a standing ovation from the audience. On March 29, 2011, Aragon performed "Born This Way" at her home for Canadian Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Canada

The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...

 Stephen Harper

Stephen Harper

Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...

. She and Harper also performed a duet of John Lennon

John Lennon

John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

's song "Imagine

Imagine (song)

"Imagine" is a song written and performed by the English musician John Lennon. It is the opening track on his album Imagine, released in 1971...

".

In 2011, she appeared in commercials for HTC

HTC

-Companies:*HTC Corporation, a Taiwanese manufacturer of handheld devices*Harrisonville Telephone Company, a telephone company in Waterloo, Illinois*Horry Telephone Cooperative, a telephone cooperative in Horry County, South Carolina...

 singing the K'naan

K'naan

K'naan , born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, is a Somali Canadian poet, rapper, singer, songwriter and instrumentalist.-Biography:Born in Somalia, K'naan spent his childhood in Mogadishu and lived there during the Somali Civil War, which began in 1991. His aunt, Magool, was one of Somalia's most...

 song, Wavin' Flag

Wavin' Flag

"Wavin' Flag" is a song by Somali-Canadian artist K'naan from his album Troubadour. The song was a global hit, reaching the top ten in 19 charts around the world and was chosen as Coca-Cola's promotional anthem for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, hosted by South Africa. The English version was released as...

 and Gap Kids

Gap (clothing retailer)

The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...

, singing "I Want Candy

I Want Candy

"I Want Candy" is a song written and originally recorded by The Strangeloves in 1965 that went to number 11 in the United States. It is a famous example of a song that uses the Bo Diddley beat.-Original version:...

". She performed at the 2011 Canada Day concert on Parliament Hill, which included the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in attendance, as part of their 2011 royal tour of Canada

2011 royal tour of Canada

The 2011 royal tour of Canada by Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, took place between June 30 and July 8, 2011. The tour saw the newlywed couple visit all of Canada's regions: Western Canada, Central Canada, Atlantic Canada, and Northern Canada...

.

In Philippines and Self-titled Album

On July 20, 2011, Aragon arrived in the Philippines where she signed a contract with Star Records

Star Records

Star Records, referring loosely to two companies, Star Recording and Star Songs Music Publishing, is an ABS-CBN Entertainment Group company whose main lines of business include: producing, developing and distributing audio and video content; music publishing; events production and music artists...

, the same recording company who also signed Charice. Her first self-titled album consist of seven tracks including "You're My Home", composed by Odette Quesada and originally sang by Lea Salonga

Lea Salonga

Lea Salonga-Chien is a mezzo-soprano singer and actress from the Philippines well known for originating the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon, for which she won the Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics and Theatre World awards.She was the first Asian to play the roles of Éponine and...

 for the Star Cinema

Star Cinema

ABS-CBN Film Productions, Inc. , is the wholly owned film production subsidiary of ABS-CBN Corporation. It is the Philippines' largest film production, producing most of the highest grossing films in the Philippines.-1994:...

 film

Cinema of the Philippines

Cinema of the Philippines started with the introduction of the first moving pictures to the country on January 1, 1897 at the Salón de Pertierra in Manila. The following year, local scenes were shot on film for the first time by a Spaniard, Antonio Ramos, using the Lumiere Cinematograph...

, Way Back Home

Way Back Home (2011 film)

Way Back Home is a 2011 Filipino family drama film . The film is produced and distributed by Star Cinema and is set to premiere domestically in the Philippines in August 17, 2011....

. Among the songs in Aragon's album is her rendition of Lady Gaga

Lady GaGa

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...

's “Born This Way

Born This Way (song)

"Born This Way" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga, from her second studio album, Born This Way. Written and produced by Gaga, Fernando Garibay, Jeppe Laursen and DJ White Shadow, "Born This Way" was developed while Gaga was on the road with The Monster Ball Tour...

," which catapulted her to international recognition. To promote the album, she appeared on several ABS CBN

ABS-CBN Network

ABS-CBN commonly referred to as the Kapamilya Network or simply Dos , is a major commercial television network in the Philippines owned and operated by the ABS-CBN Corporation. It was launched in October 23, 1953 just a few months after the first broadcast of NHK of Japan...

 shows including the musical variety show, ASAP Rocks

ASAP (variety show)

ASAP Rocks is a musical variety show in the Philippines broadcast by ABS-CBN in the Philippines. The show is presented by its main hosts Zsa Zsa Padilla, Gary Valenciano and Martin Nievera. The show first premiered on February 5, 1995, and airs live Sundays...

 and series of mall shows.
Manny Pacquiao chose Maria to sing the Philippine national anthem on his upcoming fight with Manuel Marquez on Nov 12,2011. She sang the Opening Theme of Junior MasterChef Pinoy Edition, Entitled "Bilib na Bilib".

Together with the University of the Philippines' Concert Chorus, Aragon also starred in the 2011 ABS-CBN Christmas Station ID, titled "Da Best ang Pasko ng Pilipino." She also sang the 2011 Christmas Jingle of SM Supermalls

SM Supermalls

SM Supermalls, owned by SM Prime Holdings, Inc., is a chain of shopping malls in the Philippines, with 42 malls across the Philippines as well as branches in China....

 entitled SM ChriSMs.

On November 12, 2011, she had sung the Philippine National Anthem at MGM Studios for the Pacquiao and Marquez fight.

Studio Album

Artist	Albums	Tracks	Year	Records
Maria Aragon	Maria Aragon	1. Born This Way 2. You're My Home 3. I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing 4. Follow Your Dream 5. Can't Smile Without You 6. Kung Bubuksan Mo Lang Ang Puso 7. One Hope One Dream	2011	Star Records Star Records Star Records, referring loosely to two companies, Star Recording and Star Songs Music Publishing, is an ABS-CBN Entertainment Group company whose main lines of business include: producing, developing and distributing audio and video content; music publishing; events production and music artists...

External links