Mi Plan () is the fourth studio album, her first in Spanish, by Canadian recording artist Nelly Furtado. It was first released on September 11, 2009 by Furtado's own record label, Nelstar Entertainment, and distributed through Universal Music Latino. Album was produced primarily by Furtado with others contributions made by James Bryan, Lester Mendez, Salaam Remi, The Demolition Crew, Julieta Venegas and Brian West. Furtado described the songs on the album to be "simple love songs".

Mi Plan was generally well received by music critics, most applauding Furtado's vocals. The album reached number one on the US Latin Billboard chart, and was later a certified platinum Latin album by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album won a Latin Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Album in 2010. The lead single from the album, "Manos al Aire" was released in June 2009. The song became Furtado's first solo number one single on the US Billboard Top Latin Songs chart. She also became the first North American artist to top the chart with an original Spanish song. Two further singles came from the album, "Más", released in December 2009, and "Bajo Otra Luz", released in June 2010. The album was further supported by her 2010 Mi Plan Tour, her first tour reaching Latin America. A remix album was released in October 2010, featuring remixes of the singles.

Production

Furtado began working with guitarist and producer James Bryan on "My Plan", for a new possible English language album.(Posted: August 30, 2009) kuwaittimes.com. Kuwait Times Newspaper. Retrieved November 3, 2010. She said she would try to write songs in English and then in Portuguese but that she did not feel inspired. MTV.com. Retrieved November 3, 2010. She mentioned that fellow Canadian singer-songwriter Alex Cuba suggested that they try writing the lyrics in Spanish and then he would go on to write the melodies. After approving of the idea, she said that she, Cuba and Bryan started "really organically writing songs" in Spanish. Cuba then helped them pen more songs, including the title track, "Mi Plan", and "Manos al Aire". "Mi Plan" featured Cuba on vocals. domingolatino.co.nz. Retrieved October 4, 2010.Reed Johnson, (October 2, 2010) Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 4, 2010. According to Cuba, the three got together five times between September 2008 and February 2009 and wrote nine songs, six of which made it onto the album.(Posted: Nov. 25, 2009) T'Cha Dunlevy, nationalpost.com. National Post Inc. Retrieved November 4, 2010. Furtado also worked with Julieta Venegas, who wrote the song "Bajo Otra Luz" and also contributed to another song called "Vacación", playing the accordion. Altogether, Furtado wrote 24 Spanish-language songs, 12 of which made the final track list.Jen Wilson and Robert Thompson, interscope.com. Retrieved November 29, 2010.

Content

Furtado said that the album was a personal statement and that the central theme was love. She noted that her previous albums had songs that "explored certain aspects of love, but they're not really direct love songs" and the songs on Mi plan were more simple.(Posted Sept. 18, 2009) The Associated Press, new.music.yahoo.com. Yahoo! Inc. Retrieved November 3, 2010. She also claimed that she "wanted to abandon the dance-pop vibe of her last record and try a different sound." Furtado explained that she decided she wanted to perform in Spanish because she did not follow commercial or sales trends and that Mi Plan was "the next phase".Jocelyn Vena, (August 5, 2009) mtv.com. Retrieved November 4, 2010. She said that writing songs in Spanish felt "very liberating"(Posted: September 16, 2009) Belinda Goldsmith, reuters.com. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved November 5, 2010. allowing her to "express other emotions" singing in Spanish because, as she put it, "In English, especially as a woman, the moment you start to be angry, you get labelled bad-tempered like Alanis Morissette, or if you're too sad, you get written off as fragile and sappy."Mark Savage, news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved November 4, 2010.

The first track on the album is "Manos al Aire", an uptempo dance-influenced track, which Furtado says is about "having a heated argument" with her love interest. During the chorus, she puts up the "white flag" and "surrenders" to him.Nick Levine, (October 7, 2009) digitalspy.com. Retrieved November 4, 2010. Another song from the album entitled, "Bajo Otra Luz", Furtado proclaimed, is about "when you are in a relationship and you are under a light. You feel like something is glowing on you and there is something different about the world. You can’t put your finger on it."Jerry Nunn, WordPress. Retrieved November 14, 2010. The seventh track, "Suficiente Tiempo", is a description of the busy life of an overworked wife who is "trying to make time for a date night". Furtado said that the album was "purposefully collaboration-heavy" because she "want it to sound like a community effort. I wanted it to have all those layers of experience"Jake Jarvi, . sheridanroadmagazine.com. Sheridan Road Magazine. Retrieved November 23, 2010. She also collaborated with Josh Groban on a song entitled, "Silencio" and called the collaboration a "huge blessing." She felt it was important to feature "an artist that people know more for their English recordings" because she wanted to demonstrate that "language isn't a barrier when it comes to music."(Posted: July 28, 2009) . tourdates.co.uk. Retrieved November 23, 2010.

