Shakira Biography:

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll was born on February 2 1977 in Barranquilla, Colombia. She is the only child of Nidia del Carmen Ripoll Torrado, a Colombian of Catalan-Italian descent, and William Mebarak Chadid, an American of Lebanese descent. Her father also had eight children with his former wife.

Shakira means "grateful" or "thankful" in Arabic. Her second name, Isabel, is that of her paternal grandmother. She spent much of her youth in Barranquilla, a city located in northern Colombia.

Shakira wrote her first poem, entitled "La Rosa De Cristal" ("The Glass Rose") when she was only five years old. After getting a typewriter as a gift, she began to write poems relentlessly. Her poems ultimately evolved into songs. At the tender age of nine, after an older brother was killed in a motorcycle collision, Shakira was moved to write her first song.

When Shakira was four, her father took her to a local Middle Eastern restaurant, where she first heard the doumbek, a traditional drum used in Arabic music and which typically accompanied belly dancing. Before she knew it, Shakira was dancing barefoot on the table, as restaurant guests responded by clapping passionately. It was then that Shakira knew she wanted to be a entertainer. She enjoyed singing for friends and teachers (even the nuns) at her Catholic school but in the third grade was passed-over for the school choir because her vibrato was too strong. 

Between the ages of ten and fourteen Shakira was invited to a range of events in Barranquilla, and received some recognition in the region. It was at this time that she met local theater producer Monica Ariza, who was impressed with her skills and tried to aid her career. During a flight from Barranquilla to Bogotá, Ariza swayed Sony Colombia executive Ciro Vargas to audition Shakira in a local hotel lobby. Vargas liked what he heard and saw. 

Shakira's introduction album, "Magia", was recorded and produced with Sony Music in 1991, when she was only fourteen years old. The album did not do well financially, selling less than two thousand albums. After the unfortunate disaster of "Magia", Shakira's management urged her back into the studio to develop with more hit songs, to help give the CD potential. The album "Peligro" was released in 1993, but Shakira was not happy with the end product. The album was better acknowledged than "Magia", though it was also considered a commercial letdown, mainly because of Shakira's refusal to advertise and promote it. While little known outside of her native Colombia, Shakira was invited to perform at Chile's Viña del Mar International Song Festival in February 1993. The event gave wannabe Latin American singers an opportunity to perform their music, and the winner was then selected by a panel of judges. Shakira performed the ballad "Eres" ("You Are") and won the prize for third place. One of the judges who voted for her was then 20-year-old Ricky Martin. Shakira then decided to take a vacation from recording so she could graduate from high school.

Shakira - 1995-2000: Success in Latin America and Spain

Shakira returned to recording in 1995, using musical influences from various countries, and an Alanis Morissette type of personality, which could be seen in her next album, "Pies Descalzos", which gained her tremendous recognition in Latin America. "Pies Descalzos" sold over six million records, leading to the release of a remix album, titled simply "The Remixes". This album also contained Portuguese versions of some of her best known songs, which were recorded due to her sensation in the Brazilian market, where "Pies Descalzos" sold nearly one million units.

Her fourth album, "¿Dónde Están Los Ladrones?", was released in 1998, and Shakira started to attract more fans in non-Spanish-speaking countries like Turkey, France, Switzerland, Canada, and especially the United States. Eight of the album's eleven tracks became hit singles, including "Ciega, Sordomuda", "Moscas En La Casa", "No Creo", "Inevitable", "Tú", "Si Te Vas", "Octavo Día", and the now world-famous "Ojos Así". Shakira's first live album, "MTV Unplugged", was composed of "Estoy Aquí" and all the songs from "¿Dónde Están Los Ladrones?" except "Que Vuelvas".

In March 2000, Shakira set out on her "Tour Anfibio", a three month tour of Latin America and the United States. In August 2000, she won an MTV Video Music Award in the now extinct category of People's Choice - Favorite International Artist.

In 2001, after the success of ¿Dónde Están Los Ladrones? and MTV Unplugged, Shakira started working on a crossover album to English. Working with Gloria Estefan, she wrote and produced English versions of the songs from ¿Dónde Están Los Ladrones?. However, she later decided against using translations of older songs for the album and worked for over a year on new material for the album. The end result was "Laundry Service". While it was developed with the goal of selling to an English language market, the rock and Spanish dance-influenced album also featured four Spanish songs, including "Que Me Quedes Tú" (As Long as You Stay with Me). The album and its singles helped to launch Shakira's musical presence in the conventional North American market.

In 2002, Shakira also released her Spanish greatest hits CD "Grandes éxitos". A DVD and ten track compilation album, called "Live & Off the Record", was also released in 2004, hitting sales of 3 million CD's worldwide, and launching Shakira's world tour, the "Tour of the Mongoose".

