The purchase of a large format, roll-fed plotter, further diversified our services. In 2010 we ventured into the large format and display graphics business. In 1999, the Foresight Group name was officially adopted as a more unified, forward-thinking company that provided commercial printing, mail, and even creative services. The addition of Mailsource taught the leadership team a valuable lesson - customers could teach us a great deal about what they wanted and needed, so we became open to starting new divisions, acquiring other companies that provided similar services, and finding ways to grow the company beyond just increasing sales. So Mailsource was created, a full-service mail services division. Lansing Printing Company grew over that first year, when leadership decided that the mail services that their customers needed could best be provided in-house. This purchase really became the moment that Foresight Group was born. He partnered with Jeff Donahue in 1996 and purchased Lansing Printing Company, which had been printing in Lansing since the early 1900’s. These are the virtuous cycles that we look for when investing in the insurtech arena.” – Michael Yang, managing partner of OMERS Ventures.While Foresight Group is known as a modern, technology-driven company, our historical roots run so deep that we’re actually the oldest printing company in Lansing and one of the oldest in Ann Arbor! But that long history wouldn’t make us what we are today without a handshake deal for a start-up loan back in 1990 …īill Christofferson formed Colonial Press and Copy shop in 1982. ![]() And a work site with fewer injuries drives down workers compensation premiums for the policyholder and drives up profitability for the insurer. With its Safesite mobile application, Foresight has the ability to drive behavior change among its insureds to foster a safer work environment. “Insurance innovation has rarely found its way to hard-to-place businesses in the construction, manufacturing and agriculture segments of our economy, but that’s exactly what Foresight has been revolutionizing. – Peter Grant, CEO and co-founder of Safesite. Our policyholders love that they can actively work toward reducing their premiums over time through interactions with our platform. The machine learning and data science behind the Safesite Score allows us to benchmark safety performance in real time, and empowers our clients to improve their safety behaviors. Last year we saw clients increase their monthly safety actions by 330% in safety activity with Safesite. “Foresight and Safesite bring unparalleled value to the work comp market, in a space where incumbents have been somewhat limited from a service standpoint for quite some time. We’re eager to show all of our stakeholders what’s in store for year two and beyond.” – David Fontain, CEO and co-founder of Foresight. We’ve stuck firmly to our core mission – delivering our policyholder clients a reduction in workplace safety incidents and a reduction in premiums. “From securing appointments with 13 of the top 15 property and casualty brokers in the U.S., to bringing nearly $1 billion in submissions in the door, to attracting and retaining top industry talent, we’ve hit our stride while growing sustainably. In addition to geographic expansion, Foresight’s 2022 strategic targets include exploring adjacent commercial lines of business to complement their workers compensation product, and continuing to source “the best underwriting, business development, and insurance talent across the US.” Foresight demonstrated a reduction in the frequency of policyholders’ workplace safety incidents by an average of 31%, and its combined ratio and loss ratio at the close of its first year of underwriting was 82% and 61%, respectively. The combination of Foresight and Safesite is delivering positive results according to numbers shared by the startup. ![]() Every Foresight policy comes with free access to Safesite, where companies can conduct safety inspections and manage and track safety engagement, among other things. Past investors Brick and Mortar Ventures and Builders VC also participated in the round, which brings Foresight’s total funding to date to $59 million.įoresight is licensed in California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana, with an appetite for construction and trades, agriculture, manufacturing, and light industrial. ![]() ![]() The round was led by OMERS Ventures, with participation from new investors Digital Garage Ventures and the George Kaiser Family Foundation. Has secured $39 million in Series B funding. Safesite Foresight Group raises $39 millionįoresight Group, which includes workers compensation insurance startup Foresight Commercial Insurance
