In 2016 , Santiago auditioned for season six of '' Românii au talent '' . She ultimately reached the finals of the competition , but lost to Laura Bretan . After the competition , she was signed to Romanian record label Cat Music . Her debut single " Unpredictable " was released the following year , produced by Romanian singer and producer Smiley . In 2017 , she began collaborating with Romanian band Jukebox . Together , they released three singles together : " Vocea ta " , " Auzi cum bate " , and " Sugar Gumalaw " . " Auzi cum bate " was later selected to compete in '' Selecția Națională 2018 '' , the Romanian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 . Santiago and Jukebox advanced from the second semi-final held in Timișoara , and later competed in the final held in Bucharest on 25 February 2018 . They ultimately placed fourth . Later in 2018 , Santiago auditioned for season eight of '' X Factor Romania '' . She advanced past her initial audition , and was mentored by Romanian singer Delia Matache during the course of the show . Santiago ultimately was crowned the winner of the competition on 23 December 2018 . In January 2019 , Romanian singer Dan Bittman announced his withdrawal from '' Selecția Națională 2019 '' due to scheduling conflicts , and the Romanian broadcaster Romanian Television ( TVR ) announced that two wildcard entries would replace him in the competition . A week later , Santiago was announced as one of the two wildcards with the song " Army of Love " . Santiago competed in the first semi-final on 27 January 2019 , advancing to the final after winning the jury vote . She competed in the final on 17 February 2019 , and placed third behind Ester Peony
Eurovision Song Contest 2018
Eurovision Song Contest 2018
Bella Santiago