- All Quotes
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Writing in English was a major challenge. I didn't want other songwriters to write for me. I wanted to preserve the spirit of my songs in Spanish. I am the same Shakira in English as I am in Spanish.
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I always knew that I was tremendously creative. I recited love poems, I wrote stories and I got excellent grades in every subject, except for maths.
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You're a song written by the hands of God.
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I have so many people out there that celebrate with me when they know that I'm happy. And they hate it when they know that I'm suffering because someone has hurt me.
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Every day now, I discover something new. Go through phases in which I feel much more in touch with my feminine side in ways I never thought possible. I'm letting the woman inside of me speak, the desires of this woman, speak as loud as they can.
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People get jaded in every profession, but for some reason, I feel as passionate as when I was 13 years old and just released my first album. I feel the same amount of adrenaline in my blood, and the same amount of curiosity as well. Curiosity about why I'm different.
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I never thought it was fair for an 8-year-old child not to be able to afford shoes, or to wander the streets having to beg for money. To know that child's joy would end soon, when they realised there was no future.
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I was five years old; I got addicted to being on stage. I felt like it was the most wonderful place on Earth, performing in front of an audience, who in this case were a bunch of classmates, kids my age.
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I feel like I'm not on Earth just to shake it and shake it endlessly, you know?
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I actually support President Obama's initiatives on early childhood. He has appointed me as a commissioner to consult his administration on educational excellence for Hispanics in the U.S. We try to find ways to improve the education system for Hispanics in America, to achieve excellence.
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Being raised in a developing country opened my eyes to so much I cannot tolerate. In Colombia, education is sometimes considered a luxury, not a human right. And it's not a priority in the agendas of many leaders.
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My team and I have reunited two elements that coexist with difficulty: respect and affection, because when they love you they don't respect you and when they respect you they don't love you.
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I believe that every single one of us, celebrity or not, has a responsibility to get involved in trying to make a difference in the world. Our generation faces many challenges, some of which were passed on to us by the past generations, but it's up to us to find solutions today so that we don't keep passing our problems on.
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When you feel complete, you don't need to get married, and you don't think about it.
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I came to understand that I'm never going to be the perfect mother, but I'm going to do the best I can. Same goes for everything in my life.
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We've built six schools in Colombia and do work in South Africa and Haiti. We teach 5,000 students.
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Dealing with boys at work and being the only girl can be challenging. I have my insecurities, but I've learned I have to be a good sport. I have to be able to take certain jokes and not take them personally. There are jokes made almost every second of the day. I had to develop a tough hide. You know, the music industry is dominated by guys.
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When we were in the Dark Ages, it was a question of humanity somehow managing to forget about itself. We put God in the centre of society, and people forgot about their own nature and desires. There was a huge deal of repression.
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In the full light of day, I don't want to think about the sunset.
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I love food, and I'm a chronic over-orderer at restaurants.
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When you have a baby, when you feel his love, you feel so at peace with the world. You just want to share the good news and share how happy you feel.
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I tried to give my career a shot from Barranquilla, but the musicians would never show up. It was just not taken seriously.
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In Colombia, education is sometimes considered a luxury, not a human right. And it's not a priority in the agendas of many leaders.
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In 2006 I was asked to sing at the World Cup in Germany, and in 2010 I was fortunate enough to be asked again.