Fiery Facts About Shakira

August 12, 2017 | Miles Brucker

Fiery Facts About Shakira


“I'm a multi-faceted woman and person, like all women are - there's no black and white. We have shades of grey in the middle. And even many more colours that other people don't see!”

Shakira Facts

43. In Another Life

When asked what career she would have chosen if she was not a musician, Shakira said she probably would have become a psychologist or astronomer.

Shakira MebarakWorld Economic Forum, Flickr

42. A Beautiful Mix

Her heritage is a mixture of Lebanese, Colombian, and Italian. Her grandparents emigrated to New York City from Lebanon.

Shakira singing and playing guitar oouinouin, Flickr

41. Home is Where the Heart Is

She was born and raised in Colombia, so Spanish is her native language.

Bogota, ColombiaPedro Szekely, Flickr

40. It Rolls off the Tongue

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll is her full name…”Shakira” is Arabic for “grateful,” so it’s beautiful as both a first and stage name.

Shakira on stageKeith Bedford, Getty Images

39. The Baby

Shakira is the youngest child out of a family of 8 kids.

Shakira and her parentsVALERY HACHE, Getty Images

38. Tragedy

When she was only 2 years old, her oldest brother was killed by a drunk driver. She wrote a song called “Your Dark Glasses” about the incident.

Shakira on stage for NBC Today Show Concert Series with ShakiraEverett Collection, Shutterstock

37. Young Money

She wrote her first song when she was only 8 years old, and got a record deal at 13.

photo of SHAKIRA, SHAKIRA AT TEEN PEOPLE'S FOURTH ANNUAL ARTISTSChristina Radish, Getty Images

36. Smash Hit

Her first album in English was called “Laundry Service.” She said she picked the name because she loves the smell of clean laundry. One of her most famous songs, “Whenever, Wherever” was on that album.

shakira holding her posterCarlos Alvarez, Getty Images

35. Shoot for the Stars

In 2011, Shakira got her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Musician Shakira honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of FameAlbert L. Ortega, Getty Images

34. National Hero

She is the most successful Colombian musician of all time, selling more albums than anyone else in her country. She has sold more than 140 million albums worldwide.

Shakirajkuttarkabat, Flickr

33. Boss Lady

In 2014, Forbes Magazine voted Shakira as the 58th most powerful woman in the world.

Singer and dancer, ShakiraSean Nel, Shutterstock

32. The Award Goes To…

Shakira has won 2 Grammy Awards, and she has been nominated 5 different times.

shakira holding awwardsScott Gries, Getty Images

31. Remember Me

There is a 16-foot tall metal statue of her in Barranquilla, Colombia. The words “When you look at me, think that you too can accomplish what you want" are inscribed on the statue, where hundred of tourists take pictures every day.

shakira statueJdvillalobos, Wikimedia Commons

30. Giving Back

She has donated a good deal of money to a school for the arts in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Barranquilla.

Shakira Visits BangladeshHandout, Getty Images

29. Shake it, Grandma!

Her grandmother taught her how to bellydance.

shakira dancingStuart Franklin, Getty Images

28. Unmasking

She was offered a starring role opposite Antonio Banderas in The Mask of Zorro in 1998, but she turned it down because she was afraid her English wasn’t good enough.

The mas of Zoro FilmTriStar Pictures, The Mask of Zorro (1998)

27. Talk it Out

In truth, Shakira can speak multiple languages: Spanish, Portuguese, English, Arabic, and Italian.

Shakira MebarakWorld Economic Forum, Flickr

26. Clean Living

Shakira doesn’t drink coffee, smoke, or drink alcohol.

Shakira performs at Minsk-ArenaAvis De Miranda, Shutterstock

25. I Vote Yes

In 2012, she became a judge on the TV show The Voice. Her participation in the show boosted the ratings, and she apparently made $12 million for appearing on the show.

Shakira, Usher, Adam Levine, Blake Shelton arrives at "The Voice"Kathy Hutchins, Shutterstock

24. What The Heck?

Even though she has so many fans, apparently, not everyone loves Shakira. One time, an angry person tried to attack her with a bag of cement. She was not hurt. Perhaps because of her ninja skills, as seen below.

Singer Shakira performs onstage during the 12th annual Latin GRAMMY AwardsKevin Winter, Getty Images

23. A Good Heart

In 2006, she started a charity organization to help Colombian children who are starving.

Pop singer Shakira (L) appears with former U.S. President Bill ClintonChris Hondros, Getty Images

22. Curvy

In 2016, she played the voice of a famous Gazelle pop star in Zootopia, singing a song called “Try Everything.”  When Disney showed her what the character would look like, she told them to give her wider hips, so they did.