Critical reception

The album was generally well-received by critics: it scored 71/100 among professional music critics cited by Metacritic. Metacritic. Retrieved on 8 October 2009 In a positive review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic wrote that the album is "assured and cohesive" and claimed that it is her "strongest album yet". Billboard described the album as "straightforward songs that appeal to melodic sensibilities rather than rhythmic contraptions, the set is a mix of vulnerability and earnestness." The Boston Globe said "Furtado bridges pop sensibilities with Latin music" and also mentioned the songs, "Sueños" and "Silencio", saying that they "bring out the purity in Furtado’s vocals".

Digital Spy writer, Mayor Nissim, asserted that "aside from the vocals and lyrics, much of the music here wouldn't sound out of place in the UK or US charts, which is both a good and bad thing." He also went on to say that "the fact Manos and several other songs feature rather Americanised production can prevent them from completely hitting the mark" because, as he put it, "Furtado's tunes don't always get the Spanish wallop her vocals deserve." MusicOMH said in its review that "For the most part, the album is a pretty good listen" and claimed that songs from the album are "pleasant but never overly diverting." Paul Lester, a writer for BBC, gave the album a mixed review and said the music is "equally inoffensive". The writer compared it to her previous release, Loose and claimed that "Timbaland’s inventive approach to dance motion is much missed". Entertainment Weekly also stated, "Without the Midas touch of studio magician Timbaland, Furtado has only her nasal, pleasant-enough vocals and a distinctly middlebrow musicality." Kevin Liedel of Slant Magazine was very critical, writing, " manifests itself here in a labored and predictable fashion" and also said it is "heartless, with forced sincerity".

Chart performance

Mi Plan debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard Top Latin Albums chart on October 3, 2009, making it Furtado's first Latin number-one album.. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010. The album also debuted at number-one on the Latin Pop Albums chart, where it spent five weeks.. Billboard. Nielson Business Media, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010. On November 6, 2009, the album received a Latin album platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for selling over 100,000 copies. According to Nielson SoundScan, the album was the highest selling Latin pop album in 2009.(Posted: September 24, 2009) Reuters, new.music.yahoo.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011. It shipped over 13,000 copies in its first week. The album also entered the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart, peaking at number 39. Billboard 200 For Nelly Furtado. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 23, 2010. In Switzerland, Mi Plan entered the charts at number three and stayed in the top ten for five weeks. There, the album was certified gold for shipping over 15,000 units. At the 11th Annual Latin Grammy Awards, Furtado won the award for Best Female Pop Vocal Album.(Posted: November 12, 2010) Mandy Bierly, mix-music.ew.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 13, 2010.

Promotion

Prior to the album's release, three promotional singles were released exclusively on Apple's iTunes Store as a "Countdown to Mi Plan."(Posted: July 24, 2009) Nelly Furtado, . Universal Music Group. Retrieved July 26, 2009. "Más" was the first promotional single released on July 21, 2009. The next month, "Mi Plan" was released, followed by "Bajo Otra Luz" in early September. On October 26, 2010, a 12-track album entitled, Mi Plan Remixes was released, featuring singles released from Mi Plan. grandaentertainment.com. Granda Entertainment, LLC. Retrieved November 3, 2010. Before she began touring, Furtado appeared at various award shows and small venues, performing in places such as the 2009 ALMA Awards.(Posted: September 18, 2009) Team Celestrellas, celestrellas.com. AOL, Inc. Retrieved December 2, 2010. Furtado also appeared at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2010, performing a medley of "Fuerte" and "Bajo Otra Luz", alongside La Mala Rodríguez and The JabbaWockeeZ.Roger & Cowan, interscope.com. Retrieved November 13, 2010. The album was also supported by the Mi Plan Tour, which began on March 16, 2010, in Mexico and Venezuela and continued further into Latin America, with six more venues in Ecuador, Chile, Argentina and Brazil. (in Spanish). Agenda Universia. Portal Universia S.A. Retrieved December 3, 2010. nochelatina.com. Retrieved December 2, 2010. Furtado performed at Yas Arena in Abu Dhabi, supported by Taio Cruz and Tinchy Stryder.(Posted: November 28, 2010) Eduan Maggo, Al Nisr Publishing LLC. Retrieved December 2, 2010.

