Incredibly successful, beautiful and soon to be on "El Dorado World Tour": Shakira. The Latina is a high-profile benefactor, even former US President Barack Obama has sought her advice.
Erotic hip swing, wild blonde mane and languorous Bambi look: Anyone who has ever seen the 1.57-meter-tall musician live will never forget her captivating show. Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, as she is called in real life, delivers the perfect mix of sexy oriental belly dancing, hot rhythms and charisma on stage. And mostly barefoot. The little Colombian is a big player in the pop business: The Latina has sold more than 75 million singles and albums since the start of her career. She has always been convinced that Shakira would one day land at the top of the pop Olympus: "Ever since I was a child, I knew that one day I would become a famous singer-songwriter," Shakira says in an interview.
Still full throttle
Happy, despite the height difference: kicker Piqué (1.94 m), Shakira (1.57 m). Their son Milan was born in January 2013 and brother Sasha two years later.
75 million records sold worldwide, an extremely successful footballer husband (Gerard Piqué from FC Barcelona) who is ten years younger to the day, and two beautiful boys: at just 40, Shakira could rest on her laurels and retire early, as supermodel Gisele Bündchen did, enjoy life to the full and concentrate on being a mother. But the grateful one, as her name means in Arabic, is not thinking about that. On the contrary: she has her hands full. Shakira is on the "El Dorado World Tour" from November. She will be taking the songs from her album of the same name and many of her old mega hits such as "Wherever, Whenever", "La Bicicleta" and of course the football anthem "Waka Waka" with her.
The non-profit organization has already supported around 10,000 children and 67,000 teenagers and adults since its inception.
Shakira not only manages to make herself heard on stage. She also uses her popularity for her very personal causes, her many social commitments. Long before it became fashionable in the music industry, she was already campaigning for children's education and climate protection. She is not just a benefactor on paper, she puts her heart and soul into helping those in need, from schoolchildren to the homeless. She founded the Fundacion Pies Descalzos (Barefoot Foundation) when she was just 18 years old. Not just a name without any connection: Shakira prefers to move around barefoot on stage, and her album released in 1995 also bears this title. With the support of the Colombian Ministry of Education and the Institute for Family Assistance, the foundation has set up a program for education and food for homeless and poor children. The foundation now supports six schools in Colombia. Seven thousand pupils attend school there. Two school buildings have been completely renovated. They not only teach the prescribed school curriculum, but also provide education for adults and social work for the families. For example, they are supported in setting up their own vegetable gardens. Two birds with one stone: their diet becomes healthier and their income improves thanks to self-sufficiency.
"It makes me angry when I see so much injustice in the world".
On her 32nd birthday, the singer-songwriter gave herself a very special present: she opened a new 5.7 million Swiss franc school building in her home town of Barranquilla. But Shakira doesn't just do good in her home country. When a devastating earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, it did not leave her indifferent. She recorded the charity single "Ay Haiti" with Juanes, Enrique Iglesias and others. But why so much philanthropy? Shakira explains it like this: "It makes me angry when I see so much injustice in the world."
Barack Obama met with the Unicef ambassador in 2011.
Her great commitment opened many doors for the Latina, even those of the White House. The now 40-year-old also cuts a fine figure in the political arena. During the "Clinton Global Initiative" in 2007, she received a pledge of 38 million francs from the Spanish state - her current home country - to support victims of natural disasters. Shakira's accolade followed in 2010: Barack Obama invited her to his Oval Office and appointed her as his education advisor. Since then, she has also been a member of a commission dealing with the issue of education for the Spanish-speaking minority in the USA, with the aim of giving them access to the best possible education. Her credo is: "For a better future, we must invest in education.
Poetry, lyrics and lots of talent
Why is education so close to Shakira's heart? Perhaps because she doesn't look back on a traditional school career herself? Her life story reads like the script of a Hollywood movie. At the age of four, the daughter of a native New Yorker with Lebanese roots wrote her first poem, "La rosa del Cristal". Mom Nidia is Colombian with Spanish-Italian roots. Little Shakira grew up in the Colombian city of Barranquilla, but her father Don William had two left hands: "I think my father is the only businessman with Arab roots who is not successful in his profession," she once joked.
She writes her first song at the age of eight and the whole extended family is amazed by her talent. Her grandmother introduced her to Lebanese culture and belly dancing seemed the most natural thing in the world to her. The enthusiasm of the Mebarak-Ripoll clan is so great. A few years later, a relative arranges a meeting with a music manager. Shakira still remembers her first performance today: "The whole thing took place in the hotel corridor. Without hesitating for long, I started singing and dancing." The 13-year-old's spontaneous hotel casting was the starting signal for her career. But before things really took off, she graduated from high school at the age of 15.
With her sixth world tour "El Dorado", Shakira will also be stopping off in Zurich at the end of the year. Then it's time: Waka Waka!
Their first two albums "Magia" (Magic) and "Peligro" (Danger) sell poorly. It was not until her third album "Pies descalzos" (Barefoot) that she hit it big. Her hit "Estoy aqui" ("I'm here") conquers the charts in her home country and attracts attention. A meteoric rise is the result, but Shakira remains down to earth, continues to help the poorest, prefers to open a new school or donate money to victims of natural disasters rather than buy fast cars, jewelry and villas. Just a pop star with a big heart and talent.