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![]() One of the failures related to insulin pumps is the over delivery of the drug. An Exampleįollowing is an example of P1 * P2 approach of an insulin pump failing, where P1 is the probability of hazardous situation occurring and P2 is the probability of harm for a given hazardous situation. In this case the physiological and clinical effect of hazards such as overdose or underdose are well known and can be assessed independently. This is particularly valid for a combination device or devices that channel drugs. mitigation by reducing or preventing the exposure of the patient / user to the hazardous situation.Ī P1 * P2 approach is definitely favorable, in case technical and clinical events can be estimated separately with a good degree of accuracy. P2 is instead affected more by controls related to Protection and Information, i.e. they tend to reduce, or eliminate, the probability of certain failures occurring. Risk controls based on the design of the device have an effect on P1, i.e. So, developers don’t have to “guess” the probability of a negative clinical impact and clinical specialists do not need to get involved in the technical aspects of the device. The probability of a patient or user being injured when exposed to a certain hazard can be better estimated by clinical specialists. P2 is more related to the clinical aspects of the product. This is competence of the developers and engineer, who can give a good estimate (qualitative or quantitative) of a certain event occurring. P1 is typically related to device failures or use errors. Separation of technical and clinical events This decomposition is not mandatory and many companies use a single Probability value. The overall probability of a Harm occurring becomes then P = P1 * P2 P2 = Probability of Harm occurring for a given Hazardous situation P1 = Probability of Hazardous situation occurring ISO 14971 (2019 version, Annex C) indicates that the probability of a Harm occurring can be decomposed in two probabilities, P1 and P2, where: They use standard values that have been developed within their industry.No we are not talking about the early Playstation versions… Generally speaking, most companies: Develop their own measures for the three categories (frequency, severity and section) or In this example, the PRN value clearly indicates that “information incorrectly entered into the database” should be given priority for improvements.Īt this stage, keep in mind that for the FMEA to be effective the categories must have reliable measures or a clear matrix to score the Frequency, Severity and Detection levels the same. For the other 50% of the times, it will be the customer who notifies us. The number 5 shows that we have a 50/50 chance of detecting this internally. The final section measures how likely is that this mistake will be detected internally. In this case, both examples scored an 8 and the cards will need to be reissued. The severity refers to how significant the impact is. You can see that the fact that the information is incorrectly entered in the database happens more frequency than the incorrect information is provided at the beginning. In this example, the frequency is representing how likely is it that the error will take place. By proactively identifying potential problems before they occur, organizations can minimize defects and ensure high-quality products or services are delivered to customers. The analysis also considers each failure mode’s likelihood of occurrence and severity so that appropriate corrective actions can be taken. FMEA involves analyzing all components, assemblies, and subsystems of a process or product to identify potential failure modes and their effects on the system. This helps organizations anticipate problems before they occur, allowing them to take preventive measures to reduce risk and improve quality. military in the 1940s, FMEA is used to identify potential failure modes and their associated effects on the system as well as the likelihood of occurrence and severity of each failure mode. It can be a process FMEA (where the risks are process failures) or a design FMEA (where the risks are product or system-related failures).įailure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) is a systematic approach used to identify potential failures in a process, product, or service. The FMEA Model is a risk management tool used to identify and manage risks within projects and across entire departments and organisations. ![]() FollowingLike is a paid app the one-account version is $97 and runs on both Windows (XP or higher) and Mac OS. It’s a must-have for a hard-core Instagram influencer or anyone running multiple accounts. Here are some apps you can use to bulk-remove likes on Instagram.