Whatever Happened To Nelly Furtado?

In the mid-aughts, Nelly Furtado was a force to be reckoned with. The Canadian-born singer rose to fame in 2000 when she released her debut album, "Whoa, Nelly!" In 2006, she teamed up with powerhouse producer Timbaland and created stratospheric pop hits like "Promiscuous," "Say it Right," and "Give it to Me."

Furtado's third album, "Loose," achieved platinum status in 32 countries and cemented her as a global pop phenomenon. For a while, her music dominated radio stations and nightclubs everywhere. There was virtually no escaping Furtado — not that you'd want to anyway.

However, in 2007 — during the peak of her career — the Grammy winner seemingly vanished from the spotlight. During her hiatus, Furtado has stayed busy with mom duties, new passion projects, and even a retail job. She may have stepped back from the limelight, but she never stopped making music. And as of 2023, she's making a fierce comeback. These days, Furtado undoubtedly still has what it takes to make us say, "Whoa!"

In 2000, Nelly Furtado released her debut single, "I'm Like a Bird." The chirpy folk-pop anthem earned her a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performace. Her second single, "Turn Off the Light," climbed to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and grabbed the attention of legendary hip-hop producer Timbaland. Together, the pair churned out a supercharged remix of "Turn Off the Light."

Furtado teamed up with Timbaland again in 2006. This time, they created Furtado's third album, "Loose," which graced us with mega-hits like ""Maneater." The record sold 12 million copies and spawned a massive world tour. In 2007, the hitmaking duo joined forces with Justin Timberlake to create their next chart-topper, "Give It to Me." 

"Loose" catapulted Furtado into the glitzy, fast-paced world of global stardom. But after a while, the lifestyle began taking a toll on her. "After two years of intense touring and partying, I'd spend hours alone in my LA home, just staring at the floor," Furtado told the Daily Mail in 2017. "I felt like a fraud, believing that people liked me for my image and not my music." 

Life in the spotlight wasn't exactly easy for Nelly Furtado. Endless nights of parties and performances left little time for solitude. Behind the scenes, Furtado attempted to divide her time between performing and raising her young daughter, Nevis Gahunia. The singer was also newly single and navigating a co-parenting relationship with her ex, Jasper Gahunia (DJ Lil'Jaz).

The pressure came to a head in 2007, when she said she "had a nervous breakdown on stage." She continued, telling the Daily Mail, "I was on the Loose tour and my daughter was with me — I was being a mum and a singer on the road. I was exhausted. Then one night I went on stage and I suddenly realized how stressed out I was. I actually cried my way through the first two songs."

After her breakdown, Furtado high-tailed it out of the limelight. She had achieved a flourishing career, a hit record, and international fame — but at the end of the day, all she wanted was to go home and spend quality time with her daughter. Furtado's exit sent shockwaves through the music industry. "It was not easy to take time out," she recalled. "I had to learn to say no. People were trying to get me to record another album. I wasn't worried about burning any bridges, though."

After stepping down from global stardom in 2007, Nelly Furtado settled into a slower pace of life. She returned to Canada and devoted more time to raising her daughter, Nevis. "I took a break from music and went home," the singer told the Daily Mail in 2012. "And I realized that being at home and having the whole family experience was what I was seeking." After years of glamorous parties and never-ending tour engagements, Furtado was grateful for the simplicity of her new life. "Over the past couple of years I have come to terms with my small-town upbringing," she shared. "And now I can look at it in a positive way."

Throughout the years, Furtado welcomed two more children. Her eldest, Nevis, turned 20 in 2023. Per Billboard, Nevis is pursuing a career in songwriting and music curation. Furtado hasn't shared many details about her two youngest children — however, she did reveal that they enjoy watching her perform. "I was singing 'I'm Like a Bird' [at the Portola Music Festival in California]. My two youngest children were on FaceTime watching me from home," Furtado gushed to People in 2023. "My 20-year-old daughter was there watching me, and I was singing to the crowd. And by the end of the song, when every person there had their hands in the air singing, clapping, I was overwhelmed with emotion, that I started to cry at the very end."

After spending most of her adult life in the whirlwinds of fame, Nelly Furtado wasn't exactly sure what to do next. And so she tried many things. At one point, she even worked at a record shop. It was a stark contrast to her previous occupation, but it allowed her to slow down and enjoy a low-key existence. Most importantly, she was able to do things on her own terms.

