Yasmien Kurdi

**Yasmien Yuson Kurdi-Soldevilla** (born on January 25, 1989 in San Juan City, Metro Manila), better known as **Yasmien Kurdi**, is a Filipino actress, singer and model. She is known for the roles of Sang'gre Mira in the 2005 series *Encantadia*, Salve Dizon de Leon in the remake of *Babangon Ako't Dudurugin Kita* and Shayne Rodrigo in the hit remake *Saan Darating Ang Umaga?*, a role originally played by Maricel Soriano.

In recent years, Kurdi is known in *Rhodora X* as Angela Ferrer, which started a trend in her career, then as Dolores Macabuhay in the remake of *Yagit* and as Ysabel Salvacion in *Sa Piling ni Nanay*.

Kurdi recently starred as Thea Balagtas-Angeles in the 2018 series *Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka*, followed by the *Justice for Love* duology as Alicia Salvacion, its unprecedented success brought the then-largely unknown Kurdi to international attention.

Current appearances include *Start-Up PH*, the Philippine adaptation of the 2020 Korean series of the same name, and the 2023 series *The Missing Husband*.

## Personal life

*For a video version, click here.*
Yasmien Yuson Kurdi was born on January 25, 1989 in San Juan City, to a Lebanese father, Mohammad Kurdi, and Miriam Ong-Yuson, a Chinese-Filipino who is a member of the Iglesia ni Cristo.

While born in the Philippines, she spent most of her early life in Kuwait because of her father's work there, and was also present along with her family during the events of the Gulf War.

She studied elementary in Jabriya Indian School, then high school in Angelicum College, and graduated magna cum laude with a degree of political science in Arellano University.

By 2012, she is now married to Rey Soldevilla, who is a pilot. In the same year, she gave birth to her first daughter, Ayesha Zara, on November 22.

Two years later, she was diagnosed with a cyst on her vocal folds. She was scheduled for surgery in July 2014 to remove the cyst. According to her doctor, there was no guarantee that her voice would fully recover after the operation.

On January 17, 2022, Kurdi herself confirmed that she tested positive for COVID-19, along with her husband and daughter.

## Career

### 2003–2006: Beginnings

At an early age, Kurdi joined school pageants and singing contests, which will eventually lead to her participation in the first season of *StarStruck* in 2003, where she became one of the Final Four contestants. Despite losing to Jennylyn Mercado, she still received ₱100,000 pesos and an exclusive management contract from GMA Network, that started her career as an actress.

Kurdi's first appearance outside of *StarStruck* was in the drama series *Click*, where she portrays Leilani. Her next major appearance was in the 2005 series *Encantadia*, as Sang'gre Mira, the daughter of Sang'gre Pirena (portrayed by Sunshine Dizon). Around the same time, she released her first album, *In the Name of Love*, which gained platinum status and won the Song of the Year award at the 2006 IFM Pinoy Music Awards.

### 2007–2011: Breakthrough

After appearing in the 2006 series *Bakekang*, she starred in the 2007 remake of *Pati Ba Pintig ng Puso* with JC de Vera. The series' success led to her being cast with JC de Vera again in the following years, starting with the *Pasan Ko Ang Daigdig* series remake, where she potrays Lupe Velez, and in the 2008 remake of *Babangon Ako't Dudurugin Kita*, as Salve Dizon de Leon.

By 2008, Kurdi appeared as Shayne Rodrigo in another series remake, *Saan Darating Ang Umaga?*, while she was given more smaller roles afterward, like in the *Dear Friend* episode "Madrasta", and in *SRO Cinermaserye*. In 2010, she was cast in *Grazilda* as Cindy, in her first antagonist role, which redefined her career. In the 2011 series *Amaya*, she portrays Apila.

### 2012–2013: Hiatus

Starting in 2012, Kurdi quit show business to concentrate on her college education and raising a family, after she got married to Rey Soldevilla, and giving birth to her first daughter, Ayesha Zara, later coming back in 2013 after a two-year hiatus.

### 2014–2019: Rising popularity

Her first appearance following her hiatus was in *Anna Karenina*, as Margarita Monteclaro. By 2014, she was cast as Angela Ferrer in the 2014 series *Rhodora X*, that started a trend in her career, portraying a character that experiences a series of unfortunate events. At the same time, she was diagnosed with a cyst on her vocal folds, forcing the conclusion of *Rhodora X* in May 2014.

After undergoing surgery in June 2014, Kurdi was cast as Dolores Macabuhay in the remake of *Yagit*. This series is notable for being her longest appearance on record, with 203 episodes in total. Her next major appearance was in the 2016 series *Sa Piling ni Nanay*, as Ysabel Salvacion. The series was extended various times due to its high ratings, eventually reaching 154 episodes.

In 2018, Kurdi was cast as Thea Balagtas-Angeles in the series *Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka*, where she won Best Drama Actress in the 32nd PMPC Star Awards for TV. By 2019, she starred in two series; *Hiram na Anak* and *Beautiful Justice*.

