MB Tell me about it, baby!

NF Well, Michael Bublé and I are going to do this duet on this song called “Go.”

MB Are we really? Are we? I’ll do whatever you want, you know.

NF It’s really funky. It’s not like anything you’ve done before.

MB You did “Quando, Quando, Quando” [their duet on Bublé’s It’s Time ] and it wasn’t like anything you’d done.

NF Yeah, exactly, so right back at you, baby.

MB So you’re making this record. Tell me how you’re feeling about it.

NF I am ecstatic about it. I’m over the moon. I took an acting class over the summer just for fun, and it totally opened me up as far as just letting go of being self-conscious. It helped in the studio and in the writing atmosphere.

MB Is there a theme to the record yet?

NF Well, it’s probably going to be called Loose.

MB Loose? So there is a concept, then?

NF Yeah, there’s a concept.

MB A loose concept?

NF It’s a newer more liberated Nelly Furtado. I don’t have, you know, Daisy Duke shorts on or anything.

MB It’s funny that you said that because I think, personally, that you are really sexy.

NF Thank you, Michael!

MB One of the big reasons I think you’re so sexy is because you’re this naturally beautiful girl who doesn’t seem to feel the need to wear short shorts.

NF Yeah, when I shop, I’m always wondering, “Do these high heels compromise my feminist ideals?” Then I say, “It’s okay, Nelly. They’re just high heels.”

MB Do you really think about it, though?

NF I’m just finding a balance, you know? On this new record, you’re going to hear a softer side of me. On the last one, I was more comfortable in my skin than on the first one, but on the third one, she’s grown into a woman! You’re going to see a little more of the sensuality, but I mean that in the best way, in the earthiest sense.

MB You were just talking about being self-conscious. Before I knew you, I figured that you had a lot of self-confidence because you seemed to be okay with being hot and just being yourself. So it’s funny to hear that there might be some self-conscious feelings there.

NF I guess I’m kind of back to that place where I am very free and just don’t give an s-h-i-t, although I’m responsible about it. You know, I’m a mother now, so I’m not completely unhinged.

MB It’s funny because if I look at someone like Paris Hilton, the first thing I think is, “Oh my God, she’s got low self-esteem. She’s self-conscious.”

NF Yeah, I guess people respect themselves in different ways.

MB I guess so. So where are you right now? In Miami?

NF I’m in Miami, yeah. My cousin and I were just talking about how we like Miami ’cause all the girls just kind of wear whatever’s suitable in the heat and no one cares what their body looks like. I come from a culture like that. It doesn’t matter if you’ve got big legs, hips, whatever. You just kind of do your thing, you know? It’s very earthy.

MB Okay, so my next question, honey: Your partner is a DJ, right?

NF Yeah, he’s a keyboard player and DJ.

MB Is the DJ culture affecting you? Is it making a big impression on you?

NF When I first met him, years ago when we weren’t even together yet, I was enthralled by the sound. I love counterculture anything – whether it be break dancing or graffiti or turntables. Anything interesting and different, I’m attracted to it. That sound is all over my last two records.

MB I noticed on Folklore, I could hear some DJ influence. You hear a banjo and you hear these really hot kind of folky, funky mixings that you don’t normally hear – world music kind of stuff.

NF Yeah!

MB God, I love you Nelly! What else can I say? Tell us about your wonderful charity.

NF Oh, Sooke Potholes? Right on. There’s like 100 acres of this amazing space: a stream, hills to climb, great cliff-jumping opportunities. [Laughs] It’s just a gorgeous outdoor space, and I’m working with the Land Conservancy group in Victoria to make the Sooke Potholes a public park forever and ever and ever.

MB Very cool.

NF I’ve enjoyed it there since I was a teenager, so I’m publicizing it and talking about it a lot. The government’s already put up some money, and donations have been coming in from around the world.

MB That’s pretty special for you to use your status to help people like that, hey?

NF You know, you look around and we all feel it: The air isn’t quite as fresh anymore, especially in the urban centres, and we all feel it inside, don’t we? So whenever I have a chance, I try to get involved.

MB Good for you, honey. Well, I’m going to let you go now because I’m sure you’ve got stuff to do. But I wanted to tell you that I’m very proud that you’re Canadian and I love that you’re my friend and thank you for letting me do my first interview with you.

NF You’re a great interviewer, Michael.

MB I feel like such a dork, but thank you.

Michael Bublé’s sophomore album, It’s Time, has sold close to 3 million copies around the world. His song “Home” was a number-one hit across North America and his recent Canadian tour dates sold out in minutes.

Vancouver’s Nelly Furtado is a Grammy, MMVA and Juno award winner. Her third album, entitled Loose, is due out this fall.

Photographed by Jocelyn Michel on June 29, 2005
during the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal.