The Spanish Language Blog donQuijote.org

She is a world singer of Colombian descent and has won many hits, titles and awards thanks to her varied repertoire. Her songs are a mix of Latin pop, pop rock, pop, dance and merengue. She is known for her smooth moves that she performs with ease during one of her live shows and in her music videos. She owes the body that many envy in part to her "trademark": belly dancing. In addition, she often performs barefoot, something that also characterizes her. She is in a relationship with famous Spanish soccer player Gerard Piqué and together they have two children. Also take a look at the stormy life of the dancer, actress, singer: Shakira.

  • Shakira only really broke through worldwide with her songs "Whenever Wherever," "Underneath Your Clothes" and "Objection.
  • The official World Cup song 'Waka Waka' for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa became an outright hit.
  • She likes to dedicate herself to the less fortunate. She does this through her own foundation 'Pies Calzados' and by being a female ambassador for UNICEF.

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll is her full name. Born in the Colombian town of Barranquilla on Feb. 2, 1977, she has shown from an early age that she has talent and aptitude for music. As early as the age of eight she began writing lyrics. She taught herself the English language by studying the works of Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and Walt Whitman, among others. She also took history classes at the University of Los Angeles, where she then quickly picked up English. She is fluent in Spanish, English, Portuguese and Italian; languages she has also sung in at times. She released her first album at the age of 14 under the name "Magia. Her real success only came not with her first album, but through a single released with hits by Colombian artists. The nummber "¿Dónde estás corazón?" became an outright hit and also gained exposure outside Colombia. She only really broke through worldwide in 2001, when she released the English-language album 'Laundry Service' with the songs 'Whenever Wherever', 'Underneath your Clothes' and 'Objection'.

Today, the Colombian already has 10 albums to her name and has sold more than 60 million records. She also has many collaborations to her name and is considered one of the most successful singers of our time. Collaborations with Anastacia, Beyoncé, Céline Dion, Cher and Calvin Harris, among others, have already been added to her repertoire. Her last collaborations were with Pitbull in 2012 with the song "Get It Started" and with Rihanna in 2014 with the song "Can't Remember To Forget You.

In addition, Shakira is the only singer who has been allowed to perform at FIFA World Cups twice in a row. This happened at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany with the song 'Hips Don't Lie' and at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa with the song 'Waka Waka'. The song 'Waka Waka' immediately became the best-selling World Cup song and the most viewed music video on YouTube.

After quite some time, she then received the famous star on the 'Hollywood Walk of Fame' in 2011. She also has the most 'Latin Grammys' to her name and was the third most viewed artist on Youtube in 2011. She is committed to charity and shows a lot of charisma towards humanity. The 'Pies Descalzos' (barefoot) foundation she founded creates opportunities for the most underprivileged children in Colombia. The foundation has set up five schools in different regions where help is most needed. Here children are offered education, nutrition and psychological help. Also, Shakira has been a female ambassador for UNICEF since 2003. So not only is she a world-class Colombian singer, but she is also trying to do her part for a better world.

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