Shakira began 2023 with a heartfelt message of hope after a difficult year due to her separation from Spanish soccer player Gerard Piqué, the father of her children.
“Even if our wounds are still open in this new year, time has a surgeon’s hands. Even if someone’s betrayed us, we must continue to trust others,” wrote the Colombian singer on Sunday (Jan. 1). “When faced with contempt, continue to know your worth. Because there are more good people than indecent ones. More people with empathy than indifference.”
She continued: “The ones who leave are fewer than the many who stay by our side. Our tears are not in vain, they water the soil our future will spring from and make us more human, so that even while suffering heartache we can continue to love.”
Shakira’s message, which she published both in Spanish and English and does not name her ex, comes months after her very public split from Pique after a 12-year relationship. The singer has spoken openly about the breakup since it was confirmed in June, and has posted material alluding to her pain.
In October, the Colombian superstar released the heartbreak song “Monotonía” alongside Ozuna, in which she lyrically displays her sadness against a gripping bachata backdrop. “Suddenly you were no longer the same/ You left me because of your narcissism/ You forgot what we once were,” she sings in Spanish.
Although bachata has been embraced in recent times by non-Dominican artists such as Rosalía, The Weeknd, C. Tangana and Nathy Peluso, Shakira’s choice of genre is likely not a coincidence. Bachata was known as “amargue” (meaning “bitter” or, roughly, “lovesick”) when it was created about a century ago because of its lovelorn lyrics, so it seems fitting for the emotion at hand.
In the music video, Shakira looks distraught as her ex shoots her straight in the chest in a supermarket, where her heart is ejected from her body, leaving a large hole.
A month before releasing “Monotonía,” Shakira told Elle that the separation from Piqué has been one of the “most difficult” and “darkest” moments of her life. “I’ve remained quiet and just tried to process it all,” she shared. “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. Incredibly difficult.”
See her new year’s post below:
