Shakira

After achieving superstardom throughout Latin America, Colombian-born singer and songwriter Shakira has become one of Latin pop’s biggest international crossover artists, selling millions worldwide and collecting hundreds of awards in the process. Noted for her rock-influenced approach, Shakira maintained an extraordinary degree of creative control over her music; she wrote or co-wrote nearly all of her own material, and in the process gained a reputation as one of the genre’s most ambitiously poetic lyricists. Following the release of ’90s breakthrough albums Pies Descalzos and Dónde Están los Ladrones?, she was primed to take her place on the global stage with her first English-language effort, 2001′s chart-topping smash Laundry Service. Boosted by the radio hit “Whenever, Wherever”/“Suerte,” the set became an instant pop sensation. From there, she remained a platinum-certified chart fixture around the world, hitting both the Spanish- and English-language markets with subsequent efforts such as 2005′s Fijacion Oral, Vol. 1, 2009′s She Wolf, 2010′s Sale el Sol. With 2017′s El Dorado, Shakira earned her fourth number one Billboard Latin album and took home the Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album in the process. In the years until her next full length, she continued to accumulate hits with numerous collaborations, the most notable being Bizarrap for 2023′s record-breaking “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53,” which eventually landed on 2024′s Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran. Shakira Mebarak (full name Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll) was born February 2, 1977 in Barranquilla, Colombia, into a poor family. Her mother was a native Colombian and her father was of Lebanese descent, and so as a child Shakira soaked up music from both cultures; she also listened heavily to English-language rock & roll, listing her favorite bands in later interviews as Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, the Police, the Cure, and Nirvana. Shakira wrote her first song at age eight, began entering (and winning) talent competitions at age ten, and started learning the guitar at age 11 (one story runs that around this age, she was kicked out of her school choir for singing too forcefully). In 1990, at age 13, Shakira moved to Bogotá in hopes of pursuing a modeling career but wound up signing a record deal with Sony’s Colombian division instead. Her 1991 debut album, Magia, comprised songs she’d written over the past five or six years, including some of her earliest efforts. Although it didn’t break internationally, the record attracted attention in her home country. Dissatisfied with the pop inclinations of the follow-up, 1993′s Peligro, Shakira changed direction for a time, joining the cast of the Colombian soap opera El Oasis in 1994. When Shakira returned to recording in 1995, she asserted more control over the direction of her music and worked more rock & roll rhythms — as well as occasional Arabic touches — into her Latin pop material. The first results were Pies Descalzos, which was initially released in 1995; a slow seller at first, the album gradually caught on thanks to “Estoy Aqui,” which became a hit all over Latin America, as well as Spain. After that breakthrough, Pies Descalzos just kept spinning off singles: “Dónde Estás Corazón?,” “Antología,” “Pienso en Ti,” “Un Poco de Amor,” and “Se Quiere, Se Mata.” The album hit number one in eight different countries and eventually went platinum in the U.S. as well; Shakira toured for nearly two years promoting it (she finally left El Oasis in 1997). Seeking to build on her success, Shakira signed Emilio Estefan — Gloria’s husband and a highly successful music-biz insider — as her manager and producer. The move paid off when her follow-up album, 1998′s Dónde Están los Ladrones? (Where Are the Thieves?), became an even bigger worldwide hit than its predecessor. What more, it cracked the lucrative U.S. market wide open, spending 11 weeks at number one on Billboard’s Latin album chart and producing two U.S. number ones (on the Latin chart) with “Ciega, Sordomuda” and “Tu.” The album’s signature track, however, was the worldwide hit “Ojos Así,” her most explicit nod yet to the Arabic influence she’d picked up from her father (she also incorporated belly dancing into her live performances in homage to her heritage). Dónde Están los Ladrones? was also the most effective presentation yet of Shakira’s strong-willed persona; her self-analysis made her even more popular among female fans, while her anger over love gone wrong drew comparisons to Alanis Morissette. When Gloria Estefan offered to translate “Ojos Así” into English, the prospect of a crossover suddenly seemed tangible, and Shakira decided that the most effective way to maintain control over her material was to learn English well enough to write in it herself. In the meantime, she set the stage for her crossover bid with a performance on MTV Unplugged, the channel’s first Spanish-language broadcast. MTV Unplugged was released as an album in early 2000 and topped the Latin charts for two weeks on its way to becoming her third straight platinum album; it also won a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album. At the inaugural Latin Grammy Awards ceremony in 2000, Shakira delivered a much-discussed, show-stopping performance of “Ojos Así” and