įollowingLike is a social media management tool that lets you administer thousands of social media accounts. ![]() The consensus in the user community is that you can do about 300 unlikes a day without triggering the algorithms. So, the apps discussed here let you get rid of your likes, but they require you to do it reasonably slowly (not automatically) so that Instagram won’t flip its wig and ban you. Running an app that wipes out your likes all at once can get you banned from Instagram. They want human users to do human things, not bots running programs, and an app that cleans out your likes (or anything else in your account) might rub them the wrong way. The problem is that Instagram doesn’t mind if you use a third-party app that uses its API to make some things more efficient, but it frowns on users automating their accounts entirely. The answer is that there could be, but nobody could run it. Since Instagram publishes an application programming interface (API), meaning that people can write applications that interface directly with the Instagram service, how come there isn’t a rapid method to wipe out all your likes in one swoop? However, what you can do is remove posts from your Saved list.īefore we get into a full-on discussion of third-party apps, let’s answer a question. Therefore, you cannot remove Instagram Likes on a laptop or PC. There is no option to preview posts you’ve liked, and you cannot upload pictures. Instagram is an app-driven form of social media, so there are some limitations on what you can do on a desktop. How to Remove All Instagram Likes on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS ![]() But it can take a lot of time to clear everything. This method is the safest and most effective way to remove all likes on Instagram. Then, tap the bubbles (or images) for each one. Long-press the first post you want to unlike.Tap the “ Sort & filter” option to narrow down the posts you want to unlike, or skip this step if you’re going to unlike all of them.Tap on the “Menu” icon (three lines) in the upper right corner.Launch Instagram and tap your “ Profile” icon in the lower right corner.Here’s how to remove all likes on Instagram: The pilot was not ordered by ABC for the 2012–2013 television season. The plot follows a scientific student who realizes he is the chosen one, tasked with combating evil powers. In March 2012, Wilde was cast in the ABC Sci-Fi television pilot Dark Horse. The film was released in October 2011 and made over $132 million worldwide, however it received mixed reviews from critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 24%.Ĭaption: Gabriella as Lailah in The Vampires of Venice (source: Pinterest) More Details Wilde was cast in the adventure picture The Three Musketeers, which is based on the novel of the same name, in December 2010.įurthermore, Wilde co-starred opposite Orlando Bloom and Logan Lerman as Constance Bonacieux, the queen’s lady-in-waiting. Wilde appears as one of the titular vampires in the BBC television series Doctor Who episode “The Vampires of Venice” in May 2010. In December 2009, Wilde made her acting debut in the adventure comedy St Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold. Topshop, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Vogue, and Nylon, as well as posing for InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Vogue, and Nylon.Īlso, she was ranked the second-most-eligible girl in the United Kingdom in 2007, but she turned down press attention and the “It girl” moniker. She has featured in campaigns for L.K.Bennett, Lacoste, Abercrombie & Fitch, Burberry, She signed with Premier Model Management at the age of 14. She has a huge 163k followers on Instagram and more than 20.5k followers on her Twitter account. When it comes to her social media handles, she remains active on Instagram and Twitter. In addition, she has light brown hair and a pair of blue eyes.Ĭaption: Gabriella posing for a picture (source: Tumblr) Gabriella Wilde – Social Media ![]() Similarly, her exact physical statistics (chest-waist-hip) are 34-25-35 inches. Talking of her height and weight, she is 5 feet 10 inches or 1.78 meters tall and weighs around 60 kg or 132 pounds. Gabriella Wilde – Body MeasurementsĮnhancing her body measurements, she has maintained an attractive body style as an actress. Likewise, she attended the City and Guilds of London Art School but dropped out to pursue acting. ![]() She was suspended and transferred to St Swithun’s after smuggling vodka into Heathfield. She went on to Heathfield St Mary’s School in Ascot and St Swithun’s School in Winchester after that, before quitting to pursue an art study while continuing her modeling career. In terms of her education, she attended Windlesham House School till she graduated. Isabella, Olivia, and Cressida are all actors in their own right. ![]() Olivia and Arabella Llewellyn from her mother’s first marriage and Georgiana, Isabella, and Jacobi from her father’s first marriage to Lady Mary-Gaye Curzon. Wilde has a younger sister, Octavia, as well as five half-siblings from her father’s first marriage to Lady Mary-Gaye Curzon: A bit of teamwork through my usual spelling race game, but without the racing element and other complexities!.Word parts – learners match parts of a word (consonants, consonant blends, vowels, etc) to make the whole.I supported my learners with this in two ways prior to the Wordwall anagrams… a countdown of 3 minutes) for students to try and complete the spellings taking turns as a class. However, I’ve found so far that students really get in to helping each other.