In September 2002, Shakira won the now extinct International Viewer's Choice Award at the MTV Video Music Awards with "Suerte". In October, she won five MTV Video Music Awards Latin America for Best Female Artist, Best Pop Artist, Best Artist-North (Region), Video of the Year (for Suerte), and Artist of the Year. At Aerosmith's MTV Icon in 2002, Shakira performed "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)". Also in 2002, Shakira united with the likes of Celine Dion, Anastacia, Cher and the Dixie Chicks for "VH1 Divas Live Las Vegas".

Shakira - 2005-present: Fixations Era

Fijación Oral Vol. 1

Shakira stayed out of the limelight for over three years. She announced the "Oral Fixation" project in early 2005. "Fijación Oral Vol. 1", the first CD of the project, was released on June 3, 2005 in Ireland, on June 6, 2005 in Europe, and on June 7, 2005 in the United States, Latin America and Australia. The hit single from the album, "La Tortura", which features Alejandro Sanz, was released as a single in April and gained large scale success in various radio and chart formats. It spent a record time of twenty-six weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart.

"Fijación Oral Vol. 1" was very well received by the public. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 chart for the week of June 15. According to that journal, the album sold 158,000 copies in its first week of release in the United States, becoming the highest debut ever for a Spanish language album. In Latin America, on the same day of its official release in Venezuela, it went Platinum, in Colombia, triple Platinum and in Mexico, it was sold-out. The album sold over one million copies in three days.

The second single from the album, "No", was released in July 2005, and peaked at number one in Argentina, Spain and Colombia, for fourteen non-consecutive weeks. This single was number one in several countries in Latin America, but it did not have the same success of the earlier two singles in the United States.

On February 8, 2006, Shakira won her second Grammy Award. She won in the category of Best Latin Rock/Alternative Album.

On April 27, 2006, Shakira won six Billboard Latin Music Awards for "Fijacion Oral Vol. 1". She was also honored with the Spirit of Hope Award for "Fundación Pies Descalzos".

In late 2006, Shakira released "La Pared" as her fourth single from "Fijación Oral Vol. 1." The song hit number one in her native Colombia, Argentina and Spain.

Later in 2007, "Las de la Intuición" was released as a single in Spain and Latin America. It became an instant success, topping the radio chart Los 40 Principales for nine consecutive weeks and spiking to number one after charting just four weeks in Argentina. In mid-April, Shakira filmed a video for the song in Miami, which was then premiered on the internet on May 7th. The video, motivated by the work of photographer Helmut Newton, features Shakira with a bright purple wig, alternating between wearing a tight black corset and either a black shirt with a white tie or a white shirt with a black tie. According to Mexican media, "Las de la Intuición" is to be the fifth and final single from "Fijación Oral Vol. 1."

According to the biography in the official web of Shakira , "Fijación Oral Vol. 1" has sold over five million albums to date.

Oral Fixation Vol. 2

Before the release of "Oral Fixation Vol. 2", the second and last album of the Oral Fixation project, Shakira appeared at the 2005 MTV Europe Music Awards in Lisbon, Portugal were she performed "Don't Bother", the hit single from the album, just moments before winning an award in the category of Best Female Artist.

Oral Fixation Vol. 2 was released on November 29 2005 in North America and Australia, and in continental Europe. Two songs of the album, "How Do You Do" and "Timor", ignited some debate at the time of its release. The cover of the album was also considered controversial, and it had to be altered in several countries.

"Don't Bother" failed to peak within the top 40 in the United States. "Hips Don't Lie", the second single released from the CD, became Shakira's first number one single on the United States Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. On March 28 2006, the CD was re-released and featured "Hips Don't Lie". Shakira got the most nominations for the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards with "Hips Don't Lie", but won only the award for Best Choreography.

In June of 2006, Shakira started her largest world tour to date, the Oral Fixation Tour, which ran through July of 2007. The Oral Fixation tour had 112 dates and visited European, American, African and Asian countries.

Shakira also released "Illegal", which features Carlos Santana as a single. "Illegal" was released to music radio in the United States, but was not picked for regular rotation outside the Rhythm and Dance format stations. "Illegal" has become a major hit for the singer on both the Hot Dance Music/Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts. The song became a top ten smash hit in much of Europe, and Shakira added the song to the song list on her tour.

According to an article published on December 10 2006 in The Boston Globe, Shakira is to provide three songs for the soundtrack of the film adaptation of the Gabriel García Márquez novel "Love in the Time of Cholera" starring Benjamin Bratt, which was released in November 16 2007. For this soundtrack, Shakira wrote two new songs called "Hay Amores" and "La Despedida" and "Pienso En Ti", from Pies Descalzos album..

On November 12, the DVD from the "Oral Fixation Tour" was released with the title "Live In Miami". 
 

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