Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll is a Colombian singer-songwriter born in Barranquilla, Colombia on February 2, 1977. She is also an actress, record producer, fashion designer, perfumer, goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, and philanthropist.
Her contralto voice is her most distinctive hallmark, characterized by the richness and range it brings to her songs. Since her debut in the Latin American music market in 1995 with the album Pies descalzos, Shakira has sold over 75 million albums and singles. She is regarded as the Queen of Latin pop for being a global icon of this music, whose melodic and danceable roots are evident in all her compositions. The influence of her Lebanese heritage from her father has also led her to blend Caribbean rhythms with those of Arabic origin, as well as to create choreographies that prominently feature the typical belly dance, always present in her performances.
Three of their singles, "Chantaje," "La tortura," and "Suerte," are among the twenty most significant in Billboard history. In 2011, they became the youngest artist to receive the Person of the Year honor.
One of Shakira's greatest passions is education, which is why in 1997 she founded the Pies Descalzos foundation in her hometown of Barranquilla, with the aim of providing support to the underprivileged children in Colombia and in developing countries. For her humanitarian work, she was appointed a goodwill ambassador and honored at the United Nations in 2006.
In 2009 and 2010, Shakira collaborated with Cuban-American artist Pitbull on the singles "Lo hecho está hecho" and "Rabiosa," respectively. In 2012, they reunited with the song "Get It Started."
In October 2019, her song "La bicicleta," performed alongside Carlos Vives, became mired in controversy after the Cuban Livam Rafael Castellanos filed a lawsuit in Spanish courts for the alleged plagiarism of a fragment from a song he authored in 1995 titled Yo te quiero tanto. Livam then claimed that he had sent a sample of his song to Vives through Sony ATV, indicating that the Colombian had reproduced a segment without his consent.
The success of the controversial song occurred in 2017. The occasional duo reached the top spots in the major global charts and in just six months gathered nearly 800 million views on YouTube, along with a Latin Grammy in the category of Song of the Year. Ultimately, the lawsuit was dismissed.
In February 2020, following their participation in the famous Barranquilla Carnival, the Cuban duo Gente de Zona took the opportunity to openly ask the Colombian artist for a collaboration: "your land is asking for it," expressed Alexander Delgado.
In August 2020, Shakira made some statements about Trump through her social media while encouraging Americans to vote in the upcoming general elections with the goal of removing Trump from the White House. "Donald Trump has shown that he is not the right person to lead the United States" and "why are psychological tests given to pilots before allowing them to fly, but not to presidents?" are some of her remarks regarding the role of the current American president.
On February 2, 2020, Shakira, along with Jennifer López , headlined the halftime show of Super Bowl LIV in Miami Gardens, Florida, which became one of the most viewed halftime shows of all time.