### 2020 – present: Critical acclaim and international attention

#### *Justice for Love* duology (2020 - 2022)

*Main article: Justice for Love duology*
During 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic affected the entertainment industry, shutting down or delaying production of television programs and films.

Nonetheless, she was cast in the 2020 film *#JusticeForLove: End of the World* as Alicia Salvacion. The film's unprecedented success further redefined her career, winning multiple awards for her performance, while renewing interest in both the disaster film genre, and the real-world discussion of asteroid impact avoidance. A prequel series was produced in 2021 in response to the film's success. The duology introduced Kurdi to an international audience, which also praised her acting and performance.

At the same time, she appeared in *Las Hermanas* as Dorothy Manansala, ending the trend that began with 2014's *Rhodora X*.

#### *Start-Up PH* & *The Missing Husband* (2022 - present)

By 2022, Kurdi was cast in the Philippine adaptation of the 2020 Korean series *Start-Up* as Katrina "Ina" Diaz, the Philippine counterpart of Won In-jae, originally portrayed by Kang Han-na. Due to the *Justice for Love* duology becoming a phenomenal success, the series quickly became the most anticipated Philippine television series of 2022.

She was also cast in the short film *The Final Moments*, the conclusion of the *Justice for Love* duology, and as Millie Rosales in the 2023 series *The Missing Husband*.

## Selected filmography

*Due to her long filmography, this section will focus specifically on select roles that is well-known only. For the full list, click here.*

## Songs

*Main article: Yasmien Kurdi/Songs*
As a singer, Yasmien Kurdi released two studio albums. Her first album, *In the Name of Love*, was released in 2005 and attained platinum status, while in 2007, her second album, *Love Is All I Need*, reached gold status.

## Links

* Yasmien Kurdi on Facebook
* Yasmien Kurdi on Twitter
* Yasmien Kurdi on Instagram
* Yasmien Kurdi on YouTube
* Yasmien Kurdi on Spotify
* Yasmien Kurdi on IMDb

## Trivia

* In most of her personal posts and videos, she could be heard or seen frequently using the word *pangga*, which means "dear" or "love" in English, and is used in various languages across the Western Visayas region, particularly Hiligaynon, Aklanon, Capiznon, and Kinaray-a, suggesting that she also has some kind of descent from the region.
* Most notable works that redefined her acting career include *Encantadia* in 2005, *Grazilda* in 2010, *Rhodora X* in 2014, and *#JusticeForLove: End of the World* in 2020.
* Due to a trend in her career, all of her appearances starting from *Rhodora X* in 2014 until *Las Hermanas* in 2021 features Kurdi portraying the exact same character over and over, one that experiences a series of unfortunate events, just different names and backstory in each appearance.
* In one of her videos, it is revealed that she is actually suffering from asthma, as she takes an inhaler with her most of the time.

## Notes

2. ↑ While her full name is Alicia in *Beautiful Justice*, she is always referred to simply as Alice, both in-universe and all external sources. Thus, *#JusticeForLove: End of the World* is the first instance her character is actually referred to as Alicia.
3. ↑ In some languages however, such as Hiligaynon, the word for "dear" or "love" is actually *Palangga*.
4. ↑ Western Visayas consists of six provinces (Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo and Negros Occidental) and two highly urbanized cities (Bacolod and Iloilo City).

## References

This is a list of references for **Yasmien Kurdi**. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

1. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi breathes a sigh of relief after finishing home quarantine with family
2. ↑ NAGPOSITIVE KAMING LAHAT 😞 (OUR COVID EXPERIENCE) | Yasmien Kurdi
3. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi at Nadine Samonte, muling magsasama sa 'The Missing Husband'
4. ↑ IN PHOTOS: Kilalanin ang cast ng mystery drama series na 'The Missing Husband'
5. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi, hinirang na 'Most Inspiring Filipino Actress of the Year' sa Gintong Parangal
6. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi, kinilala sa ikatlong Dangal ng Lahi Awards
7. ↑ "Asia’s Valuable and Significant TV Actress of the Year"
8. ↑ " REMARKABLE LEAD ACTRESS OF HER GENERATION "
9. ↑ Image from Facebook
10. ↑ Image from Facebook
11. ↑ OUTSTANDING TV ACTRESS OF THE YEAR
12. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi, kinilala bilang 'Top Actress of the Year' sa Brand Asia Awards
13. ↑ Image from Facebook
14. ↑ “BEST ACTRESS 2022”
15. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi wins 'Best Actress 2022' at the 3rd Southeast Asian Achievement Awards
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "One night, two recognitions from two different award giving bodies."
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Yasmien Kurdi honored with two awards in one night: 'I am truly grateful and humbled'
18. ↑ Yasmien Kurdi on Twitter: Thank you Pangga!
19. ↑ FATHER'S DAY PANGGA! | Yasmien Kurdi
20. ↑ PAANO BA MANLIGAW SI PANGGA SA AKIN? MOTHER'S DAY ❤️😜 | Yasmien Kurdi