CR: shakira/Instagram
Following reports of his infidelity, Shakira has stopped keeping quiet about her breakup with longtime boyfriend Gerard Piqué.
The singer, who became well-known in 2010 after penning the World Cup anthem, now faces several challenges, including her recent divorce from footballer Gerard Pique, deciding who will have custody of her two sons, and resolving an accusation of tax evasion brought by the Spanish prosecutor’s office.
Despite the fact that everything is still up in the air, the singer doesn’t want to lose sight of her goals, therefore she’s already working on her first album in five years after a string of immensely popular songs. Now that the waves have calmed down, the Colombian singer has made the decision to explain the situation in which she finds herself, which she refers to as “her darkest hour.”
The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer addressed the unexpected breakup for the first time in a new cover interview for Elle’s October issue.
“I think that music is a life raft,” she told ELLE. “There have been days when I had to pick up the pieces of me from the floor.
“And the only way to do that, to actually do that, has been through music. You know, to really, like, put myself back together and to see myself in the mirror and know that I am a mom and my kids depend on me.”
Shakira then opened up about the break up specifically.
“Oh, this is really hard to talk about personally, especially as this is the first time I’ve ever addressed this situation in an interview,” she said.
“I’ve remained quiet and just tried to process it all,” she continued. “It’s hard to talk about it, especially because I’m still going through it, and because I’m in the public eye and because our separation is not like a regular separation. And so it’s been tough not only for me, but also for my kids.” She also talked about how the media’s perception of the breakup affected her kids, Milan, 9 and Sasha, 7. “What’s also real is the disappointment to see something as sacred and as special as I thought was the relationship I had with my kids’ father and see that turned into something vulgarized and cheapened by the media. And all of this while my dad has been in the ICU and I’ve been fighting on different fronts. Like I said, this is probably the darkest hour of my life. But then I think about all those women around the world who are going through hardship, who are going through a situation as bad as mine or as difficult as mine or worse.”
Fans were shocked by Shakira and Piqué’s divorce in June even though they never wed. Milan, 9, and Sasha, 7, are the couple’s two children; they have been married for twelve years. Famously, Shakira made the soccer player the subject of her 2017 hit song “Me Enamoré” (I fell in love). Although going to the United States would have been beneficial for Shakira’s singing career, the Spanish athlete and the Colombian singer chose to live in Barcelona throughout their courtship so that Piqué could continue his professional soccer career at FC Barcelona.
“And so, one of the two had to make that effort and that sacrifice. And I did it. I put my career in second gear and I came to Spain, to support him so he could play football and win titles. And it was a sacrifice of love,” Shakira told Elle. “Thanks to that, my kids were able to have a present mom, and I have this amazing bond with them that is unbreakable and that sustains us. You know, that is it. That’s all I can say.”
She then defended herself of accusations of tax fraud from the Spanish authorities.
“I have to fight for what I believe; because these are false accusations. First of all, I didn’t spend 183 days per year at that time at all. I was busy fulfilling my professional commitments around the world. Second, I’ve paid everything they claimed I owed, even before they filed a lawsuit. So as of today, I owe zero to them.
“And finally, I was advised by one of the four biggest tax specialist firms in the world, PricewaterhouseCoopers, so I was confident that I was doing things correctly and transparently from day one.
“It is well known that the Spanish tax authorities do this often not only with celebrities like me (or [Cristiano] Ronaldo, Neymar, [Xabi] Alonso, and many more), it also happens unjustly to the regular taxpayer. It’s just their style. But I’m confident that I have enough proof to support my case and that justice will prevail in my favour.”
Shakira met Gerard on the set of her music video for the FIFA anthem “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa).” The two announced that they were together in 2011 in a Facebook post. On June 4, 2022, Shakira and Gerard announced their split in a joint statement. They wrote, “We regret to confirm that we are separating. For the well-being of our children, who are our highest priority, we ask that you respect our privacy. Thank you for your understanding.” The Barcelona-based soccer player has been with Clara “for the past few months,” The Sun reported. An insider revealed that “She is a student who also works for him in his office, organizing events. They have been keeping quiet about their relationship but those around them all know what is happening.”
