Album Review: Loose - Nelly Furtado

Amir Kattach

Overall Rating:8.9/10

Amir’s top 3 tracks:

1. All Good Things (Come To An End)
2. Say It Right
3. No Hay Igual

Released on the 7th of June 2006, Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado presented her third studio album, “Loose”, incorporating a mixture of pop and R&B, sprinkled with some latin influences. Loose brought some of the most well-known hit singles of the 2000s which are still enjoyed to this day, such as “Maneater”, “Say It Right”, and “Promiscuous”, with Promiscuous approaching 2 billion streams on Spotify. However, most of the album presented rather low streaming numbers, with tracks such as “Afraid” and “Glow” hovering at around 5 million streams as of 2025. The media’s initial reception of Furtado’s album was mixed, as Nelly was scrutinized for her public image at the time of the release of “Loose”, with reporters calling her new “sexualized” image as “manufactured” and “unoriginal”, comparing her to the likes of The Pussycat Dolls and Christina Aguilera. As a full package, does “Loose” hold up nearly 20 years later, or were the criticisms of Furtado’s album valid?

At the initial release in 2006, Loose featured 13 tracks, though this increased to 17 on streaming platforms to include 2 interludes and bonus tracks “Let My Hair Down" and “Somebody To Love”. The opening track, “Afraid” featuring rapper Attitude, really sets the high standard and precedent for the album. Despite it not being a hit track amongst audiences, I find that the song still feels fresh with its instrumentation and rhythm. The lyrics still feel relevant and relatable, tackling themes of fear of judgement and how you are perceived surrounding the idea of achieving external validation. 

After the stellar opening track we are greeted with the first hit single, “Maneater”. I still hear this song played on the radio which simply shows the impression it left on listeners. The contrast between “Afraid” and “Maneater” is quite interesting. You have the opening track which feels vulnerable, then immediately after it, “Maneater” begins to play which is the spitting image of confidence and comfort with one’s self. The instrumental of “Maneater” can only be described as addictive. There’s a clear reason it was as popular as it became. We then pivot to another iconic song, “Promiscuous” featuring Timbaland. This is the song that sprung a lot of hate regarding the sultry themes of this album, since pop culture in 2006 was far more critical in how pop-stars presented themselves. This is a collaboration done right, and a song that truly captures the essence of 2000s pop at the time. The combination of instruments and a background beat that permeates the entirety of the track sticks in your mind, not to mention the iconic introduction of the song - “Am I throwing you off? Hm, didn’t think so.”

After Promiscuous, are two songs which are not discussed often - “Glow” and “Showtime”. Of the two, I definitely prefer “Glow”, but I would be lying if I said these two songs were nearly as memorable as “Promiscuous” and “Maneater”. I highly enjoy the synths used in “Glow” in addition to the drum beat, but I think more could have been done with the chorus -it feels a little bland. Otherwise, it’s a good song that adds to the cohesion of the album, and deserves more attention. On the other hand, “Showtime” does not do much for me. It feels slightly too slow, as having so many upbeat, fast-paced songs back to back distorts my perception of the pace of “Showtime”. It’s one of the songs on this album that I don’t usually listen to. However, after an interlude (which I could have done without), the direction and tone of the album completely shifts to a latin inspired one, with the song “No Hay Igual” (translating to “There is nothing like it"). Along with the reggaeton influences, I enjoy the composition of “No Hay Igual”, with a nicely crafted instrumental and the spanish lyrics adding some variety. This was the single that Nelly Furtado elected to be the “Lead Single”, however it failed to garner much attention on the charts in 2006.  After “No Hay Igual”, is another song featuring Spanish lyrics, “Te busqué”, translating to “I looked for you”. Similarly, I enjoy this track. The balance between lyrics in English and Spanish is done well. What I enjoyed even more is “Say It Right”, my second favorite track on this album. If you have not listened to this song, then you definitely are missing out. The beat is like no other, the vibes are immaculate, there’s just nothing I can point out that I do not like with this entry. I would consider it a top song in Furtado’s discography, and it’s easy to see why! 

After “Say It Right” is “Do It”, a song that implements grunge rock influences of songs during the 2000s like those by Avril Lavigne.I like how we still get to hear Nelly’s own style with the song. Despite it not being the most flashy song and definitely not the most streamed of the album, it still deserves more recognition in my opinion. “In God’s Hands” follows next, a slow ballad to ease towards the end of the album. It is not a song I usually listen to, as I believe Nelly’s signature style of R&B and Pop is my favorite, but I find that this song really shows off her wide skillset as an artist. The light instrumental on this track allows for Furtado’s vocals to be the star of the song, and we get to see a more vulnerable side of Furtado’s discography. The penultimate track of “Loose” is “Wait for You”, which reminds me of Rihanna’s first album, “Music of the sun”. I find that this song suits Furtado, as she experiments with her vocals. When combined with the instrumental featuring some wonderful drums, it makes for a well-rounded package of a song. 

My favorite part of the album, the closing track - “All Good Things (Come To An End)” is one of the songs I find myself listening to time and time again. Furtado and the composers Tim Mosley and Chris Martin struck gold with this composition, and this song as a whole proves to be a delightful listening experience. Spanning over 5 minutes, “All Good Things (Come To An End)” is an exquisite song with a multitude of instruments which never feels repetitive. The bridges give me goosebumps whenever I listen to them. This was my 62nd most listened to song of 2024, which may not seem like much, but I listened to it 82 times that year! Listening to this song is a magnificent experience, and  if you were to check out one song from this album, I would recommend this one.

Overall, this album is truly splendid.To me, it is really unfortunate that the media shamed Furtado  for her self expression and new approach to music. The conservative nature of pop media in 2006 was relentless against Nelly Furtado and many other female pop stars rising to fame. I am sad to say that social media and critics alike have driven Furtado  to distance herself from the music industry for the unforeseen future; in 2025 Furtado  announced that she is taking a break from performing and releasing music due to harassment and cruel comments. I hope that Furtado  is able to take all the time she needs and hopefully return to singing. The passion shown through “Loose” illustrates her natural talent and capabilities as an artist nearly 20 years later.