Nelly Furtado meets Meghan Markle, Prince Harry at Invictus Games in Vancouver: 'They're beautiful, that's for sure'
The Canadian "I'm Like a Bird" singer says she had "so much fun" performing at the event, which kicked off on Saturday.
Nelly Furtado is linking up with a couple of "gems" on Canada's west coast. The "I'm Like a Bird" singer, 46, performed at the Invictus Games on Saturday afternoon in Vancouver during a star-studded ceremony that saw other celebrities like Katy Perry and Noah Kahan also take the stage.
Before her show at BC Place, Furtado — who is from Victoria, B.C. — also ran into the Duke and Duchess of Sussex backstage. The Canadian singer shared a clip on social media of herself smiling at the camera and posing with Meghan Markle. Then, Prince Harry walked behind them while jokingly glaring at the screen, which made Furtado burst with excitement.
"They're beautiful, that's for sure," the "Maneater" singer captioned her post, along with a pink heart emoji. She also posted a follow-up carousel on Instagram, featuring photos and videos of herself at the event. That post showed stunning photos of Furtado wearing a sultry all-black outfit, content of some competitors and another clip where she's posing for pictures with the royal couple.
"I had so much fun putting together this performance for the Invictus Games opening ceremony," Furtado wrote in her post, while also thanking breakdance crew ILL-Abilities and Indigenous artist Mattmac for their inspiration. "Blessings to all of the competitors. Thanks for sharing your light with us all."
In the comments sections of both social media posts, people expressed how much they loved Furtado's performance. Others were happy to see the Duchess of Sussex, who lived in Toronto while filming Suits, meet the "Say It Right" singer.
"Your performance made me cry. All the songs brought me back to being a teen getting ready for school. And seeing your co-performers and their talent made the tears fall faster," one person wrote.
"OMG. Nelly and Meghan... The duo I never knew I needed," someone shared on TikTok.
"Oh, this is Canadian contenttt," another raved.
"Three icons in one video," someone penned.
"This looks amazing. And for such a good cause," an Instagram user added.
During her Feb. 9 performance, Furtado started on-stage in front of a picture of a moon with her name written out in large letters. She kicked off her set with "Spirit Indestructible" before singing hit songs "I'm Like a Bird" and "Turn Off the Light."
Furtado also had dancers from ILL-Abilities, an international dance crew with performers from around the world, take the stage. She also performed "Powerless (Say What You Want)" alongside Mattmac, a blind recording artist who hails from Garden Hill, Man.
This year's Invictus Games started on Feb. 8 and run until Feb. 16. The international sport event was first held in 2014 for wounded, injured and sick military service personnel, both serving and veterans. The games were founded by Prince Harry and were last held in Canada in 2017 in Toronto.
The event is being held in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C., this year, featuring up to 550 competitors from more than 20 countries. Many of the competitions will be held in facilities used during the 2010 Olympics, and this year's games will have 11 adaptive sports, including alpine skiing, skeleton and wheelchair curling as new additions.
