Latin pop icon Shakira is embracing vulnerability on her latest album, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran (Women No Longer Cry.) The LP arrived to rave reviews and massive fanfare. She also performed in Times Square to celebrate the record's release.
Now, Shakira is opening up about the human emotions at the core of Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran.
In an interview with Marie Claire, the star opened up about her experience as a single mother. She detailed her relationships with men, how they've impacted the way she is raising her sons and her vision of female power.
Shakira reflected on her previous desires, saying that "Deep down, I always thought having a husband was the most important thing in my life."
She sought a man who was like her father, and would be someone "who I'd have kids with and then make plans to be with forever -- like my parents, who are still so in love."
Shakira then hinted at her highly publicized split with former beau Gerard Piqué. He is rumored to have cheated on Shakira with a friend of hers. Shakira and the soccer star split in 2022 after spending 11 years together. They share two sons.
She divulged that she "made many sacrifices for this. I was loyal." However, she followed up her lament with an affirmation: "You move on."
When asked if she still believes in love after the tumultuous break up, the "She Wolf" singer replied affirmatively.
"I've witnessed love, I just haven't been that lucky myself. Monogamy is a utopia," she said.
Despite her challenges, Shakira has stood strong. On Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran, she hones her focus on "redefin[ing] what female power looks like." On the record, she opens up about her struggles as a means of showing her female listeners that there is strength in vulnerability. Writing Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran served as a form of therapy for the singer.
"It was like healing. I was able to transform the pain and anger I felt into creativity, productivity and resilience," she said.
Shakira admitted that she used to feel "weak and fragile," but facing adversity, and situations where she was unsure if she would "survive at all" helped to shrink her fears.
"Each one of the 16 songs describes a moment in time when I was coping with or elaborating on intense emotion," she continued.
She continued by explaining that women are often told they "must conceal our feelings, hide our pain," but stressed, "that's a path that doesn't lead anywhere.
Shakira detailed that she is hoping to raise her sons to become "loyal boys, honest men," and that she wants them "to be men of their word."
"A person's word is often worthless," she said. "People over-promise and under-deliver. And I want my kids to be exactly the opposite,"
Shakira will head out on the North American leg of her Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour in November.