Singles

"Manos al aire" was released on June 30, 2009 as the lead single from the album, sent to worldwide radio with digital and mobile retail availability the next day. It was Furtado's first single to top the U.S. Billboard Top Latin Tracks. Billboard Latin Songs for Nelly Furtado. Prometheus Global Media. With the song, Furtado made history by becoming the first North American artist to reach number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart with an original Spanish song that was not translated from another language.(September 1, 2009) Jeremy Singer, andpop.com. andPOP Inc. Retrieved November 3, 2010. It achieved international success, peaking at number two in Germany, (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Czech Republic, (in Czech). Hitparáda - RADIO TOP100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200940 into search. and Italy Hung Medien. Retrieved November 23, 2010. while it reached the top twenty in various other countries such as Switzerland, France and Spain. aCharts.us. Retrieved November 23, 2010.

"Más" was the second single released from the album. It was released as a download single on December 18, 2009, in Germany. Nelly-furtado.de. November 8, 2009. It did not perform as well as "Manos al Aire", peaking at number 25 on the Billboard Latin Pop Airplay chart. Billboard Latin Pop Songs for Nelly Furtado. Prometheus Global Media. An Italian version of the song was digitally released on January 22, 2010. itunes.apple.com. Apple, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010.

"Bajo otra luz" was digitally released from iTunes in Canada and Mexico on August 31, 2009. itunes.apple.com. Apple, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010.. itunes.apple.com. Apple, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010. It premiered as the final single from the album on US radio in early May 2010 with digital downloading available on June 15, 2010. Amazon.com, Inc. Retrieved November 23, 2010. It was the least successful single from the album, not charting anywhere.

Personnel

Credits below are adapted from the Mi Plan liner notes.(2009) Album notes for Mi Plan by Nelly Furtado . Nelstar Entertainment, Inc. (Universal Music Latino).

Production

*Andrés Recio – executive producer, A&R

*Nelly Furtado – executive producer, producer, mixing

*Chris Smith – executive producer

*James Bryan – producer, guitar, drums, keyboards, engineer

*Julieta Venegas – producer, accordion

*Lester Méndez – producer, percussion, guitar, keyboards, mixing, engineer, string arrangements