Cartoon ZootopiaWalt Disney Pictures, Zootopia (2016)

21. Multi-Talented

Shakira loves to paint. For whatever reason, she likes to illustrate pictures of fried eggs. I get it, eggs are freaking delicious.

image of shakira outside City Year, Flickr

20. Presidential

She used to be engaged to Antonio de la Rua. At the time, he was the son of the President of Argentina. The were together for 11 years.

image of shakira and her ex fianceeKevin Winter, Getty Images

19. Set for Life

In 2008, she signed a 10-year contract with Live Nation promising to perform concerts exclusively with them. They gave her $300 million in exchange.

shakira singingsuran2007, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

18. Mentor

One of her heroes is Gloria Estefan. Gloria is a Cuban-American singer, actress, and businesswoman. She kicked off her career as the lead singer in the "Miami Latin Boys" group, which eventually became known as Miami Sound Machine.

Photo of Gloria ESTEFANMichel Linssen, Getty Images

17. Ink-Free

Shakira doesn’t have any tattoos.

Shakira dancingLarry Busacca, Getty Images

16. Ditch the Heels

Most of the time, Shakira performs her concerts without any shoes on.

Colombian singer and ten-time Grammy award winner Shakira performsRABIH MOGHRABI, Getty Images

15. “I Can’t Live…”

When asked what her favorite song is, she said that it’s “With or Without You” by U2.

Singer from U2 bandScott Gries, Getty Images

14. Cleaning Out the Closet

In 2007, Shakira auctioned off 40 of the costumes she wore during concerts to raise money for her charity, The Barefoot Foundation. Barefoot has two meanings: it's the name of the record that made Shakira’s music internationally known, and it also recognizes children living in such poverty that they can't afford shoes.

Colombian pop star Shakira greets childrenSTR, Getty Images

13. Cougar

In 2010, Shakira entered a committed relationship with Gerard Piqué, who is a professional FIFA soccer player from Spain. He is 10 years younger than her. Funny enough, both of their birthdays are on February 2nd.

Gerard Pique of Barcelona David Ramos, Getty Images

12. This Time for Africa

In 2010, Shakira’s song “Waka Waka” was the theme of the FIFA World Cup. That’s how she met Gerard.

Shakira dancingClive Rose, Getty Images

11. So Romantic.

While they were filming the “Waka Waka” music video together, Gerard told Shakira, “I’m going to win the World Cup just so I can see you again at Finals.” He did.

 Gerard Pique of Spain (C), and the Spain team celebrate victory with the World Cup trophy following the 2010 FIFA Clive Mason, Getty Images

10. Hands Off

During the 2014 World Cup, the couple were banned from having sex, because it’s considered a distraction for the athletes.

Shakira's concert during the Rock in Rio in Arganda del ReyShelly Wall, Shutterstock

9. Mama!

Shakira and Gerard had two sons together, named Milan, and Sasha.

Shakira with her kidsDavid Ramos, Getty Images

8. Diapers are Expensive

When her first son was born, she collaborated with UNICEF to do a “virtual baby shower” to give items to babies in need.

Shakira at UNICEFGetty Images, Getty Images

7. The Jealous Type

Gerard gets a little jealous sometimes (who doesn't?), so he told Shakira she wasn't allowed to make music videos with hot guys anymore. In her video “Can’t Remember to Forget You”, she dances and flirts with Rihanna instead. She explained to the press that she isn’t letting Gerard tell her what to do--it was a mutual decision. She explained that their relationship had an equal balance of power, and that Gerard also doesn't get to do photo shoots with models.

Gerard Pique Goes On Stage In Shakira's ConcertEuropa Press Entertainment, Getty Images

6. Diplomatic

In 2011, President Barack Obama appointed her as an ambassador in the  White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

The Obama Inaugural Celebration At The Lincoln MemorialMark Wilson, Getty Images

5. No Place Like Home

Shakira owns houses all over the world. Some of the places she calls “home” are Miami, the Bahamas, Barcelona, Punta del Este, and Barranquilla.

BarranquillaFernando Gutierrez, Wikimedia Commons

4. Smells Like Teen Spirit

She has her own line of perfume in 3 scents: S by Shakira, DANCE, and LOVE ROCK.

Shakira and her parfumesDominique Charriau, Getty Images

3. Play Nice

Mattel, the same company that makes Barbie, has produced Shakira dolls and a TV series in her image. Instead of keeping this money, she has donated the proceeds to childhood charities.

Mattel boothGage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

2. Vroom, Vroom

Shakira has a collection of Mercedes Benz cars. Even her “soccer mom van” is a Mercedes SUV.

Shakira in the carJames Devaney, Getty Images

1. Privacy

Shakira doesn’t just own a place in the Bahamas. She has her own private island. It’s called Bonds Cay Island, and it is a whopping 700 acres. She originally planned to start a vacation resort business there, but plans fell through, and she has only used it as a vacation destination.

Great Harbor Cay horseshoePatrickneil, Wikipedia

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7


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