Nelly Furtado, “7”.

“I feel like I’m ready for a change,” Nelly Furtado sings briefly in the upbeat two-and-a-half-minute “Showstopper” with its synthesizer backing. Seven years have passed since her last album, and she is opening her new, 7by doing just that.

The album opens the door wide in a direction she has been hinting at for several years. There is more dance music, more collaborations, but this time also more of her roots. And yet the vocals are still as powerful as ever.

After the opening, Furtado’s second song focuses on her Latin roots, setting the tone for the rest of the album. “Corozon,” a single, is a collaboration with Colombian band Bomba Estereo. She was introduced to Li Saumet by a mutual friend and flew to Santa Maria, Colombia, to work with the group. The result is a bilingual fusion of roots and modern dance music.

The other single, “Love Bites,” is also a collaboration, this time with Tove Lo and SG Lewis. “I want your body,” she sings, perhaps reminiscent of the 2006 smash hit “Promiscuous,” which earned her and Timbaland countless award nominations.

Furtado has sold 35 million albums since her debut in 2000, but has largely disappeared from the public eye since the release of 2017’s… The ridewho is raising her children in her native Canada. To her surprise, the TikTok generation found her 2006 music video for “Say It Right.” With the encouragement of her eldest daughter, she began performing again, including a set at the electronic music-focused Portola Festival in San Francisco last year and an NPR Tiny Desk concert. That was followed by Coachella and a performance with Ed Sheeran in Europe. She clearly felt the collaborative energy, as the album features Charlotte Day Wilson, Blxckie and others.

The upbeat beat of “Honesty” and the staccato rhythm of the following song, “Floodgate,” are the most similar to Furtado’s earlier music. The latter’s repetitive lines practically scream for a sing-along.

The album then moves on to the slow-burning, hard-hitting “Crown” (this one featuring South African rapper Blxckie). The song highlights Furtado’s dominant voice, which soars to its highest register and is at times a little reserved.

“I cry when you look at me with those eyes/ I see the things/ That you/ Keep inside/ When you look at me with those eyes,” she sings.

The following song “All Comes Back” (with his Canadian compatriot Wilson) is even more serious, featuring a stripped-back, piano-led arrangement that shows that Furtado’s melodic tone is still as clear as ever.

The album picks up speed again with the bluesy break-up “Save Your Breath” and continues to build with a driving piano melody, dramatically swelling strings, Caribbean-inspired bars from one of the numerous guest stars and even an emphatic “Hawk Tuah” sound effect.

“How many times have I saved your life?/ How many ways have you thrown me under the bus?” Furtado sings. “You keep trying to talk to me/ Save your breath.”

Furtado has obviously been through ups and downs, including a breakdown and a loss of confidence, and her statement on “Ready for Myself” is clear: “I got ready for myself, not for anyone else.” This theme continues in the banger “Take Me Down” (there’s yodeling!) and Ballad “Better Than Ever”, where the piano again takes center stage and then builds up, emphasizing Furtado’s powerful voice as she repeats the title determinedly like a mantra.

It is clear that Nelly Furtado is back and she is announcing it with firmness and pride.