Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado (; ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Furtado has sold over 40 million records worldwide making her one of the most successful Canadian artists.
She first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired deb ...
from her third studio album, ''
Loose
Loose may refer to:
Places
* Loose, Germany
* Loose, Kent, a parish and village in southeast England
People
* Loose (surname)
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums
* ''Loose'' (B'z album), a 1995 album by B'z
* ''Loose'' (Crazy Horse album ...
'' (2006). It was written and produced by Furtado and
Rick Nowels
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artistsduet with Australian-American
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...
singer
Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Award ...
the following year, which was released to North America in April 2008.
"In God's Hands" achieved only moderate success, becoming her lowest-charting single from ''Loose'' in every European country in which it was promoted. Following the song's North American re-release in 2008, however, "In God's Hands" reached its peak at number 11 on the Canadian Hot 100, earning Furtado her second highest-charting single to date since the chart's inception in 2007, and also peaked at a career-high position of 15 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart.
Content
A country/pop song, "In God's Hands" is inspired by Furtado's 2005 breakup with DJ Jasper Gahunia, the father of her daughter.Intini, John. "Nelly Furtado: 'I'm not Mother Teresa'". ''
Maclean's
''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian persp ...
''. 25 August 2006. According to Furtado, the song was, at the time of its recording, "as far as hewas willing to go in terms of pop right now".
Lyrically, the song is about moving on and starting anew, with Furtado declaring in the chorus, "Our love's floating up in the sky in heaven/ Where it began, back in God's hands." Her vocal style on the song has been described as "pretty."
Furtado also recorded a
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
version, titled "En las manos de Dios", which appears in a Spanish limited edition of ''
Loose
Loose may refer to:
Places
* Loose, Germany
* Loose, Kent, a parish and village in southeast England
People
* Loose (surname)
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums
* ''Loose'' (B'z album), a 1995 album by B'z
* ''Loose'' (Crazy Horse album ...
''.
Re-recording
In early 2008, Furtado re-recorded "In God's Hands" as a duet featuring Australian-American
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
singer
Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Award ...
, who was reportedly Furtado's "first choice." On her rationale behind the selection, Furtado said, "I love country music. Keith Urban's voice is plaintive and sweet; he's a pure songsmith, with an extremely humble tone to his voice... He's right on the border of country, roots and pop. He really defies description, and those are my favorite kinds of artists."
Critical reception
Sean Fennessey of ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'' criticized the songwriting on the chorus and wrote that, "If "
Promiscuous
Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as promiscuous by ma ...
" is one of the fiercest songs of lust in recent memory, "In God's Hands" is one of the limpest." Jonathan Keefe of ''
Slant
Slant can refer to:
Bias
*Bias or other non-objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields
Technical
* Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level
* Slant d ...
'' was more ambivalent, praising Furtado's vocals but maligning the song's inclusion on ''Loose''. "While "In God's Hands" is one of the first times in her career that Furtado's voice could... be described as pretty," writes Keefe, "the song itself... simply doesn't fit with the first two-thirds of the album."
Commercial performance
"In God's Hands" debuted and peaked at number 116 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
dated 11 August 2007. It was the first single of Furtado's career (that was promoted to the United Kingdom) to miss the top 100. Elsewhere in Europe, the song performed moderately well. It reached a peak position at number 53 in
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, number 33 in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, number 20 in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, number 33 in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and number 58 in Sweden. "In God's Hands" also reached number 9 and number 22, respectively, on the Flanders and Wallonian
Ultratip
Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium. Ultratop is a non-profit organization, created on the initiative of the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), the Belgian member organization of ...
Bubbling Under charts.
The 2008 duet version of the song debuted at number 11 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart dated 3 May 2008 and was the week's highest debut. This tied it with "
Say It Right
"Say It Right" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Nelly Furtado for her third studio album ''Loose'' (2006). It was written by Furtado, Tim "Timbaland" Mosley, and Nate "Danja" Hills, with Furtado crediting the Eurythmics' song "Here Com ...
" as Furtado's second highest-charting single to date in her native country since the creation of the Canadian Hot 100 chart in 2007. "In God's Hands" also reached number seven on the Digital Songs component chart dated 3 May 2008. The song spent a total of 16 weeks on the Canadian Hot 100. In the United States, "In God's Hands" entered the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart dated 26 April 2008 at number 25 and was the week's highest debut. On the chart dated 21 June 2008, the song rose to number 18, breaking out of a tie with "Say It Right" for Furtado's highest-charting adult contemporary single to date. It reached its peak at number 15 on the chart dated 26 July 2008.
Music video
A
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
for the song was shot on 9 May 2007 between 5 and 7 a.m. in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, California and directed by
Jesse Dylan
Jesse Byron Dylan (born January 6, 1966) is an American film director and production executive. He is the founder of the media production company Wondros and Lybba, a non-profit organization. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relati ...
. It features Furtado on a beach during both daytime and nighttime, singing the song while sitting on a tree stump, lying on the sand and holding a white sheet, which she lies under. Furtado is also shown walking on the shore, weeping and looking onto the ocean. The video is shot entirely in black and white. It was made available on Furtado's
Vevo
Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, ...
channel 12 February 2008.
Track listings
* CD single and digital download (2-track)
# "In God's Hands" (Album) — 4:12
# "In God's Hands" (Live) — 4:46
* CD maxi single
# "In God's Hands" (album) — 4:12
# "In God's Hands" (live) — 4:46
# "
I'm Like a Bird
"I'm Like a Bird" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado. It was written by Furtado and produced by Gerald Eaton and Brian West for her debut studio album, ''Whoa, Nelly!'' (2000). Released as the album's first single, it became ...
" (Live) — 5:51
# "In God's Hands" (video) — 4:09
* UK digital download
# "In God's Hands" (album version) — 4:12
# "In God's Hands" (video) — 4:10
* Digital download (3-track)
# "In God's Hands" (album) — 4:10
# "In God's Hands" ('' Loose: The Concert'' live) — 4:45
# "I'm Like a Bird" (''Loose: The Concert'' live) — 5:51
* Digital download
# "In God's Hands" featuring Keith Urban — 4:33