Nelly Furtado's style evolution
Nelly Furtado’s style evolution

What makes Nelly Furtado one of music’s cool chicks? For starters, she is probably one of the few musicians who can simultaneously rock a smooth hip-hop swag with an indie-pop edge. With every music video she puts out, Furtado shows a different side to her music and a steady transformation in style. So how did it happen? We tracked down the 5 videos that show Nelly Furtado’s style evolution from hip to HELL YEAH!

I’m like a bird

The world immediately took notice of the girl in hoop earrings and quickly compared her to artists like Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears.  Furtado was quiet subtle and yet stood out with a unique sense of personal style. I’m Like A Bird showed her in a basic pair of layered tees and skinny jeans. But it was the ‘elephant leg’ flared denims that disclosed a little secret: she was a little kooky, but in a cool hip way!

The Look:  Two basic tees in different colours layered over each other, accessorized with hoop earrings.

Stills from 'I'm Like A Bird'
Stills from ‘I’m Like A Bird’
Stills from 'I'm Like A Bird'
Stills from ‘I’m Like A Bird’

Turn off the light

Turn Off The Light showed Nelly as the cool chick around the block, who knows how to hang with the boys. Again, she was seen in bright tank tops and hoodies, but her look still had a fun edge. In the bridge of the track she appears bejeweled but still rocking it. The video was definitely hinting that Nelly loves fashion but served it in her own individual way.

The Look: Colour blocked separates and neon accessories.

Nelly's look in 'Turn Off The Lights'
Nelly Furtado’s look in ‘Turn Off The Lights’

powerless

By the time her second album released, Nelly’s ethnic roots became a topic of discussion (which by most accounts is predominantly Portuguese). Furtado took this moment to tease the world with various ethnic themes. The video for Powerless featured Nelly talking about her idea of being an individual in a world where everyone is obsessed with tags. Though the styling in the video wasn’t what fashion snobs would notice, it was pretty distinctly cool. Nelly’s looks were heavily accessorized with bits and bobs from across the globe, which actually was in hand with the video’s “postcards from the world” mood.

The Look: It’s all about the accessories with earrings, rings and neck-pieces, all inspired by various cultures.

Stills from 'Powerless'
Stills from ‘Powerless’

promiscuous girl

After a long break, Nelly suddenly re-emerged on the scene with a steamy hot avatar on her single, Man Eater. But it was her collaboration with Timbaland on Promiscuous Girl that earned her a spot among the sexiest women in music. The new Furtado was now dressed in a low-waist pair of jeans and a loose top with a peek-a-bra and bare midriff. Furtados’ moves too seemed to have gotten a new sexy sway. Through the video, Nelly was seen in seductive changes including a gold chained top, a black figure hugging cut-out dress and a red ruched number. While she clearly had a new look, the one thing that remained constant was her love for earrings, which was clearly evident in the video!

The Look: A sexy black dress and gorgeous metallic statement earrings.

Nelly's sexy side in 'Promiscuous Girl'
Nelly’s sexy side in ‘Promiscuous Girl’

big hoops

In 2012, she returned with all her past avatars and rolled it into one video. The single was aptly called Big Hoops and featured the popstar in a fashion version of all her past looks. The video had Nelly rocking looks inspired from hip hop, folk and urban-cool avatar. And yes, she is still rocking some insanely cool earrings.

The Look: Whatever you choose, make sure your earrings are the star!

Some of Nelly's fun looks from the 'Big Hoops' video
Some of Nelly’s fun looks from the ‘Big Hoops’ video

Now that you’ve seen all of Nelly Furtado’s cool looks, what if you want to rock a similar style (and why wouldn’t you?) To save you some time and effort, we’ve shortlisted a bunch of tops, jeans, earrings and lots more, all inspired by Nelly Furtado’s style, all in one place, and all on our style partner site, Flipkart. Check it out!

Psst! If you liked this post, you can read more of our REAL fashion advice in our Flipkart diaries!