A Filipino singer was the grand winner of the eighth season of reality singing show X Factor Romania. On December 23, 29-year-old Bella Santiago was among the top four finalists in the competition and wowed both the judges and audience with her performance, earning her the grand prize, Rappler reported.
Santiago, originally from Dasmariñas in the Philippines, won a 100,000 euro cash prize. She was the first Filipino to win the competition in Romania. She impressed the judges during her audition and became the first Filipina to reach the live segment of the show.
Santiago competed against seven others and won the competition with her mashup performance of Beyonce’s songs. The judges compared Santiago to Beyonce, saying Santiago showed a different kind of artistry in her performances.
The Filipina worked as a professional singer in Malaysia before moving to Romania to pursue a career in music. In 2017, she made it to the finals of Romania’s Got Talent and signed with major Romanian record label Cat Music. She also joined Eurovision Romania 2018 with her band Jukebox and finished fourth.