*Brian West – producer

*The Demolition Crew – producers

*Salaam Remi – producer, drums, keyboards

*Vanessa Freebairn-Smith – cello

*Alex Grant – cello

*Daniel Stone – percussion

*Rafael Padilla – percussion

*Roger Travassos – percussion

*Dan Warner – guitar, bass

*Dan Turco – guitar

*Vincent Henry – guitar

*Staybent Krunk-A-Delic – guitar, keyboards

*Ramón Stagnaro – guitar, cuatro

*Matt Scannell – guitar, bass

*Michael Anthony – drums

*Lee Levin – drums

*Julio Hernandez – bass

*Alex Cuba – bass

*Chris Gehringer – general mastering

*Demacio Castellón – mixing

*Franklin Emmanuel Socorro – mixing, engineer

*Jason "Metal" Donkersgoed – mixing, engineer

*Joel Numa – mixing, engineer

*Ron Taylor – digital editing

*Jorge Vivo – engineer

*Antonio Resendiz – engineer

*Julian Vazquez – engineer

*Allan Leschhorn – engineer

*Ryan Evans – engineer

*Enrique Larreal – engineer

*Carlos Alvarez – engineer

*Aureo Baqueiro – vocal producer

*Marc Rogers – double bass

*Javier Limón – flamenco guitar

*Tyler Armes – piano

*Nick Banns – string arrangements

*Sonus Quartet – strings

Guest appearances

*Alex Cuba appears courtesy of Caracol Records

*Alejandro Fernández appears courtesy of Universal Music Latino

*Julieta Venegas appears courtesy of Sony Music

*La Mala Rodríguez appears courtesy of Universal Music Spain

*Concha Buika appears courtesy of Warner Bros. and casalimon.tv

*Javier Limón appears courtesy of casalimon.tv

*Josh Groban appears courtesy of Warner Bros. Records

*Juan Luis Guerra appears courtesy of EMI Televisa Music

Charts and certifications

Charts

Year-end charts

Sales and certifications

See also

*List of number-one Billboard Top Latin Albums of 2009

*List of number-one Billboard Latin Pop Albums of 2009

Release history

References

Artist/Band Information

Nelly Kim Furtado (born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. She has sold 20 million albums worldwide and 18 million Singles, bringing her total sales to nearly 40 million records. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. It produced two more international singles: the more successful "Turn off the Light", and "Shit on the Radio (Remember the Days)". After giving birth to her daughter Nevis, her second studio album, Folklore was released. It was less commercially successful in the US. It produced three international singles: "Powerless (Say What You Want)", "Try", and "Força" (the theme of the 2004 European Football Championship).

In summer 2006 she released her third studio album, Loose. It is her biggest success to date worldwide. It produced the number-one hits "Promiscuous", "Maneater", "Say It Right" and "All Good Things (Come to an End)". After a 3 year break, in September 2009 she released her first full-length Spanish album Mi Plan along with her first single "Manos al Aire" which topped the Billboard Hot Latin Songs. This made Nelly the first North American singer to top the Billboard Hot Latin Chart with an original Spanish song. Further singles released were "Más" and "Bajo Otra Luz". On October 26, she released a remix album Mi Plan Remixes featuring the first single "Fuerte". She released her first greatest hits The Best of Nelly Furtado a month later on November 12, 2010.

Early life

Furtado was born on December 2, 1978, in Victoria, British Columbia to Portuguese parents, Maria Manuela and António José Furtado, both immigrants from the Azores. at DailyMusicGuide.com She was named after Soviet gymnast Nellie Kim. Her parents were born on São Miguel Island and emigrated to Canada in the late 1960s. Her siblings are Michael Anthony and Lisa Anne. She was raised in a Roman Catholic home.

At age four she began performing and singing in Portuguese. Furtado's first public performance was when she sang a duet with her mother at a church on Portugal Day. She began playing musical instruments at the age of nine, learning the trombone, ukulele and — in later years — the guitar and keyboards. At the age of 12, she began writing songs, and as a teenager, she performed in a Portuguese marching band.

Furtado has acknowledged her family as the source of her strong work ethic; she spent eight summers working as a chambermaid with her mother, along with her brother and sister who was a housekeeper in Victoria. She has stated that coming from a working class background has shaped her identity in a positive way.

Music career

1996–2002: Beginnings and Whoa, Nelly!

During a visit with her sister Lisa Anne in Toronto, the summer after eleventh grade, Furtado met Tallis Newkirk, member of the hip hop group Plains of Fascination. She contributed vocals to their 1996 album, Join the Ranks, on the track "Waitin' 4 The Streets". After graduating from Mount Douglas Secondary School in 1996, she moved to Toronto to reside with her sister Lisa Anne. The following year, she formed Nelstar, a trip hop duo with Newkirk. Ultimately, Furtado felt the trip-hop style of the duo was "too segregated" and believed it did not represent her personality or allow her to showcase her vocal ability. She left the group and planned to move back home.

In 1997, she performed at the Honey Jam talent show. Her performance attracted the attention of The Philosopher Kings singer Gerald Eaton, who then approached her to write with him. He and fellow Kings member Brian West helped Furtado produce a demo. She left Toronto, but returned again to record more material with Eaton and West. The material recorded during these sessions led to her 1999 record deal with DreamWorks Records, where she was signed by A&R executive Beth Halper, partner of Garbage drummer and record producer Butch Vig. Furtado's first single, "Party's Just Begun (Again)", was released that year on the Brokedown Palace: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.

Furtado continued the collaboration with Eaton and West, who co-produced her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, which was released in October 2000. Following the release of the album, Furtado headlined the "Burn in the Spotlight Tour" and also appeared on Moby's Area:One tour.

