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Shakira

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (/ʃəˈkɪərə/ shə-KEER, Spanish: [ʃaˈkiɾa isaˈβel meβaˈɾak riˈpol]; born 2 February 1977),[1] known mononymously as Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter.[2] Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the "Queen of Latin Music"[3] and has been praised for her musical versatility.[4] She made her recording debut with Sony Music Colombia at the age of 13. Following the commercial failure of her first two albums, Magia (1991) and Peligro (1993), she rose to prominence in Hispanic countries with her next albums, Pies Descalzos (1995) and Dónde Están los Ladrones? (1998). She entered the English-language market with her fifth album, Laundry Service (2001), which sold over 13 million copies worldwide. Buoyed by the international success of her singles "Whenever, Wherever" and "Underneath Your Clothes", the album propelled her reputation as a leading crossover artist.

For the singer's 2014 album, see Shakira (album). For other uses, see Shakira (disambiguation).

Shakira

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll

(1977-02-02) 2 February 1977
Barranquilla, Colombia
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
  • dancer
  • actress
  • philanthropist

1990–present

2

Her success was further solidified with the Spanish-language albums Fijación Oral, Vol. 1 (2005), Sale el Sol (2010), El Dorado (2017), and Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran (2024), all of which topped the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart, making her the first woman with number-one albums across four different decades. Meanwhile, her English-language albums Oral Fixation, Vol. 2 (2005), She Wolf (2009), and Shakira (2014) received platinum certifications in various countries worldwide. Some of her songs have reached number-one on the charts in multiple countries, including "Ciega, Sordomuda", "Whenever, Wherever", "La Tortura", "Hips Don't Lie", "Beautiful Liar", "She Wolf", "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", "Loca", "Rabiosa", "Can't Remember to Forget You", "Dare (La La La)", "Chantaje", "Te Felicito", "Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53", and "TQG". Outside of music, Shakira served as a coach on two seasons of the American singing competition television series The Voice (2013–2014), had a voice role in the animated film Zootopia (2016), and executive produced and judged the dance competition series Dancing with Myself (2022).


One of the most influential female artists of the 21st century, Shakira has been credited with opening the doors of the international market for other Latin artists.[5][6] With over 100 million certified records worldwide, she is one of the world's best-selling musicians.[7] She is the best-selling female Latin artist of all time in the United States and worldwide, as of 2023, according to Billboard.[8] Noted to be a "global phenom" whose impact has "reached every corner of the world", Shakira has been described as an "artistic link between the west and the east" for popularizing Middle Eastern sounds in the West, and western sounds in the East (mainly the Middle East).[9][10] Due to her heritage as a Colombian of Lebanese descent, she is perceived as particularly influential for Latino and Middle-Eastern musicians,[11] and has been noted for introducing musical genres, instruments, and techniques from across Latin America, the Middle East, and other regions to a wider audience.[12] Shakira is also credited with popularising music in the Spanish language on a global level.[13] In 2022, MTV included her in the list of "The Most Influential Women in the History of Music", being the only Latina on the list.[14]


She has received numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards, fourteen Latin Grammy Awards, five MTV Video Music Awards (including the 2023 Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award), seven Billboard Music Awards, thirty-nine Billboard Latin Music Awards, twenty-one Guinness World Records, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was named the Top Female Latin Artist of the Decade by Billboard twice (2000s and 2010s).[15][16] For her philanthropic work with her Barefoot Foundation and her contributions to music she received the Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year and Harvard Foundation Artist of the Year awards in 2011. She was appointed to the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics in the United States in 2011, and Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government in 2012.

Early life

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll was born on 2 February 1977 in Barranquilla, Colombia. She is the only child of William Mebarak Chadid and Nidia Ripoll Torrado. She is of Spanish and Lebanese descent.[17][18] Her father William was born in New York City to a family from Lebanon. When he was five, his family moved to Colombia.[19] Her mother's side has two Spanish surnames, Ripoll and Torrado, the former of which is Catalan and originates from four brothers who immigrated from Catalonia to coastal Colombia in the 19th century.[20] She has also stated that she has distant Italian roots through an ancestor with the surname "Pisciotti".[21] She was raised Catholic and attended Catholic schools.[22] She has eight older half-siblings from her father's previous marriage.[23] Shakira spent much of her youth in Barranquilla, a city located on the northern Caribbean coast of Colombia.


