Shakira, I am sure that the name rings more than a bell to most of us. I became a huge fan after her “Waka waka” song for the previous FIFA World Cup and this time too she makes an appearance. It is nothing short of a great honour for a singer to perform at such a fantastic event, one of the biggest stages ever and the best audience. However, I wonder if the journey has always been as smooth as it looks on the outside. It took a lot more than a stage performance to get there, for all those people who think life has been easy for a few compared to the others, here are a few stories that haven’t been told often.
Facts about Shakira
Here is a list of 5 such unknown facts about Shakira
Rejected from the school choir group as a child:
As a small girl she was rejected from the school choir and her music teacher told her that her voice sounded like a goat. If someone had said something like this to me I would probably have been embarrassed to my core and would have taken on oath either to never sing again or to smash her window pane :P. But garnering the courage to sing in front of a crowd in the same trait that was made fun of takes quite a character indeed. Would we do the same once we fail at something?
You need not fit everywhere:
Her parents encouraged her saying “You have a beautiful voice, stick to what you are, don’t sing any less loud than what you think.” I think all of us are gifted with an innate quality, it was the texture of voice for Shakira. She could have probably changed it and tried to imitate someone else, but that can get us only a tad far, but not all the way through. If there is something in the world that is valued more than anything else, it is ORIGINALITY!
The first two albums failed:
Her first two albums Magia and Peligro, which were released in the early 1990s failed to achieve any commercial success. It took her the 4th album to reach considerable success. It took till 2006 for the phenomenal song “Hips Don’t Lie”. In 2010 it was Waka Waka which has over 700 million views on YouTube and is the 8th most watched video in the world. What take for someone to reach such a remarkable success, from the time when she was made fun of her voice, and the texture to becoming one of the most watched videos in the world? Persistence, patience, hard work, innovation, passion, belief, hope, dream, dedication… I can go on…
Her song was offered to be translated into English
When her song “Ojos Así “was offered to translate into English. Shakira decided she would learn English well enough to write in it herself and after mastering English she began working in the international market. Well, it reminds me of this quote – “Winners don’t do different things, they do things differently!“. It was simple and straightforward to say yes to get a translation done, she did not have to go through the effort of learning a new language, writing in it and then composing for it. Well, I guess that is what makes the difference, the innovation, the hunger and that fascinating idea of adding value.
Giving it back
Shakira is very well known for her involvement in philanthropic activity and charity work through her benefit concerts, most noted among them being the performance and Clinton Global Initiative and she was also invited by Barack Obama to discuss early childhood development. When she was young, her father took her to a local park to see the orphans who lived there and she said to herself ” One day, I am going to help these kids when I become a famous artist!”
I guess probably this is what is called coming back to one’s roots. People have achieved a lot of things and some of them have decided to pay back their responsibility in their own ways which makes us respect them even more.
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Shakira is one of my fav artist but I was not aware of these facts. Truly an inspirational journey……Thank you for sharing Vinay….. Liked it….. :)
Aah lovely! Looks like I hit the right chord then :). Glad that you enjoyed the post Priyanka :)
Motivating post! Very well written!
Thank you Namrata :)
This proves that failures really are pillars of success and if one has real talent …nothing can prevent her/his to rise northward in career .
Didn’t know these facts about her ..though I like her a lot… :-) thanks for sharing Vinay..
I really loved knowing more and doing the research about her. Quite a character indeed. And after having read it, I was sure that I had to share it :)
See the success story of any successful person and you will realize that they also tasted failure, but they don’t run away from whatever their strength was and soon become an icon. Failures are like Arvind Kejriwal, who once got the success and rejected people’s verdict to gain more, ultimately failed enough to even grab the public attention now.
Thanks Vinay for sharing these facts about Shakira, I was really not at all aware about those…
True Alok! Everyone goes through their own set of pain and pleasures. As the old adage goes, tougher battles make you stronger only if you are not willing to accept defeat. True of her as well.
He he he :D I did read about Kejriwal on twitter today, seems like he has gotten up on the wrong side of the bed :D .
Happy that you liked it Alok. From a long time I was thinking of variety to the posts we add, and I’m really happy to know how well this is being received. Will keep more such coming. There is one really nice one about Kofi Annan about to come. Watch out for it cos it has something related to yours truly ;)
Oh is it? I am eagerly waiting for this then.
As far as Kejriwal is concerned, he was the leader of the mass, and now remained a matter of joke only…
He he that’s true indeed :)..
Yup yup, quite an interesting story with Kofi Annan and for now my personal favourite and an opportunity to gloat :D
Great post! To rejected from singing choir and become an international singer…. needs more than talent.. that is determination and positive attitude. Thanks for sharing. Truly Inspirational :)
Thank you Kokila :). True indeed, quite a fantastic journey and a load of inspiration for us all.
I have seen her in many international events and heard her name many times but did not know more
:) .. Thank you Sampat Kumari, quite a fascinating character indeed!