When Nelly Furtado went from hippy-dippy ‘I’m Like a Bird’ mode to trashy pop star over the course of two albums, the makeover seemed desperate.

But apparently she knew what she was doing, as the second album, Loose, became her biggest hit, ultimately selling 12 million copies worldwide.

Furtado cited artistic reasons behind the genre change-up — a desire to stretch her music into the R&B and hip-hop arenas and away from the more world-music influences of her debut.

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