Before her new album “Las mujeres ya no Llarn” had a defined concept, the last singles that Shakira released on the platforms were telling in chapters an entire conceptual story that weaves together her personal experiences.
However, “Women no longer cry,” his new album of 17 songs, including an additional version of the single “Puntería” for the vinyl format and another of “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53” (Tiësto Remix), which is released this March 22, is the result of an entire process very well thought out, analyzed and studied. Those who know Shakira know that she herself is the mastermind of all of her professional projects in music and this new production is no exception at all. This does not mean that everything that happened was premeditated, no. Rather, Shakira cleverly learned to make lemonade when lemons fell from the sky, turning her pain into a blessing.
2022 was a very hard year for Shakira on a personal level and her pack of wolves (as she calls her fans) felt it and experienced it closely while still supporting her. Her romantic breakup with the father of her two children after a relationship of a little more than a decade, seeing herself betrayed by her partner, the tax problems that pointed her to tax evasion, the feeling left by seeing herself alone with “the debt.” in Hacienda”, seeing and feeling the suffering of her children with everything that was happening around them, were very strong ingredients and situations that surely made her cry, but in the end she was able to turn her pain and crying into heartfelt and successful songs that They ended up shining like diamonds. There’s a reason the album cover shows diamond-shaped tears.
Shakira next to her children Milan and Sasha.
(UNIVISION)
But she did not do it alone, at her side were great figures of Latin music to support her while they were filled with pride for doing so, like Karol G herself, her compatriot from Medellín, who also faced the betrayal of a love . Together, those from Medallo and those from Barranquilla, not only exorcised their feelings, but also turned their collaboration “TQG” (initials of “Te Quedó Grande”), into an anthem that today accumulates more than 1 billion views on YouTube and that They gave him all the recognition in the world.
From all these experiences the lyrics of the singles included in the album also emerged, such as “Te felicito”, together with Rauw Alejandro, “Monotonía”, next to the “negrito de los ojos Claros”, Ozuna, in addition to the urban rhythm which he shared in ‘Copa Vacía’ with his compatriot Manuel Turizo. All accumulating millions of views on the platforms and leading Shakira to make money instead of crying.
The main trigger
All that musical success, on the one hand, was tarnished personally by having to face the pain of seeing his father confined in a hospital on a couple of occasions due to a fall he suffered and which caused a traumatic brain injury. He later had to undergo surgery. Aside from all that he was experiencing and facing, La Loba had decided to give his life a new turn by moving permanently to Miami with his children. That new beginning of La Loba protecting his wolf cubs and showing them that everything was going to be okay, also became a heartfelt song (“Acróstico”) and even his two little ones took part in the vocal part of the song.
In fact, at the 20th edition of Premios Juventud, held at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in Puerto Rico, Shakira felt more sheltered by her audience and she experienced that from the moment she moved with her children to the United States. Just weeks after her arrival, she was the top winner, winning 8 awards in the categories of Artist Premios Juventud Femenina, Best Song for My Ex (TQG), Girl Power (TQG), Best Urban Track (TQG), and Best Pop/Urban Song. , Best Pop/Urban Song, Best Pop/Urban Collaboration, Tropical Mix and Social Dance Challenge. At that ceremony Shakira sang and her children experienced her mother’s success in person on stage.
Sasha, Shakira and Milan Piqué Mebarak at the MTV Video Music Awards on Tuesday, September 12, 2023, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
(Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
In 2023 Shakira was awarded as the Billboard Woman of the Year in a ceremony held in Miami and where he offered an inspiring message. “It’s true that when I felt most lost it was music that put me on the path back to myself,” she said on that occasion. Shakira arrived after having obtained the biggest debut in Spanish of 2022 for “Monotonía” and breaking 14 Guinness world records with “Shakira: BZRP Music Sessions #53” with Bizarrap, a song that debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and made her the first woman to reach the top 10 of the list with a song in the Spanish language.
