Moldova’s work of art: Natalia Barbu is taking centre stage

After storming through Moldova’s national Eurovision selection competition, Etapa Națională, Natalia Barbu has her ticket to Sweden.

But this isn’t Natalia’s first time at the Eurovision Song Contest. She performed for Moldova in 2007 with the song Fight, hitting the stage with a fiery rock performance, complete with scarf dancing and impressively high notes. With an outstanding performance, she finished in 10th place.

Since then, she’s built a solid music career. Natalia has released 4 studio albums and 20 singles, as well as putting on concerts for her fans. As if that’s not enough, she also writes most of her own music, including her Eurovision 2024 song, In The Middle. On top of singing and composing, Natalia is an accomplished violinist, which she showed off in her Etapa Națională performance.

Natalia already knows what it’s like to perform on the Eurovision stage, so she’ll no doubt have advice for the other artists. She’s got plenty of experience performing in other places too. One of the strangest venues was a building in a little village, where the roof was broken, which let in the snow. That sounds pretty magical, and we know a thing or two about dramatic performances.

If we were looking for Natalia at the funfair, she says she’d most likely be on something fun and dangerous. Just keep yourself safe ahead of the big performance, Natalia…

Natalia’s Eurovision hero is another singer who’s competed in the Contest twice (and won twice!) — Sweden's Loreen. She says: “My admiration for her stems from the powerful, inspiring, and authentic qualities she embodies as an artist. Her exceptional vocal prowess also demonstrated a deep emotional connection to her art.”

One of Natalia’s favourite songs is Loreen’s Tattoo, which she won Eurovision with in 2023. Her other top tunes include Kygo and Whitney Houston’s Higher Love, Dua Lipa’s Levitating, and Stevie Wonder’s Superstition. She’s also a big fan of Imagine Dragons, with Thunder and Believer making her top tracks alongside some of their other songs.

Ahead of her trip to Malmö, Natalia says that she most associates Sweden with Vikings, Volvo, and runes. She’s looking forward to enjoying the moment, feeling the beauty of the country, and discovering more about Sweden’s culture. She’s also excited to meet interesting artists, and there will be plenty of those at Eurovision!

Look out for Natalia on upcoming episodes of the Official Eurovision Song Contest Podcast.

You can learn more about Natalia Barbu from Moldova right here.