Shakira wrote her first poem, titled "La rosa de cristal" ('The Crystal Rose'), when she was only four years old.[24] As she was growing up, she was fascinated watching her father writing stories on a typewriter,[24] and asked for one as a Christmas gift. She got that typewriter at age seven,[24] and has continued writing poetry since then. These poems eventually evolved into songs. When Shakira was two years old, her older half-brother was killed, at the age of nineteen, in a motorcycle accident; six years later, at age eight, Shakira wrote her first song, titled "Tus gafas oscuras" ('Your dark glasses'), which was inspired by her father, who for years wore dark glasses to hide his grief.[25]


When Shakira was four, her father took her to a local Middle Eastern restaurant, where Shakira first heard the doumbek, a traditional drum used in Middle-Eastern music and which typically accompanied belly dancing.[26] She started dancing on the table, and the experience made her realize that she wanted to be a performer. She enjoyed singing for schoolmates and teachers (and even the nuns) at her Catholic school, but in second grade, she was rejected for the school choir because her vibrato was too strong. The music teacher told her that she sounded "like a goat".[26][27] At school, she was often sent out of the class because of her hyperactivity.[28] She says she had also been known as "the belly dancer girl", as she would demonstrate every Friday at school a number she had learned.[26] "That's how I discovered my passion for live performance," she says.[29][23] To instill gratitude in Shakira for her upbringing, her father took her to a local park to see orphans who lived there. The images stayed with her, and she said to herself: "One day I'm going to help these kids when I become a famous artist."[23]


Between the ages of ten and thirteen, Shakira was invited to various events in Barranquilla and gained some recognition in the area.[30] It was at this approximate time that she met local theater producer Monica Ariza, who was impressed with her and as a result tried to help her career. During a flight from Barranquilla to Bogotá, Ariza convinced Sony Colombia executive Ciro Vargas to hold an audition for Shakira in a hotel lobby. Vargas held Shakira in high regard and, returning to the Sony office, gave the cassette to a song and artist director. However, the director was not overly excited and thought Shakira was something of "a lost cause". Undaunted and still convinced that Shakira had talent, Vargas set up an audition in Bogotá. He arranged for Sony Colombia executives to arrive at the audition, with the idea of surprising them with Shakira's performance. She performed three songs for the executives and impressed them enough for her to be signed to record three albums.[31]

Career

1990–1995: Beginnings

Shakira's debut album, Magia, was recorded with Sony Music Colombia in 1990 when she was only 13 years old.[32] The songs are a collection made by her since she was eight,[33] mixed pop-rock ballads and disco uptempo songs with electronic accompaniment. The album was released in June 1991 and featured "Magia" and three other singles. Though it fared well on Colombian radio and gave the young Shakira much exposure, the album did not fare well commercially, as only 1,200 copies were sold worldwide.[26] After the poor performance of Magia, Shakira's label urged her to return to the studio to release a follow-up record. Though she was little known outside of her native Colombia at the time, Shakira was invited to perform at Chile's Viña del Mar International Song Festival in February 1993. The festival gave aspiring Latin American singers a chance to perform their songs, and the winner was then chosen by a panel of judges. Shakira performed the ballad "Eres" ("You Are") and won the trophy for third place. One of the judges who voted for her to win was the then 20-year-old Ricky Martin,[32] whose initial prominence had come from his membership in Menudo.


Shakira's second studio album, titled Peligro, was released in March, but Shakira was not pleased with the final result, mainly taking issue with the production. The album was better received than Magia had been, though it was also considered a commercial failure due to Shakira's refusal to advertise or promote it. Shakira then decided to take a hiatus from recording so that she could graduate from high school.[32] In the same year, Shakira starred in the Colombian TV series The Oasis, loosely based on the Armero tragedy in 1985.[34] Since then, the albums have been pulled from release and are not considered official Shakira albums but rather promotional albums.

1995–2000: Latin breakthrough

Shakira originally recorded the song "¿Dónde Estás Corazón?" (later released on her album Pies Descalzos) for the compilation album Nuestro Rock in 1994, released exclusively in Colombia. The song was an instant success on radio stations in Colombia and Sony decided to finance her third record, by giving her the last chance due to previous commercial failures.


Shakira returned to recording music under Sony Music along with Columbia Records in 1995 with Luis F. Ochoa, using musical influences from a number of countries and an Alanis Morissette-oriented persona which affected two of her next albums.[35] These recordings spawned her third studio album, and her international debut album, titled Pies Descalzos. Recording for the album began in February 1995, after the success of her single "¿Dónde Estás Corazón?".