The album was an international success, supported by three international singles: "I'm like a Bird", "Turn off the Light", and "...On the Radio (Remember the Days)". It received four Grammy nominations in 2002, and her debut single won for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Furtado's work was also critically acclaimed for her innovative mixture of various genres and sounds. Slant Magazine called the album "a delightful and refreshing antidote to the army of 'pop princesses' and rap-metal bands that had taken over popular music at the turn of the millennium".

The sound of the album was strongly influenced by musicians who had traversed cultures and "the challenge of making heartfelt, emotional music that's upbeat and hopeful". According to Maclean's magazine, Whoa, Nelly! had sold six million copies worldwide as of August 2006.Intini, John. . Maclean's. August 25, 2006. Retrieved September 18, 2006. Portions of the song "Scared of You" are in Portuguese, while "Onde Estás" is entirely in Portuguese, reflecting Furtado's Portuguese heritage. The International Release of "Whoa Nelly" featured fellow Canadian Esthero on the song titled "I Feel You".

In 2002, Furtado appeared on the song "Thin Line", on underground hip hop group Jurassic 5's album Power in Numbers. The same year, Furtado provided her vocals to the Paul Oakenfold's song "The Harder They Come" from the album Bunkka and also made the song "These words are my own". She also had a collaboration with Colombian artist Juanes, in the song "Fotografia" where she showed her diversity of yet another language. Furtado was also featured in "Breathe" from Swollen Members "Monsters in the Closet" release; the video for "Breathe," directed by Spawn creator Todd MacFarlane, won the 2003 Western Canadian Music Awards Outstanding Video and MuchVIBE Best Rap Video.

2003–05: Folklore

Furtado's second album, Folklore, was released in November 2003. The final track on the album, "Childhood Dreams", was dedicated to her daughter, Nevis. The album includes the single "Força" (meaning "strength"/ "power" or "you can do it!" in Portuguese), the official anthem of the 2004 European Football Championship. Furtado performed this song in Lisbon at the championship's final, in which the Portugal national team played.

The lead single is "Powerless (Say What You Want)" and the second single is the ballad "Try". The album was not as successful as her debut, partly due to the album's less "poppy" sound, as well as underpromotion from her label DreamWorks Records. DreamWorks had just been sold to Universal Music Group. In 2005, DreamWorks Records, along with many of its artists including Furtado, was absorbed into Geffen Records.

"Powerless (Say What You Want)" was later remixed, featuring Colombian rocker Juanes, who had previously worked with Furtado on his track "Fotografía" ("Photograph"). The two would collaborate again on "Te Busqué" ("I searched for you"), a single from Furtado's 2006 album Loose.

2006–08: Loose

Nelly Furtado Rock im Park 2006 Zoomin.jpgthumbleftNelly Furtado performing live in Nuremberg, in 2006.

Furtado's third album, named Loose, after the spontaneous, creative decisions she made while creating the album, was released in June 2006. In this album, primarily produced by Timbaland, Furtado experiments with sounds from R&B, hip hop, and 1980s music. Furtado herself describes the album's sound as punk-hop, described as "modern, poppy, spooky" and as having "a mysterious, after-midnight vibe... extremely visceral". She attributed the youthful sound of the album to the presence of her two-year-old daughter. The album received generally positive reviews from critics, with some citing the "revitalising" effect of Timbaland on Furtado's music, and others calling it "slick, smart and surprising". Some have labeled her a "sellout" for seemingly abandoning her folk and rock roots in favour of hip hop and R&B, while others have accused her of attempting to "sex up" her music and appearance to sell more records.

Loose has become the most successful album of Furtado's career so far, as it reached number one not only in Canada and the United States, but also several countries worldwide. The album produced her first number-one hit in the United States, "Promiscuous", as well as her first number-one hit in the United Kingdom, "Maneater". The single "Say It Right" eventually became Furtado's most successful song worldwide, due to its huge success in Europe and in the United States, where it became her second number-one hit. "All Good Things (Come to an End)" became her most successful song in Europe, topping single charts in numerous countries there.

