Nelly Furtado

Nelly Furtado
ComIH
Furtado, with short, dark hair, stands in front of German adverts wearing glittery clothing
Furtado in 2017
Born
Nelly Kim Furtado

(1978-12-02) December 2, 1978 (age 45)
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • actress
Years active1996–present
Spouse
Demacio Castellon
​
​
(m. 2008; sep. 2016)​
Children3
AwardsFull list
Musical career
Genres
Labels
Websitenellyfurtado.com

Nelly Kim Furtado ComIH (/fərˈtɑːdoʊ/ fər-TAH-doh, European Portuguese: [fuɾˈtaðu]; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 45 million records, including 35 million in album sales worldwide,[3] making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. Critics have noted Furtado's musical versatility and experimentation with genres.[4][5][6][7]

Furtado first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired debut album, Whoa, Nelly! (2000), which was a critical and commercial success that spawned two top-10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, "I'm Like a Bird" and "Turn Off the Light". The former won her a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Furtado's introspective folk-heavy 2003 second album, Folklore, explored her Portuguese roots. Its singles received moderate success in Europe, but the album's underperformance compared to her debut was regarded as a sophomore slump.

Furtado's third album, Loose (2006), was a smash hit and became her bestselling album, with more than 10 million copies sold worldwide, also making it one of the bestselling albums of the 2000s.[8][9] Considered a radical image reinvention, the album spawned four successful number-one singles worldwide: "Promiscuous" (featuring Timbaland), "Maneater", "Say It Right", and "All Good Things (Come to an End)". Her 2007 feature on Timbaland's "Give It to Me" in the same era also topped the charts in the US and overseas. Furtado's critically acclaimed duet with James Morrison, "Broken Strings", also topped the charts in Europe in 2008.[10]

She released her first Spanish-language album, Mi Plan, in 2009, which won her a Latin Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Album. In 2012, Furtado released her nostalgia-inspired fifth album The Spirit Indestructible. Furtado split with her management and went independent thereafter, releasing her indie-pop sixth album, The Ride, in 2017 under her own label Nelstar Entertainment[pt]. Her seventh album, 7, was released on 20 September 2024.

She has won many awards throughout her career, including one Grammy Award from seven nominations, one Latin Grammy Award, ten Juno Awards, one BRIT Award, one Billboard Music Award, one MTV Europe Music Award, one World Music Award, and three Much Music Video Awards. Furtado has a star on Canada's Walk of Fame, and was awarded Commander of the Order of Prince Henry on February 28, 2014, by Aníbal Cavaco Silva, the then-President of Portugal.[11][12][13]

  1. ^ "Floridian: The musical future is now". St. Petersburg Times. March 17, 2002. Archived from the original on August 8, 2002. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
  2. ^ Charles Trainor Jr. "Singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado makes a smart entry into the Latin music market". PopMatters.com. Archived from the original on August 28, 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  3. ^ "Nelly Furtado and Dom Dolla Release Eat Your Man". Sony Music Canada – The official Sony Music Canada website. June 2, 2023. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  4. ^ Nichols, Natalie (August 23, 2000). "Nelly Furtado Takes the Reins, Debuts With Talent, Versatility". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
  5. ^ Kaplan, Ilana (January 30, 2017). "The Best Songs You Missed Last Week: Ásgeir, Nelly Furtado, More". The Observer. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
  6. ^ Murphy, Lauren (March 30, 2017). "Nelly Furtado: The Ride – breathlessly beat-driven tunes". The Irish Times. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
  7. ^ Lester, Paul (September 15, 2009). "Nelly Furtado Mi Plan Review". BBC News. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
  8. ^ "Spanish album an unexpected 'Plan' for Furtado". Kuwait Times. August 30, 2009. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  9. ^ Qilson, Jen (August 1, 2008). "Five Rings To Rule Them All". Billboard. p. 24. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  10. ^ Fraser McAlpine (December 2, 2008). "Chart Blog: James Morrison ft. Nelly Furtado – 'Broken Strings'". BBC. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
  11. ^ "abola.pt". Archived from the original on May 11, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  12. ^ "Cavaco condecora personalidade portuguesas e luso-canadiana, entre as quais a cantora Nelly Furtado". ionline. Archived from the original on September 13, 2014. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  13. ^ CA. "Cavaco Silva condecora Nelly Furtado com a comenda da Ordem do Infante D. Henrique". correiodosacores.info. Archived from the original on March 2, 2014. Retrieved March 2, 2014.