Įlicit the answers first time around, then set a timer (e.g. It is also a bit limiting with one person controlling the pen. The anagrams feature on Wordwall can be a tall order, especially for 6 year olds (!). We were doing some writing so we had to get the spelling into play. True or False, Teacher Pete eats 3 apples a day, move to the right if true, left if false.Move to the left if you like dragon fruit, move to the right if you don’t. ![]() While they are standing up, a bit of ‘left/right’ or ‘True or False’ TPR side of the room goes down well: Your class fly swat game (you know, teacher says word, students swat, or students say… etc) Paste them into a flip chart (we use active inspire) and boom, you’ve got… If you do this during your planning time, you can use snipping tool to snip an image of 3 or 4 fruits at a time. A couple of rounds should do the trick.Ĭheck out the ‘Show answers’ feature on Find the Match… Seriously, teaching 6-year-olds is exhausting.įourth activity: Do that Find the Match game! I set the timer for 30 seconds, 4 groups of 3 (so quickfire). So far we are about 12 minutes into the lesson.
![]() When I bought there seemed to be real catalysts that could rocket the price higher in the short term, like the changing leadership with Ryan Cohen from Chewy. "I don't think that sticking it to hedge funds is anyone there's serious, long-term concern. I don't think that sticking it to hedge funds is anyone there's serious, long-term concern. Before, it was “this is a retailer priced for pennies on the dollar with a decent balance sheet, new innovative board members.” Only around $40 did the narrative of “sticking it to the hedge funds start.” But I think, at the end of the day, everyone is really just there to make money on their trades. It was around $40 that the narrative changed. Two to three weeks ago when the stock shot up from $20 to $40. When did you see the GameStop chatter turn into a campaign. That's when I went from checking WallStreetBets a couple times a week to multiple times a day. They had a play that made sense: a retailer priced for bankruptcy, entering the peak of a cycle, and you have Ryan Cohen getting involved. Right after that was when the GameStop buzz started in November. I didn't buy any but it was a recent example where the forum made a call and a lot of people did well. Is that when you started paying more attention?Ī couple months ago, there was a lot of buzz around Palantir. It wasn't until recently that the subreddit had a streak of wins, like Tesla. Like, a lot of healthcare stocks getting promoted there just cratered. ![]() Back in 2016, 2017, 2018, it was so known for losing money that people would talk about specifically betting against whatever WallStreetBets was going for. A few months ago, WallStreetBets had no credibility. When did you first join r/wallstreetbets? Is it more of a social community or investing resource?įive years ago. How much: “not a life-changing but substantial” amount And course, some made millions (notably, Cohen, billionaire Donald Foss, Blackrock and other hedge funds who got clued into what was happening), while others (who are celebrated as martyrs on the Reddit’s loss porn threads) are facing financial ruin.īusiness of Business chatted with several GameStop investors who fall all across these spectrums. Another contingent genuinely believed GameStop was poised for a comeback, with the help of Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen who joined the board in January Some are clear they were in it for money, while others insist they couldn’t care less about their profits long as hedge funds lost (there’s no way to know if people who racked up and lost millions were holding out more cash or more banker blood). Some thought the whole thing was a joke, while others saw themselves as heroes of an Oscar-winning Wall Street revenge movie. Some invested after seeing a single Tweet, while others had meticulously followed, analyzed and posted about GameStop for a year. Some people invested a few bucks as a joke, while others poured in life savings and maxed out credit cards. But there’s no one story of the frenzy of the last few weeks. The price rose until the shorting funds had divested and brokerage apps like Robinhood froze trading, killing momentum and ending the short squeeze cycle.