On February 16, 2007, Furtado embarked on the "Get Loose Tour". She returned in March 2007 to her hometown of Victoria to perform a concert at the Save-On Foods Memorial Centre. In honour of her visit, local leaders officially proclaimed March 21, 2007, the first day of spring, as Nelly Furtado Day. After the tour, she released her first live DVD/CD named Loose the Concert. Amazon.de The DVD: Track listing On April 1, 2007, Furtado was a performer at and host of the 2007 Juno Awards in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She won all five awards for which she was nominated, including Album of the Year and Single of the Year. She also appeared on stage at the Concert for Diana at Wembley Stadium in London on July 1, 2007, where she performed "Say It Right", "Maneater", and "I'm like a Bird".

In 2007, Furtado and Justin Timberlake were featured on Timbaland's single "Give It to Me",

which became her third number-one single in the U.S. and second in the UK. In late 2008, Furtado collaborated with James Morrison on a song called "Broken Strings" for his album "Songs for You, Truths for Me". The single was released on December 8 Article in Turkish and peaked at #2 on the UK Singles Chart in early January.

In 2007, Furtado leaked plans to Flare regarding a song she was set to duet for Kylie Minogue's return. However, the song was not featured on her album X but Minogue says the aforementioned song "is still outstanding" and has plans to pursue it. She said "I am looking forward to getting in the studio and doing it because I know Nelly and I would have a great time together". The track has not appeared on Minogue's 2010 album Aphrodite as well. In 2008, she sang with the Italian group "Zero Assoluto" the ballad Win or Lose - Appena prima di partire, released in Italy, France and Germany and whose video was shot in Barcelona. On December 31, 2008, El Diario La Prensa posted an article that Furtado is planning on recording songs in English and Spanish for her upcoming album and that it is "expected to launch on September 15, 2009".

2009–present: Mi Plan and The Best of Nelly Furtado

Furtado made a guest appearance on Flo Rida's new album, R.O.O.T.S., which was released on March 31, 2009. The track is titled "Jump". Furtado has also made a guest appearance on Divine Brown's Love Chronicles, co-writing and singing on the background of the song "Sunglasses".

In early March, a song called "Gotta Know" leaked onto the Internet and was said to be Nelly's. As response, on March 4, 2009, Furtado stated on her MySpace blog that the song is not hers and that she is recording two new albums: one in Spanish, and the other in Portuguese. Nelly Furtado announced via the Perez Hilton blog, that the Spanish album would be titled Mi Plan and the first single titled "Manos Al Aire" (in English, meaning "Hands in the Air").

The album will have twelve new songs, all in Spanish, as stated by Nelly in a message left in her official website

The second single "Más" was released on July 21, as it was announced on Nelly's official myspace. The third single "Mi Plan" (ft. Alex Cuba) was released on iTunes on August 11, 2009 and "Bajo Otra Luz" (ft. Julieta Venegas and La Mala Rodriguez) is the fourth and final countdown single and it was released on September 1, 2009. She also invited the Mexican star Alejandro Fernández to sing a duet song named "Sueños" ("Dreams"). The video for "Manos al Aire" premiered on July 29 on It's On with Alexa Chung. On November 11, 2010 Furtado won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Album for Mi Plan. She is the first Canadian to win a Latin Grammy award.

Furtado made a guest appearance on Canadian singer k-os's new album Yes!, collaborating alongside Saukrates on the song "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman," released in early July 2009. Nelly Furtado will make a guest appearance on Tiësto's single "Who Wants to Be Alone" on his new album Kaleidoscope which was released on October 6, 2009. Furtado also recorded "Manos al Aire" in Simlish for the new Sims 3 expansion, World Adventures

Nelly Furtado performing on February 14th in Vancouver.JPGthumbNelly Performing at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Victory Ceremony.

On February 12, 2010, Nelly Furtado sang in a duet with Bryan Adams at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. The Song was called "Bang The Drum" released on EMI album Sounds Of Vancouver 2010 (a commemorative album). On February 14, 2010, she appeared again at the Winter Olympic Victory Ceremony after the awarding of the medals for the athletes. On April 13, 2010, Nelly announced on her Twitter account that Lifestyle, her fourth English studio album, would not be released during the summer of 2010 and that she will go on a second leg of her Mi Plan Tour where she will get more inspiration for her upcoming album Lifestyle. Nelly Furtado is featured in a new song by N.E.R.D. called Hot N Fun. She also participated in the Young Artists for Haiti song, in which many Canadian artists came together and sang K'naan's inspirational song Wavin' Flag to raise money for the victims of the Haiti Earthquake.

