Shakira: ‘This Is The Hardest Job I’ve Ever Had’
Colombian singer Shakira, just a few years ago, almost decided to retire from her life as an artist and performer. She had what she’d always dreamed of: a committed and loving partner, two children, a home. But she chose to keep on keeping on.
This has proven to be a great decision considering that, in ten days, she’ll be co-headlining the Super Bowl halftime show with Jennifer Lopez.
One would think performing on constant tour would be the most difficult work the 42-year-old has done. It’s not.
Find out what the Hips Don’t Lie singer considers the toughest job she’s undertaken.
This has been Shakira’s hardest job
Performing, dancing, singing – even to the point of almost losing her voice for good at one point have not been as difficult as the job of parenting for the Whenever, Wherever singer. As the mother of two reveals, she fully “sticks her hands in the dough” as it relates to the raising of her sons, Sasha, 4 and Milan, 7. She has been in a relationship with the boys’ father, her partner, Gerard Piqué, since 2010.
“I think all women face the same situation,” she told Hola! in 2017. “I used to be the center of my world, and now I am only a satellite of my children.”
“It’s the hardest job I’ve ever had,” Shakira said of raising her children. “I never thought it’d be so difficult, because it takes a lot of your energy. I think of my family a lot; I’m concerned about them all day. It’s physical, emotional, and intellectual wear and tear. Thinking of making an album seemed like a Herculean task, like climbing Mount Everest.”
How she and Gerard Piqué balance parenthood
She and Piqué equally share the responsibilities of rearing their sons. They currently live in Spain.
She revealed of her partner to Pop Sugar in 2016, “He’s got his feet on the ground and is very practical about problem-solving. When I get stressed about how to organize things or juggle it all, he helps put it all in perspective.”
“And he is my biggest support. We’re both very hands-on parents, so it never feels like one is carrying the entire load on their own. He probably lets them have a little more chocolate than I’d like, though.”
FaceTime keeps this family close
When she’s on the road, the El Dorado pop star might be away from home, but her family is foremost on her mind. The next best thing to being home? FaceTime, of course.
“Sometimes it’s very hard when you can not see your sons for a month or even more,” she explained to Viva, according to Hola! “It is so hard. But we call each other via FaceTime, so we are in constant communication, that helps.”
Even screen time with her kids is better than not being able to see them in person. It’s clear the singer takes her duties as a mother seriously. She spoke with a Fisher-Price parenting panel in 2015 and was very honest about her experience as both a mom and an entertainer.
“I’ve been on the most challenging stages performing…and I’ve been meeting with world leaders who sometimes make you a little bit apprehensive, but nothing has made me so self-conscious as being a mom.”
Read more: Shakira’s Surprisingly Doable Super Bowl 2020 Diet and Workout