Īt least, that’s the generic version of the GameStop saga. ![]() As you’ve likely heard, its stock briefly rose as high as $483, scores of small-time investors jumped on the bandwagon and hedge funds who’d bet against GameStop were forced to buy shares to make up for losses. GameStop ’s share price below $50 this week, its lowest since January 21, around the time an army of retail traders mobilized on Reddit forum r/WallStreetBets to pour cash into the video game store. It's a bit different from the Dell Alienware AW3423DW, as there are a few trade-offs you need to make since it's a cheaper monitor. If you want to save money, an upper mid-range model like the LG 27GR95QE-B is a great alternative. Both the Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 S32BG85 and the Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 S32BG75 are high-end 4k gaming monitors that get even brighter thanks to their Mini LED backlighting, but they don't display the same perfect blacks. If you're concerned about it, there are some fantastic high-end LED-backlit gaming monitors available. OLEDs are prone to burn-in when exposed to the same static elements over time, but this isn't a major issue for gamers. Unfortunately, there are some drawbacks to its QD-OLED panel. If you have an AMD graphics card instead, the Dell Alienware AW3423DWF is a similar monitor that's a bit cheaper and has native FreeSync VRR support. Lastly, it natively supports G-SYNC variable refresh rate (VRR) technology to reduce screen tearing, which is beneficial if you have an NVIDIA graphics card and want to take full advantage of it. It also has a 175Hz refresh rate that you can achieve over a DisplayPort connection. It's an excellent gaming monitor as it provides a near-instantaneous response time, resulting in incredibly smooth motion without any visible blur. However, there are issues when using it in a bright room as the black levels raise, so it's better to game with it in the dark. It has a QD-OLED display, so blacks look deep and inky in dark rooms, and it displays a wide range of vivid colors. It's an ultrawide gaming monitor that doesn't have the highest resolution or refresh rate compared to other monitors, but it's known for its incredible motion handling and remarkable picture quality. Read more on how we test, rate, and review products on TechRadar (opens in new tab).The best gaming monitor we've tested is the Dell Alienware AW3423DW. The aim was to push each website change monitoring software platform to see how useful its basic tools were and also how easy it was to get to grips with any more advanced tools. To test for the best website change monitoring software we first set up an account with the relevant platform, then we tested the service to see how the software could be used for different purposes and in different situations. How we tested the best website change monitoring software Additionally, higher-end software can usually cater for every need, so do ensure you have a good idea of which features you think you may require from your website change monitoring software. When deciding which website change monitoring software to use, first consider what your actual needs are, as the cheapest options may only provide basic features, so if you need to use advanced tools you may find a more expensive platform is better suited to you. Which website change monitoring software is best for you? Read our full Versionista review (opens in new tab). There are a few different plans you can subscribe to, and like many other providers there's a free tier with limited monitoring that will probably serve best as a taster to get used to the service, and allows you to monitor a handful of pages a month. Versionista will then produce a color-coded report showing any changes made to, say, a political rival’s website – highlighting anything that has been deleted, and anything added. And it’s actually pretty useful to anyone running a campaign – it allows the user to crawl for any information relevant to their campaign(s). Luckily, one of the best content monitoring services is targeted directly at politicians. These days, the political landscape is a little bit crazy, and a ton of information is flying around at all times. Read our full Wachete review (opens in new tab). ![]() ![]() Watchete is free for monitoring up to 5 static pages and checking once every 24 hours, with paid-for plans offering various options according to how many pages you want to monitor and how quickly to recheck these. ![]() ![]() While this is definitely useful for professionals who can’t afford to be tied to a desk all day, it’s especially important for consumers who just want to buy a concert ticket before they sell out. And what really sets Wachete apart is that in addition to daily or weekly email reports, it also offers mobile apps and browser extensions so that you can keep an eye on everything in a dynamic way while on the go. Wachete can be used for all manner of purposes, from tracking the prices of rival stores, to receiving notifications about job openings. What we love about Wachete is that it is able to pack in all the functionality from its competition and implement it in a user-friendly package. One of our pet peeves with these sort of monitoring solutions is that a lot of them look like they were designed 10 years ago. One of Kesha's great-grandfathers was Polish. Her mother is mostly of Hungarian descent. In 2011, a man named Bob Chamberlain who called himself her father approached Star with pictures and letters, claiming they proved that he and Kesha had been in regular contact as father and daughter before she turned 19. Kesha says she has no knowledge of her father's