took home Unplugged-related trophies for Best Female Pop Vocal (“Ojos Así“) and Best Female Rock Vocal (“Octavo Dia”). Mainstream pop stardom beckoned. Shakira dyed her long brown hair blonde and went to work on her first (mostly) English-language album, Laundry Service. The single/video “Whenever, Wherever” was released in advance of the album in late 2001 and made her a star in the English-speaking world almost overnight. Laundry Service entered the American pop charts at number three, and “Whenever, Wherever” climbed into the Top Ten of the singles chart, peaking at number six. The follow-up, “Underneath Your Clothes,” also hit the Top Ten, halting at number nine; less than a year after its release, Laundry Service had gone triple platinum. Reviews of the album were divided as to the effectiveness of Shakira’s English lyrics, but nearly all agreed on her unique poetic imagery. Extensive touring to support Laundry Service led to a long break for the singer, so a remix collection (2002′s Laundry Service: Washed and Dried) and a live album (2004′s Live & Off the Record) appeared in lieu of a new album. Revitalized, Shakira began the writing process for her next release and soon had 60 songs ready to go, some in English, some in Spanish; 20 of those songs were selected and divided up by language to make two different albums. Both appeared in 2005 and both hit the Top Ten, with the Spanish-language Fijacion Oral, Vol. 1 leading the way in June with a number four placing and the English-language Oral Fixation, Vol. 2 following in November at number five. As sales of Oral Fixation began to slow in early 2006, Epic reissued the album in March with a bonus track, “Hips Don’t Lie” featuring Wyclef Jean. The newly recorded song went on to top the charts in the U.S., Australia, and across Europe, becoming one of the year’s biggest hits and reviving sales of Oral Fixation, as well as Shakira’s entire back catalog. Shakira signed a ten-year contract with Live Nation in 2008, prompting Forbes to deem her the fourth top-earning female musician in history. She also worked on another album, traveling to multiple cities while collaborating with such producers as RedOne, Wyclef Jean, and Luis F. Ochoa. She Wolf was completed in 2009 and readied for release in October, marking her third English-language album. The electro-disco-heavy She Wolf didn’t make as many commercial waves as its predecessor, but it still managed to spawn a handful of modest hits with the title track and “Gypsy.” Shakira quickly bounced back in 2010 with “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” the official song of the 2010 FIFA World Cup that became an international smash hit. On the heels of its success came Sale el Sol in the fall of 2010, an album largely recorded in Spanish that continued her remarkable worldwide success. A live album from Sale el Sol’s supporting tour, Shakira: Live from Paris, appeared in time for the 2011 Christmas season. In 2012, Shakira replaced Christina Aguilera as a coach on the American hit musical talent show The Voice. She initially served for only one season, leaving in 2013, and after her departure she finalized her tenth album. Titled Shakira, the record saw release in March 2014 and included the hit Rihanna duet “Can’t Remember to Forget You” and “Dare (La La La)” (which was later reworked with Carlinhos Brown for the 2014 FIFA World Cup). Shakira then returned to The Voice for season six of the series. While working on her next album, she voiced the character Gazelle in the animated film Zootopia. The movie’s soundtrack generated a new Shakira single, “Try Everything,” a song co-written by Sia and Stargate that was later certified double-platinum. Early in 2017, Shakira appeared on “Deja Vu,” a hit single by Prince Royce, who returned the favor by appearing on her 11th effort. Released in May of that year, El Dorado included the hit singles “La Bicicleta” with Carlos Vives and “Chantaje” with Maluma. The set took home a Latin Grammy for Best Contemporary Pop Vocal Album and won Best Latin Pop Album in the main Grammy ceremony. In the years that followed, Shakira teamed with a handful of wide-ranging artists, scoring additional hits with Maluma (2018′s “Clandestino”), Anuel AA (“Me Gusto”), and Black Eyed Peas (“Girl Like Me”). She also performed with Jennifer Lopez at the Super Bowl LIV halftime show in 2020. 2021′s “Don’t Wait Up” was followed in 2022 by “Te Felicito,” a collaboration with Rauw Alejandro that was certified multi-platinum in Spain and diamond in Mexico. Hit-upon-multiplatinum-hit continued to keep her busy, with another Black Eyed Peas collaboration (“Don’t You Worry”), “Monotonia” with Ozuna, and the triple-platinum Karol G smash “TQG” carrying her into 2023. The biggest of these hits, however, landed in the form of a scathing track aimed at her ex, a collaboration with Argentine DJ Bizarrap dubbed “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53.” The pulsing kiss-off became a crossover international smash, placing the pair on the main U.S. Top Ten and topping charts across Central and South America, as well as Europe. Breaking a seven year gap without a full-length, Shakira returned in early 2024 with her 12th LP, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran, which paired a handful of those previously-released smash hits with fresh tracks that centered on vulnerability and healing. ~ Neil Z. Yeung