What differs Nelly Furtado from the multitude of female alt-pop acts is that she isn’t just a golden voice with little musical talent to back her up. This woman oozes talent, whether it is in her vocals, her vast instrument-playing abilities (guitar, ukulele, trombone), her impressive song-writing (she wrote, or co-wrote every track on her debut CD), or even her linguistic ability (she speaks English, Portuguese and Hindi).
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In Nelly Fortado, Canada may have found it’s newest female superstar. In the tradition of so many great performers before her (Shania, Celine, Sarah to mention a few), she may soon become the next one-name hit from the Great North, offering her catchy blend of thoughtful song-writing and eclectic pop beats.
Nelly Furtado hails from Victoria, a quaint, quiet town on the western shores of British Columbia. Although it will always remain quaint, chances are it will not remain quiet for long. Between press anxious to dig further into the beginnings of the singer to fans eager to hear the unique musings of the young minstrel, Victoria is destined for a wake-up.
Furtado found her way into the music world kind of on a whim. Picture a Toronto talent show filled with primarily black performers, and then picture a small white Portuguese-Canadian singer bravely leaping onto stage to let her voice be heard.
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Heard she was, by The Philosopher King’s manager Gerald King nonetheless, and the result was a demo produced by King and Brian West. With the encouragement of the two men, Furtado returned to Toronto to further pursue a music career. The hard work paid off, and Nelly Furtado signed her first record contract with DreamWorks Records.
Furtado’s debut album, Whoa Nelly is a rarity amongst recent releases. While many bands and artists make due with strong songwriting or a talent for pop melodies, Nelly combines the two aspects masterfully, creating a sound that somehow stands out as unique (difficult in the cluttered bog of the pop world). Her voice is like nothing you’ve every heard: not particularly strong, not particularly smooth but distinctively unmistakable. She sounds like a Pixie in search of love…a long masterful quest for the definition of the World. If you haven’t heard of Nelly Furtado yet, prepare yourself, as this woman is going places.
Erin Boyle CanEHdian.com, 2000
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