The album, Pies Descalzos, was released in October 1995 in Latin American countries and in February 1996 in the US. It reached number five on the U.S. Billboard Top Latin Albums chart. The album spawned six hit singles, "Estoy Aquí", which reached number two on the U.S. Latin chart, "¿Dónde Estás Corazón?" which reached number five on the U.S. Latin chart, "Pies Descalzos, Sueños Blancos" which reached number 11 on the U.S. Latin chart, "Un Poco de Amor" which reached number six on the U.S. Latin chart, "Antología" which reached number 15 on the U.S. Latin chart, and "Se Quiere, Se Mata" which reached number eight on the U.S. Latin chart.[36] In August 1996, RIAA certified the album platinum status.[37]


In March 1996, Shakira went on to her first international tour, named simply the Tour Pies Descalzos. The tour consisted of 20 shows and ended in 1997. Also in that year, Shakira received three Billboard Latin Music Awards for Album of the Year for Pies Descalzos, Video of the Year for "Estoy Aqui", and Best New Artist.[38] Pies Descalzos later sold over 5 million copies,[39][40] prompting the release of a remix album, simply titled The Remixes. The Remixes also included Portuguese versions of some of her well-known songs, which were recorded as a result of her success in the Brazilian market, where Pies Descalzos sold nearly one million copies.[30]


Her fourth studio album was titled Dónde Están los Ladrones? Produced by Shakira with Emilio Estefan, Jr. as the executive producer it was released in September 1998. The album, inspired by an incident in an airport in which a suitcase filled with her written lyrics was stolen, became a bigger hit than Pies Descalzos. The album has reached a peak position of number 131 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and held the top spot on the U.S. Latin Albums chart for 11 weeks. It has since sold over 7 million copies worldwide[41] and 1.5 million copies in the U.S. alone, making it one of the best selling Spanish albums in the U.S. Eight singles were taken from the album including "Ciega, Sordomuda", "Moscas En La Casa", "No Creo", "Inevitable", "", "Si Te Vas", "Octavo día", and "Ojos Así".


Shakira also received her first Grammy Award nomination in 1999 for the Grammy Award for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album.[42] Shakira's first live album, MTV Unplugged, was recorded in New York City on 12 August 1999. Highly acclaimed by American critics, it is rated as one of her best-ever live performances.[43] In March 2000, Shakira embarked on her Tour Anfibio, a two-month tour of Latin America and the United States. In August 2000, she won an MTV Video Music Award in the category of People's Choice – Favorite International Artist for "Ojos Así". In September 2000, Shakira performed "Ojos Así" at the inaugural ceremony of the Latin Grammy Awards, where she was nominated in five categories: Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for MTV Unplugged, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for "Octavo Día", Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Best Short Form Music Video for the video for "Ojos Así".[44]

2001–2004: English transition with Laundry Service

Upon the success of Dónde Están los Ladrones? and MTV Unplugged, Shakira began working on an English crossover album.[45] She learned English with the help of Gloria Estefan.[46] She worked for over a year on new material for the album. "Whenever, Wherever", called "Suerte" in Spanish-speaking countries, was released as the first and lead single from her first English album and fifth studio album throughout the period between August 2001 and February 2002. The song took heavy influence from Andean music, including the charango and panpipes in its instrumentation. It became an international success by reaching number one in most countries. It was also her first success in the U.S., reaching number six on the Hot 100.

In 2006, a six-tonne (6.6-short-ton), 5-metre-tall (16 ft) statue of Shakira was installed in her hometown in a park near Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez.[281]

Barranquilla

In July 2018, Shakira visited in Lebanon which is the village of her paternal grandmother. During her visit, she visited the Cedars Reserve in Tannourine where a square in the forest was named after her. The square holds the name "Shakira Isabel Mebarak Square".[282]

Tannourine

In December 2023, Shakira's hometown of Barranquilla honoured the singer with a in a park along the banks of the Magdalena River. The sculpture shows the long, curly-haired singer belly dancing with her arms overhead in a sheer skirt with shiny aluminum decoration.[283]

21-foot bronze statue

(1996–1997)

Pies Descalzos International Tour

(2000)

Tour Anfibio

(2002–2003)

Tour of the Mongoose

(2006–2007)

Oral Fixation Tour

(2010–2011)

The Sun Comes Out World Tour

(2018)

El Dorado World Tour

(2024)

Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance Club Songs chart

Best-selling international artists in Brazil

List of best-selling Latin music artists

List of best-selling music artists

List of Billboard Social 50 number-one artists

Women in Latin music

List of Colombians

List of highest-certified music artists in Germany

List of largest music deals

Driven: Shakira (article)

VH1

VH1

"Video – VH1 – Driven Shakira (11–22–05)"

"Shakira: Woman Full of Grace ~ Ximena Diego ~ eBookMall ~ eBooks"

Pareles, Jon (14 November 2005). "Shakira, from lip to hip". , p. L3.

New Straits Times

"Shakira pertahan orang Arab". (8 November 2005). , p. 13.

Berita Harian

Laundry Service

Chart Performance for "" from the Billboard Hot 100

Don't Bother

Oral Fixation 2

New York Times Magazine article on Shakira's philanthropic work on education.

Official website

at AllMusic

Shakira

at IMDb

Shakira