identity. When Kesha was an infant, Pebe would often have to look after her onstage while performing. Pebe, a single mother, struggled financially while supporting herself, Kesha, and Kesha's older brother Lagan they relied on welfare payments and food stamps to get by. Her mother, Rosemary Patricia "Pebe" Sebert, is a singer-songwriter who co-wrote the 1978 single " Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" with Hugh Moffatt for Joe Sun, made popular by country music artist Dolly Parton on her 1980 album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly. Kesha Rose Sebert was born in Los Angeles on March 1, 1987. Kesha has also co-written songs for other artists, including " Till the World Ends" (2011) for Britney Spears and songs for Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, and Miranda Cosgrove. She has received various awards and nominations, including her win for the MTV Europe Music Award for Best New Act in 2010. She was also listed as the 26th top artist on Billboard 's 2010s decade-end charts. Luke claims breach of contract and defamation by Kesha.Īs of 2013, Kesha has reportedly sold over 33 million combined tracks and ringtones in the U.S alone and over 55 million worldwide to date. Luke, were exchanged between the two parties in which Kesha accused him of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse and employment discrimination against her, while Dr. A series of lawsuits, known collectively as Kesha v. Kesha's career was halted between Warrior and Rainbow due to a legal dispute with her former producer Dr. She released her fifth studio album, Gag Order, in May 2023. ![]() Her 2009 single "Tik Tok" was the best-selling digital single in history, selling over 14 million units internationally, until surpassed in 2011. Kesha has attained ten top-ten singles on the US Billboard Hot 100, including " Tik Tok", " Blah Blah Blah", " Your Love Is My Drug", " Take It Off", " Blow", " Die Young", " My First Kiss" with 3OH!3, " We R Who We R", "Right Round" with Flo Rida, and " Timber" with Pitbull. She has earned two number-one albums on the US Billboard 200 with Animal (2010) and Rainbow (2017), and the top-ten records Warrior (2012) and High Road (2020). Kesha's music and image propelled her to immediate success. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on rapper Flo Rida's number-one single " Right Round". In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Kesha Rose Sebert ( / ˈ k ɛ ʃ ə ˈ s iː b ər t/ born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. ![]() ![]() Do not let image manipulation software replace good science.Enlarging an image with a small number of pixels can lead to artifacts (see guideline 12).This means that if an image is to be 3.5 inches wide in the journal, it needs to have 1050 pixels. Whether youre working on a design for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or other social. Most journals require a minimum of 300 dots per inch (DPI) for images. Pixelied is the perfect solution if you want to crop an image online. Cropping out gel bands that might disagree with the hypothesis being proposed in the paper.Cropping out dead or dying cells, leaving only a healthy looking cell.Questionable forms of cropping would include removing information in a way that changes the context of what remains in the image.Removing a piece of debris from the edge of the image.Trimming “empty” space around the edges of an image.Legitimate reasons for cropping include:.Is the image being cropped to improve its “composition” or to hide something that disagrees with the lab’s favored hypothesis? Scientists should consider their motivation for cropping the image.Cropping an image for a publication figure is usually considered acceptable.Acquiring adequate numbers of representative images of all treatment groups and controls allows the user and their colleagues to carefully review the image data away from the microscope and avoid bias.Scientists must be careful to avoid bias, such as selecting images that represent what they think the results of the experiment “should” look like. The act of selecting a specific area on a sample and the magnification at which to capture the image is a form of cropping. Acquiring scientific images requires us to consider what is important in the sample.The reality may be that it was a small group that was crowded together to make it appear in the photo as if there were more people present. Example: A tightly cropped image of a political protest can give the impression that there was a large crowd at the event.This can be very useful in art photography, but the same technique used in news or scientific photography has the potential to be misleading. Photographers have historically cropped images to direct the viewer’s eye to a particular subset of a larger image.Cropping can be used to make an image smaller (in pixels) and/or to change the aspect ration (length to width) of the image. The Crop tool in most image processing programs is used to trim off the outside edges