To promote the tour in Brazil, on March 24, 2010, Furtado made a "VIP Pocket Show" in reality show program Big Brother Brasil 10 from Rede Globo, the country's leading channel. She performed 5 songs from the tour in acoustic versions ("Maneater", "I'm Like A Bird", "Try", "Say It Right" and "Turn Off The Light"). Nelly Furtado participated in the live DVD recording of the Brazilian singer Ivete Sangalo in Madison Square Garden on September 4, 2010. Nelly Furtado sang two new songs: "Girlfriend" and "Night is Young" on her concert in Warsaw, Poland.

Furtado was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in October 2010. On October 26, 2010, Furtado released Mi Plan Remixes featuring 12 tracks of remixed hits from "Mi Plan." This album included the Original Spanglish Version of "Fuerte," her final single from Mi Plan.

Furtado released her first greatest hits album entitled The Best of Nelly Furtado on November 16, 2010. The album's first single, "Night is Young" premiered on BBC Radio 1 on October 3, 2010. nellyfurtado.com Retrieved 2010-10-07 The song was first released for digital download on October 12, 2010 in Australia. Three new songs will be on the greatest hits album, including "Night Is Young," another collaboration Salaam Remi entitled "Girlfriend in the City," and the Lester Mendez produced track, left over from the Loose sessions, "Stars."

Other work

Record label

She has formed her own record label, Nelstar, in conjunction with Canadian independent label group Last Gang Labels. The first act signed to Nelstar is Fritz Helder & the Phantoms. Yahoo News, March 14, 2009 Furtado released her first Spanish single "Manos al Aire" on the new label.

Philanthropy

For World AIDS Day in 2006, Furtado took part in an AIDS awareness concert in South Africa hosted by MTV, BET, and Nike; fellow performers included Enrique Iglesias, Kanye West, Kelly Rowland, Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson MTV UK"> Furtado also hosted a program about AIDS on MTV, which also featured guests Alicia Keys and Justin Timberlake. MTV UK"/>

Music influences

During her pre-teenage to teenage years, Furtado embraced many musical genres, listening heavily to mainstream R&B, hip hop, alternative hip hop, drum and bass, trip hop, world music (including Portuguese fado, Brazilian bossa nova and Indian music), and a variety of others. She cites diverse influences, which include soul-trip/hip hop artists such as De La Soul, TLC, world music artists Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Amalia Rodrigues, as well as Caetano Veloso, Juanes, Jeff Buckley, Esthero, Björk, Cornershop, Oasis, Radiohead, The Smashing Pumpkins and Beck.

Furtado's music has also been influenced by her current residence, Toronto, which she calls "the most multicultural city in the entire world" and a place where she "can be any culture". Regarding Toronto's cultural diversity, she has said that she did not have to wait for the Internet revolution to learn about world music; she began listening to it at the age of five and continues to discover new genres.

Personal life

On September 20, 2003, in Toronto, Furtado gave birth to a daughter, Nevis, whose father is Jasper Gahunia . Furtado and Gahunia, who had been good friends for several years, remained together for four years until their breakup in 2005. Furtado told Blender magazine that they continue to be good friends and jointly share responsibility of raising Nevis.

In June 2006, in an interview with Genre magazine, when asked if she had "ever felt an attraction to women", Furtado replied "Absolutely. Women are beautiful and sexy". Some considered this an announcement of bisexuality, but in August 2006, she stated that she was "straight, but very open-minded". In November 2006, Furtado revealed that she once turned down US$ 500,000 to pose fully clothed in Playboy.

Furtado married Cuban sound engineer Demacio "Demo" Castellón, with whom she had worked on the Loose album, on July 19, 2008.

Furtado is one of several celebrities who have come under fire recently after 2011 reports from the New York Times and a WikiLeaks document revealed several entertainers had received extravagant sums to perform for the family of Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi. She has promised to donate to charity the $1 Million she received for a 2007 concert.

Discography

* Whoa, Nelly! (2000)

* Folklore (2003)

* Loose (2006)

* Mi Plan (2009)

* Lifestyle (2012)

Filmography

See also

* List of awards and nominations received by Nelly Furtado

References