SHAKIRA Q&A
Shakira talks about her album, the creative process and her thoughts on marriage…
Why 'She Wolf'?
I've never actually felt completely human. Don't you sometimes feel that inside of you there's another living creature, more primal, more primitive and basic, more animalistic? I like to think that whenever I screw up it's not entirely me but rather the non-thinking animal in me. That way you can be much more forgiving with yourself…
I was working on the track in the studio when the image of a She Wolf just appeared in my head, and there it stayed. I went to a corner of the studio and wrote the first part of the lyrics and the melody in like 10 minutes. When I least expected it I was howling and panting.
The She Wolf is a woman during the day and an animal at night. The She Wolf knows what she wants and goes for it. She defends her deepest desires with claws and teeth, like a wild animal. The She Wolf is a free woman and therefore a happy one. The She Wolf is not just me, she's the women of our time, and perhaps the men of our time too. There are many subconscious desires that exist within every man and woman, the part that we hide from the world. The She Wolf is the individual that satisfies those desires and sets them free. I think that if I really dive deep into the lyrics this song's about the individual liberties that belong to each and every one of us that we can now defend with teeth and claws.
Were there any collaborations?
I wrote and produced with Pharrell, Wyclef, John Hill and other musician friends of mine.
What is the difference between this album and the last?
It's very electronic, dance, upbeat – it only has two mid-tempo songs. It has a different sonic approach, most of it is designed for the clubs, for people to have fun and forget about their troubles. If as an artist I can contribute to that in some small way with my music then I would consider myself very fortunate.
This was a sonic experimental trip. I wanted to play around with electronica, beats, synthesizers and I began to research folk from other countries looking for new influences that allowed me to combine electronics with world sounds, tambourines, clarinets, oriental and Hindu music, dancehall, etc.
Did you know what kind of music you wanted to do at the onset of recording?
Of course when you first start a project you are in front of a white canvas and there is nothing scarier than that. You never know the final destination of a creative project, but from the beginning I wanted to make sure that this album had a very strong foundation. I wanted it to be very bass-driven, and to make sure the kicks hit really hard. I wanted to concentrate on the beats and have the chance to experiment with synths, but also combine the sounds of the world that have always fascinated me.
Why are you releasing the single in Spanish first?
Since this is primarily an English album I wanted to make sure that my Spanish-speaking fans felt close to the project from the very start. My Spanish album will come out next year.
How do you find inspiration? What do you write about?
I've been writing since I was eight years old and it's still a mystery to me. There are images that navigate for days in my unconscious until they make themselves concrete and they become songs. They are like secret codes, which I can't even translate or recognize myself, until they become lyrics, and music. Like in the world of dreams, we dream about a lot of things every night which we may not remember during the day but they are latent. In my creative process I think I am dreaming the whole time until I wake up with a song in my hands. There are stories about other people, stories about girlfriends of mine that touched and inspired me for this album, as well as some of my own fantasies. I think I was always really shy but now I feel more like a woman, so I find myself writing with less prudeness.
Do you feel you are improving as an artist with every album?
I think that at the very least I know myself better – my virtues, my vices, my resources. My voice also changed after turning thirty, it's rounder and thicker.
How is this album different from Hips Don't Lie?
I try to explore when I'm in the studio and not to repeat formulas – that would be really boring. It's scary not to know if you're going to be able to find new routes to explore but you realize that in pop music, as in any art discipline, the possibilities are infinite.
Are you ready to be a mother?
Yes, the She Wolf is ready to reproduce.
What are your thoughts on marriage?
Antonio and I have a home and we function as a married couple. I don't think that a paper or an institution can unite us more than we already are.
Do you feel that you have found it all?
No, every cycle is a new challenge. Every time I begin a cycle, I feel like I'm starting from zero.
What have you been up to since your last album?
I've been writing and producing this album for over a year. After my last tour I decided to go to university and study, which is something I always wanted to do. I also dedicated a big part of my time to launching a new school in my hometown, Barranquilla. It's a state-of-the art school and community center that serves 1 800 students and thousands of families. It provides support to the community, in the middle of an area that has been devastated by extreme poverty, internal displacement and conflict. Our schools provide quality education with nutrition, which is what we consider the most important component. We offer psychological support, occupational training for the parents, sports facilities for the whole neighborhood, music, dance and art classes. It's literally a school of open doors to this community. So it was a very complex project but it's already given us so much satisfaction. I can't wait to continue doing more.
Tell us about the video.
Jake Nava directed it, it's a little surreal, a lot of dancing, a lot of fantasy. I created a lot of my dance moves and I also worked with HiHat, who is one of my favorite choreographers. The part in the cage was mostly improvisation.
What is ALAS?
ALAS is an advocacy movement. We advocate to secure government commitments to implementing national early childhood development programs for the 35 million kids in Latin America between birth and six years old who don't currently receive any education, nutrition or stimulation. The time between birth and six years old are the most critical years in the life of a human being as it is when the brain is developing. This is the most vulnerable sector of the population. We are working with Jeffrey Sachs now and will be in Portugal on November 30th to present a proposal to 22 presidents in order to develop an educational plan for children from 0 to 6.
Which countries have reacted the most favorably?
Before we began the work with ALAS, a lot of the countries were not well-informed about the issues but now they are showing interest and beginning to invest in early childhood development. Since we started ALAS, two presidents have launched national plans for early childhood development: Colombia and El Salvador. We hope to gain the support of more countries in November.
What brings you the most satisfaction?
The kids that I've been fortunate enough to be close to go to school with a big smile on their faces, as if they were going to Disney Land. The school is the best thing they have because, in many cases, it's the only thing they have. They see in it the possibility of a brighter future. I have never been more fulfilled in my life than those times when I've witnessed a child who has lost everything smile again. Nothing is better than that; nothing has given me greater satisfaction than that. It's bigger than my career, which has given me so much. It just has no comparison.
What other artists do you admire?
I love Depeche Mode, The Cure and New Crystal Castles.
How do you see the world?
In comparison with the past, we are in a much better place. The Industrial Revolution created the middle class, helping a lot of people to escape poverty. Globalization has helped the emergence of stronger economies such as China and India. Discrimination has diminished and for the first time the most powerful country in the world has an African-American president. Our generation is more open, more socially engaged and active.
However, there is still a lot to achieve: 75 million people don't have access to education and half of our population lives on less than $2 per day.
Latin America produces three times as much food as they need to feed their population. However, 22 million kids between birth and six years of age are hungry. Today's world has the means and resources to eradicate poverty. Having hungry kids and people dying from causes that we can manage, knowing that the solution is in our hands, makes me think humanity is still more primitive than the sophisticated and modern civilization we like to think it is.
What are your thoughts on the Obama administration?
People's confidence appears higher. I was greatly impressed by his speech at Cairo's University. I think his mission is to find peace in the world and to recover from the crisis. It is not an easy task but I think he is the only politician who has a shot at achieving it.
What was it like to be at the inauguration?
It was a unique moment in time, I felt so proud of America, and so honored to be a close witness of such a historical moment that rewrote the books on modern society and was life-changing for so many.
What's Obama like in person?
He is a very impressive man, gives every person the attention they deserve. He is so focused and that denotes a highly intelligent and sensible person, albeit with big problems to solve. It is such an advantage to have a young president with the serenity and strength that the job demands, a conciliatory open policy, in the moment the world is in, and with education and early childhood development at the top of his agenda.
What were your initial feelings about Michael Jackson's death?
Michael Jackson's death was really tragic. He was the King of artistic genius, dance and fantasy. He reinvented pop and he showed a new way to articulate music with images. With his death a legend is born.