It was precisely with that song, in collaboration with the Argentine DJ Bizarrap, that it captured all the spotlights and eyes of the entire world. “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53”, a song whose play on words touched very directly on the father of her children and his romantic partner, became another anthem that won all the awards there were and ever were, it was even the Song of the Year and Best Pop Song at the Latin Grammys 2023.
In September 2023, she was also awarded the Video Vanguard award in New Jersey during the MTV Video Music Awards. That same night she performed a bilingual medley of hits such as “ella She Wolf,” her collaboration with Rauw Alejandro “Te felicito,” the viral “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, vol. 53” featuring Bizarrap and a number performed by her “Hips Do n’t Lie” collaborator Wyclef Jean.
Shakira, Bizarrap and Kevyn Mauricio Cruz creators of “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53”.
(Jose Breton/Invision/AP)
At the recent Premio Lo Nuestro 2024 ceremony, in February, Bizarrap was the one who received the award for Song of the Year and Pop/Urban Collaboration of the Year for “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53” and it was on that occasion that he revealed that he had lists a new collaboration with Shakira. The Argentinian was referring to “La Fuerte”, another of the singles that make up the album “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran”.
Other songs that keep her fans waiting are “Puntería” with the controversial artist of Dominican roots Cardi B, whom Shakira met at an event in Paris. The young rapper joined the project after the Colombian sent her her song and upon receiving it she imposed her genius and style on the proposal, according to an interview she gave to The New York Times.
At the recent “Bésame Mucho” festival that was held in Texas, Shakira virtually presented, on a giant screen, a preview of the song she recorded for this album with Grupo Frontera titled “(Entre parentheses)”, a song from the Mexican regional that they recorded in a studio in Los Angeles and whose interaction became one of the most pleasant sessions that Shakira has experienced with a group of musicians of Mexican descent.
The other song that has given a lot to talk about is “The Boss”, where the Barranquilla native shares credits with the guys from Fuerza Regida. This theme, in the form of corridos tumbados, makes Shakira venture into a genre that she is currently sweeping the industry. The video for this song, which was released five months ago and which has accumulated more than 145 million views on YouTube, shows Shakira taking some very peculiar dance steps and also riding a horse that the artist brought from Colombia. The lyrics talk about the exploitation of workers who are subjected to bosses who abuse their workforce. The artist dedicated the song to Lili Melgar, “this song is for you, because they didn’t pay you compensation,” she sang in the song.
Shakira shines with her new production “Las mujeres no ya llaron”.
(JAUME DE LAIGUANA/via UNIVISION)
Melgar was her children’s nanny and appears in the song’s video clip. Apparently Melgar was fired without compensation by his ex after revealing to Shakira the former Barcelona player’s infidelities with his lover.
The other songs that complete Shakira’s proposal are “Cohete”, another collaboration with the Puerto Rican Rauw Alejandro, as well as another single titled “Tiempo Sin Verte” and two more “Como donde y donde” and “Nassau”.
The closing is included with “Última”, a single that he recorded last for this album and that according to the interview with The New York Times, is a song that was conceived, arranged and recorded in a single day so as not to have to go back. to live it.
“Última” is a song full of pain, regret and definitive decisions that prevent him from returning to the past. “Última” is the last song that Shakira will make in reference to the unmentionable. The unfortunate thing is that she won’t be able to avoid singing it on her next concert tour that will surely be announced after this release.
“Women no longer cry” will not only reach digital platforms, it will also be made on CD and in four vinyl versions: Diamond, Rubi, Sapphire and Emerald, with the colors of these precious stones. On the Shakira.com site they even include a line of perfumes called SHK, t-shirts and other promotional accessories.
And if you are more curious and live in Los Angeles, you could take a tour of the Grammy Museum, where the “Shakira, Shakira: The Grammy Museum Experience” exhibition is still on display. As you will see, everything is calculated to continue billing.