There’s also now a 21-foot-tall bronze statue of Shakira mid-dance in perpetuity along the waterfront of her hometown of Barranquilla, Colombia. The plaque below the artwork by Yino Márquez reads: “A heart that composes, hips that don’t lie, an unmatched talent, a voice that moves the masses and bare feet that march for the good of children and humanity.”
The honor came 22 years after she burst onto the English-language scene with 2001’s Laundry Service, featuring her infectious ode to making it work no matter what, “Whenever, Wherever.”
Which still sounds good—and very romantic—in theory.
But in practice, Shakira and Piqué’s partnership—she told 60 Minutes in 2020 that marriage “scares the s–t” out of her and she preferred the title of girlfriend or lover to wife—turned untenable at some point. And at least as far as the little bit that she’s hinted at is concerned, Piqué is the one whose behavior got him red-carded.
In October, however, Piqué indicated that the prevailing narrative surounding their breakup wasn’t exactly what happened.
“In the end, the truth or what happens or occurs is not told in the way it was,” the 37-year-old (as of Feb. 2, the athlete sharing a birthday with his ex) told CNN en Español in an Oct. 18 interview translated from Spanish. “I cannot control this.”
He continued, “The best thing is that in the end I am surrounded by my loved ones, my family, my friends, the people who really know you. They know what you are like and what you do, and that gives me a lot of peace of mind.”
