It’s not everyday a Canadian artist tops the Hot Latin Songs chart. Nelly Furtado just did it with “Manos Al Aire,” and she made history in the process. She’s the first North American artist ever to top the Latin chart with an original Spanish song (as opposed to one translated from English).
Furtado scored a major hit with her 2006 album “Loose,” but rather than come back fast with another English-language album, the Portuguese-Canadian singer decided to channel her Latin roots by recording a Spanish album (as previously reported here). Fans around the world responded by helping “Manos Al Aire” reached No. 1 in Italy, Colombia, Chile, Germany and Central America in addition to the aforementioned U.S. Latin chart. The song will appear on the Grammy winner’s new Spanish-language album, “Mi Plan,” in stores Sept. 15.
“Loose” set the stage for “Mi Plan” with the Spanish-language tracks “No Hay Igual” and “Te Busque,” the latter track reuniting Furtado with Latin megastar Juanes.
“In the past, I only really sang Portuguese on my albums,” Furtado told this Tonic writer. “This is the first time that I’ve come out on my own with Spanish records. I collaborated with Spanish artists in the past. I did [the 2003 "Fotografia"] duet with Juanes that became one of the biggest records that year in the Latin world. That song opened me up to the Spanish-speaking market. Since then, I recorded another track with Gustavo Santaolalla, the Latin [producer/composer] who won the Oscar for Brokeback Mountain. I am trying to expand because I really enjoy singing in Spanish and I already have the audience, so I am just enhancing that. It’s funny, though, because my cousin said he’s really happy I’m singing in Spanish. He said, ‘You sound so much better in Spanish, don’t sing any more Portuguese.’ I don’t think he likes my accent.”
Furtado also says she found inspiration from recording “Loose” in Miami. She continues, “I was really inspired by reggaeton music. When I arrived in Miami the first time, I was with Pharrell [Williams] and he said, ‘You should do reggaeton.’ I had never heard reggaeton in Canada and it really grew on me. I was also into more salsa when I was down there, which really inspired me.”
For her Spanish-language debut album, Furtado invited several special guests from different genres, including Alejandro Fernandez, Josh Groban, Juan Luis Guerra, Julieta Venegas, La Mala Rodriguez, Buika and Alex Cuba. Check out a clip here of the singer performing with Groban and Fernandez.