At the time, Furtado wasn't interested in recreating the glory of her pop music career — she wanted to find herself again. "I think I was really "in search of," the "Promiscuous" singer told GQ. "What is really being grounded? Grounded is not just 'I'm going to take some time off.' I wanted to clean my own bathroom again and wash my own laundry again. I really missed normal life. I wanted to make it as isolated as I possibly could. It really helped me, honestly. It sounds silly but it kind of saved me."

Along with her dramatic lifestyle change, Furtado also took a different approach to music. She started writing songs purely for the thrill of being creative. Furtado also did several art installations, including a sound design piece for the Art Basel Contemporary Art Fair. "I did an installation at an art gallery and wrote songs with 80 strangers," the Grammy winner told Forbes in 2017. "I wouldn't be able to create with that productivity had I been under contract."

Nelly Furtado ditched the spotlight to gain more time for herself. "My life was pretty much on fast-forward from the age of 20," the pop sensation told Refinery29. "I signed my first record deal, and then it was constant juggling of my work and my home life." She added, "I didn't quit music, but I quit juggling." So, what does a retired juggler do with all that extra time?

For one thing, Furtado started taking college classes. She studied a variety of subjects, including playwriting and ceramics. She also tried her hand at sewing. When she wasn't learning new skills, Furtado played guitar and piano with her daughter. At one point, she even got a job at her daughter's school library. In hindsight, Furtado realized, "All those things help me remember who I was."

During her hiatus from music, Furtado also cultivated some international friendships. She connected with a group of Colombian women who helped her rediscover her purpose. "I went to Colombia a year ago, and had this awakening being around these strong, kick-ass women who are not only mothers, but performers," she raved to Vogue in 2023. "I am a mother, and it is part of my identity, but I'm also the mother of my creativity and art. That also needs to be nurtured."

In the 2010s, Nelly Furtado partnered with Free the Children (now known as WE Charity), an international charity working to alleviate poverty in underprivileged communities. In 2011, she joined the organization in rural Kenya to film a documentary about education. It was a life-changing experience for the singer, who embraced the local culture and formed deep bonds with residents — including a teenage girl named Susan, who wanted to become a doctor but lacked the resources to attend college. Towards the end of her visit, Furtado helped Susan enroll in a prestigious secondary school, where she was able to get a jump start on her dream.

Furtado found a renewed sense of purpose thanks to her work with charity. "Giving back is really important to me," the pop icon told Samaritan Mag in 2016. "Before I started working with Free the Children, I felt like there was something missing from my career in general. I was like, 'This is all great, but I feel like I haven't really made a difference.' So I feel like I'm inspiring more people now and there's a lot of room to do a lot more."

Following her first trip to Kenya, Furtado returned to the country regularly, and in 2011, the hitmaker donated $1 million to the organization. The singer didn't just focus on the international community — she also helped out at home by contributing to causes like conservation and youth empowerment. In 2016, she received the prestigious Allan Slaight Humanitarian Spirit Award. 

Nelly Furtado might be famous for her hip-swiveling club anthems, but her musical talents are incredibly far-reaching, spanning genres and languages. In 2009, Furtado released a Spanish-language album titled "Mi Plan." With melodic guitar chords and powerful vocals, "Mi Plan" was another triumph for the singer-songwriter. The record generated a chart-topping single, "Manos Al Aire," and scored a Latin Grammy.

In 2012, Furtado returned to the studio to record her fifth album, "The Spirit Indestructible." The record garnered mixed reviews, with some critics calling it "clumsy" and "outdated." The album opened at No. 79 on the Billboard chart — a disappointing follow-up to "Loose," which debuted at No. 1 in 2006. Still, Furtado was unbothered by the lackluster reception.

"I've had kind of everything happen to me commercially and at different levels," she told HuffPost in 2012. "I've had different scenes and I've dabbled in a lot of markets so I see the music world as very global and I'm always looking for new avenues and opportunities, so one chart or anything doesn't necessarily [mean anything.]"

In 2017, Nelly Furtado released her sixth studio album, "The Ride." Unlike her previous English-language albums, "The Ride" wasn't produced by a major label; instead, Furtado created the record under her independent label, Nelstar Entertainment. The singer gushed about her album to Forbes, stating, "It's a project that I'm extremely proud of, and one I feel is a nice addition to my collection of music." She added, "I feel like it's probably my strongest lyrical album yet. It came out of a time of great growth for me, so as a writer, chaos is definitely songwriting gold."

Releasing an independent record involved some unique challenges — but for Furtado, it was worth it. Ultimately, the process freed her from the pressures of being attached to a major record label. "For me, I've realized what a simple person I am, and how, at my root, I'm just this bohemian artist who wants to create things on a whim," the singer shared. "Becoming independent and owning this new record has been very pivotal for me because I'm able to own everything that I sing."

"The Ride" hit stores on March 31, 2017. Unfortunately, it was a commercial flop. According to iHeart, the record sold only 1,814 copies in the U.S. It also floundered in the opinion of some critics – The Guardian's Kate Hutchinson, for example, called it "a hit-and-miss patchwork of trendy pop styles."

In 2006, Nelly Furtado met sound engineer Demacio Castellon. The pair grew closer while working together on Furtado's "Loose" album. By 2008, they were married. Furtado broke the news to ET Canada, telling the publication, "I'm happy ... I'm excited about the future" (via People). Unfortunately, things didn't last; in 2017, the couple quietly separated.

Throughout the years, Furtado has remained tight-lipped about her personal and family life. However, following her split from Castellon, she told ITV's "Loose Women." "I am single now" (via ET Online). "Someone here needs to update my Wikipedia — it's not helping my dating life!" Furtado confessed that the breakup was an "emotionally difficult time." Fortunately, she found strength in singing and writing songs. Furtado poured her emotions into the music-making process and sang to herself during long car rides. Reflecting on her musical healing process, Furtado said: "I thought to myself, 'I'm so lucky that I can write songs because I can soothe myself with them."

In 2020, Nelly Furtado proved that her music is truly timeless when "Promiscuous" started trending on TikTok. The double-platinum bop, released in 2006, inspired a dance trend and got a major boost from TikTok giants like Addison Rae and Charli D'Amelio. Over a decade after conquering the airwaves, "Promiscuous" was officially reborn on Gen Z's favorite app.

At the time, Furtado wasn't familiar with TikTok — so she was shocked to learn that "Promiscuous" was going viral on the platform. "It first came to my attention when my oldest was 16," Furtado told Vogue. "She was like, "Mom, 'Promiscuous' is trending on TikTok!" I didn't even have TikTok on my phone. I was like, 'okay, what do we do?' So we did a cute little video — I'm literally breastfeeding my son in it — and me and my daughter 'battled' each other." The video racked up 6 million views and made Furtado a TikTok icon. Since then, the singer has become a regular user of the platform.

Thanks to her TikTok fame, Furtado's music was embraced by a new generation. "When I went to Australia and got on that stage for the first time in six years, I also saw these 20-year-old girls singing every line to every song, and I really did trip out a little bit," the singer recalled. "I felt like I was in the year 2001!" In 2023, Furtado celebrated reaching 1 million TikTok followers – no doubt a mix of new and original fans alike.

While soft-launching herself on TikTok, Nelly Furtado was also preparing for a full-blown comeback to pop music. In 2023, the Grammy winner released a new single, "Eat Your Man," featuring Australian EDM artist Dom Dolla. Later that year, Furtado reunited with Timbaland and Justin Timberlake on the track "Keep Going Up." Sixteen years after the release of "Give It to Me," the trio's new song paid homage to their past hits, and Furtado sang about finding joy after being "broken."

In 2023, the pop diva confirmed her big comeback to Billboard – and she's eager to share her new music with the world. "I feel like the place that I'm at is the same place I was at when I was like 20, when I first signed a record deal and spent all my time obsessing over music, listening to music, making music and collaborating with friends who make music," she raved. "I'm there again, I'm in it for the craft. I'm in it for the right reasons and it's so pure for me right now. It's just pure inspiration all day." 

But new music is only a part of what the superstar has in store. In 2023, Furtado made surprise appearances at Lollapalooza and the Portola Music Festival. She's also scheduled to headline the Electric Forest Festival in 2024. And most importantly, Furtado told Billboard that she is "happier than ever." She added, "I love my job more than I've ever loved it."