Shakira explains why there are no songs in English on her new album
Shakira is back with the album "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran," inspired by her divorce from Gerard Piqué. Speaking on RTL, the Colombian star reveals why she did not record any songs in English, unlike her previous albums.
Shakira is getting her revenge. Hurt by the infidelities of footballer Gerard Piqué, troubled by their divorce, the Latin superstar has decided to pour all her resentment into her songs to come back stronger with her new album "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran," meaning "Women Don't Cry Anymore." Settling scores on the fierce tracks "Te Felicito" feat. Rauw Alejandro, "TQG" with Karol G, and especially "Bzrp Music Sessions #53" (with 900 million streams on Spotify), the singer is keen to prove that she is moving forward through 15 songs of resilience. "I am not as fragile as I thought I was. I have always spent my life fearing that things would happen to me, which finally happened all at once and I overcame them. Yes, my legs weakened, I fell in the mud, I got up, and I realized that I can overcome many things. I have not only found this strength in myself, I have seen it reflected in other women," she explained on RTL.
Musically, Shakira has drawn from multiple influences. Listening to "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran," Latin music, pop-rock, electro, and afrobeats collide to form a spicy cocktail. "It is the fundamental mission of the artist to polish oneself like a rough diamond and shine more and more. With each album, we can continue to create, to experiment, to seek. I love myself more as an artist now than I did 20 years ago," attests the Latin bombshell, who recently performed a free concert at Time Square in front of 40,000 amazed onlookers as part of the promotional marathon for her album. For "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon, the singer even had her hips tested on a lie detector. Verdict: her hips don't lie!
Interestingly, Shakira's 12th studio album contains no songs in English. Since her explosion onto the international scene in 2001 with "Whenever Wherever" and the album "Laundry Service," the artist has, however, accustomed the public to playing on two fronts, as evidenced by the success of hits like "Underneath Your Clothes," "Beautiful Liar" with Beyoncé, "She Wolf," "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)," "Can't Remember to Forget You" with Rihanna, or "Don't You Worry" with David Guetta and the Black Eyed Peas, to name a few. Yet, on "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran," there is not a hint of a word in English, except for Cardi B's verse on "Puntería."
The reason seems to be simple. Shakira explains that she enjoys singing in Spanish, her mother tongue. For this very intimate project, she wanted to let her heart speak by getting closer to her roots: "Singing in English is also an adventure every time I do it. Writing in English is an intellectual challenge, whereas writing in Spanish is total freedom," adds the 47-year-old star, who ventures into "norteño cumbia" on "(Entre Parentesis)," a collaboration with Grupo Frontera.
