A few weeks after revealing his plans to sell a custom 2022 Lamborghini Urus won from its previous owner, superstar Shakira, in a giveaway, Colombian-American artist Michael Mejía was involved in a car accident while driving the luxury vehicle on Thursday (March 6).
“I was simply hit. It wasn’t me who crashed,” Mejía told Billboard on Tuesday (March 11). “I was about to cross a street when a car came speeding, and the driver was probably distracted. It was quite a scary moment. Fortunately, I wasn’t injured, but it was a very [tough] moment. The car is being restored. Thankfully, I had good insurance, so the car will be as good as new.”
An Instagram video posted on Sunday (March 9) by Spanish-language reality series ¡Siéntese Quien Pueda! showed the purple Lamborghini damaged in Miami.
In February, during an interview with El Gordo y la Flaca, the contest winner talked about receiving the car from Shakira and his intention to sell the car — worth $280,000 — for potentially $1 million because of the steep maintenance costs. Shakira had provided him with an extra $90,000 to cover various expenses such as taxes, the car’s title transfer, legal fees and six months of insurance payments.
He previously explained the financial challenges involved, facing about $95,000 in federal taxes at the end of the year, monthly insurance costs exceeding $2,000 and more expenses related to the luxury vehicle. And now, he tells Billboard, he’s also facing backlash from the pop superstar’s fans for needing to sell the Lamborghini.
“The reality of all this is that I am an artist — I earned this car with my art,” he tells Billboard. “I’ve had a super lovely experience receiving that recognition from Shakira. What’s happening now is that all of Shakira’s fans — who initially supported me — are hating me because I decided to sell the car, since it is very costly. So, to them, it’s like, ‘This man is an opportunist. How can he take advantage and sell the prize?’ They see it as potentially disrespectful towards Shakira. I mean, the reality is that the car is very expensive. All the monthly costs are too much, and I just can’t keep up with them.”
The artist — known for his work in fine art, murals and body painting — won the prize based on the merit of his artistic contributions. He adds to Billboard: “A car doesn’t define an artist; let [fans] not forget why I won that car.”