of a digital image.The word Crop can be defined as “to trim” or “cut back”. When it came time to record her third album, Nelly Furtado worked on tracks with her old Track & Field production team, and she also tried out some ideas with the Neptunes and Scott Storch. But Nelly Furtado had an ace up her sleeve. Nelly Furtado also had a kid and took a break before returning, which probably didn’t help her prospects. ![]() ![]() Uplifting and genre-agnostic Y2K-era peers like Macy Gray didn’t fare much better. ![]() Many of Furtado’s ’90s singer-songwriter forebears, the Paula Coles and Meredith Brookses and Natalie Imbruglias of the world, didn’t manage more than one hit album. None of those groups, Nelstar included, were anywhere near as good as Portishead, though it’s hard not to feel some lingering affection for the many who tried.Īfter Folklore bricked, Nelly Furtado sure looked like a one-album wonder. Based on the music that’s floating around on the internet now, Nelstar fit cleanly within the wave of post-Portishead groups who popped up across the world in the late ’90s. Soon afterward, Furtado and Plains Of Fascination member Tallis Newkirk formed a trip-hop duo called Nelstar. In 1996, an 18-year-old Nelly Furtado made her on-record debut, singing backup on “Waitin’ 4 The Streets,” a track from the Toronto indie-rap group Plains Of Fascination. Plains Of Fascination: Join The Ranks by Tallisman After high school, Furtado and her sister moved to Toronto, and Furtado fell in with the local underground rap scene. In Canada, it was Donna Summer’s version of “ MacArthur Park.”) Furtado started performing early - singing in Portuguese with her mother at four, playing a few different instruments at nine, writing songs at 12. (When Furtado was born, Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond’s “ You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” was the #1 song in America. Nelly Furtado comes from Victoria, British Columbia, and she’s the daughter of Portuguese immigrants. From where I’m sitting, selling out was the best thing that Nelly Furtado could’ve done. I like flirty lyrics and clubby aesthetics and Timbaland beats. For me, she got a whole lot better when her music became more crassly commercial. I wasn’t into Furtado’s singer-songwriter phase. Sometimes, her changes took her toward the pop center. She wrote personal lyrics and sang over acoustic guitars. But when Furtado first arrived, her music gestured toward commonplace notions of integrity. Nelly Furtado always made commercial pop music she went top-10 with her very first single. It’s probably a bit inaccurate to use the term “selling out” here, but I can’t help myself. With “Promiscuous,” Furtado streamlined and foregrounded a few elements that had existed in her music from the beginning. “Promiscuous,” Nelly Furtado’s first chart-topper, was a clear bid for the mainstream success that she’d seen slip away. A few years and one sophomore slump later, she was half-rapping about being horny over a clattering club beat. Her music was giddy and eclectic, but it seemed to have some basis in idealistic coffeehouse folk-pop. Furtado first came into the mainstream in the dying days of the whole Lilith Fair MOR singer-songwriter boom. If you weren’t paying close attention to Nelly Furtado’s whole arc, “Promiscuous” must’ve seemed like a wild, out-of-nowhere zag. You can’t just attempt to meet the mainstream where it is you also have to move the mainstream closer to where you are. That’s one of the secrets to selling out. Together, they nudged pop music in a slightly different direction. The combination might’ve seemed random, but the two of them clicked.Īt the moment that they made their first big hit together, Furtado and Timbaland were both coming out of minor career slumps, so they helped each other with the process of reinvention. Furtado and Timbaland had already worked together, which helped. In Timbaland, she found a simpatico collaborator who had some similar ideas about rhythm and playfulness. She found a sound that was still emerging, one that would colonize the pop charts over the next few years. But when Nelly Furtado sold out, she surfed the cultural wave just right. Most sellout attempts sound like they’re at least a couple of years out of date when they first arrive. And you have to understand and even anticipate the zeitgeist. You have to find a way to get excited about the prospect of becoming a centrist pop figure. People can tell when you’re faking, so you have to find a way to inject your actual personality - or, at least, some version of your actual personality - into music that’s engineered to pop off. Instead, you have to walk a delicate line. When you come from somewhere even slightly left of center, you can’t just suddenly flip a switch and start making mainstream pop music. In The Number Ones, I’m reviewing every single #1 single in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, starting with the chart’s beginning, in 1958, and working my way up into the present. |