To compose, sing, and release an entire album in a foreign language… it’s beyond my understanding how that’s even possible.
However, that’s exactly what Shakira achieved with her debut English album, leaving fans amazed that the Colombian star managed to produce multiple hits without initially knowing English.
You didn’t come here for my opinion, and quite frankly, I’m sure it doesn’t matter much… but if I attempted to sing a song in Spanish, for instance, I might grasp the rhythm but there’s no way I could get through the entire song without making mistakes.
It’s easy to memorize songs in our native language because we can understand the lyrics and the message the artist is conveying.
But I digress.
Shakira, fully named Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, released her fifth studio album in 2001 titled “Servicio de LavanderÃa,” which translates to “Laundry Service” in English – her first album in the language.
Her music was a hit, so much so that one track from the album has been streamed over 632 million times. The song? ‘Whenever, Wherever’ – a true classic.
So, how did the ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ star manage to write her first English album?
Well, the year was 2001, so she couldn’t depend on Google Translate as we didn’t even have iPhones back then.
Instead, she used a dictionary.
Discussing this in a 2009 interview, Shakira revealed: “Writing songs used to be so difficult for me. A few years ago I could barely speak English and I used to write my songs with a dictionary.
“It was a real labour of love and I would sit there for hours just looking up words. But now thankfully it comes to me more naturally and spontaneously.”
She accomplished this with the assistance of her former manager Emilio Estefan Jr, and his Cuban-American singer wife Gloria Estefan.
Following the album’s release and its success in the US and around the world, she went on to release an additional three albums in English.
If you were already a fan of Shakira, I’m sure her achievements leave you even more impressed now.