Shakira sent temperatures soaring in already balmy Miami on Wednesday as she performed at the Faena Forum as part of Billboard Latin Music Week.
The 46-year-old Colombian singer was on hand for a chat about her whirlwind career, her songwriting inspirations and her move to the United States from Barcelona, Spain.
The hitmaker – whose rumored love interest Jimmy Butler recently turned down claims they were dating – looked years younger than her actual age thanks to her flawless skin and a hot black leather minidress that she wore on the way to the stage interview.
Shakira (full name: Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll) made a busty appearance in her plunging dress with thin spaghetti straps.
The glossy look included a thick belt around her waist to accentuate her hourglass figure.
Humid heat: Shakira sent temperatures soaring in already balmy Miami on Wednesday as she performed at the Faena Forum as part of Billboard Latin Music Week
The skirt featured a thick pleat that was reminiscent of a romper, and the singer-songwriter showed off a hint of her thighs underneath.
Based on her wide grin, Shakira didn’t seem too worried about wearing an outfit that wasn’t particularly breathable.
With her high black leather boots, which had platform soles and high heels, the 1.60 meter tall beauty grew a little.
She styled her long hair with a center part and wore her caramel-colored tresses in voluminous waves that fell over her shoulders and framed her immaculately made-up face.
She accessorized with chunky brown sunglasses and a statement black leather handbag decorated with large silver ovals.
She added even more sparkle to the edgy ensemble with a statement silver and gold chain around her neck.
Shakira looked like a queen as she arrived at the Faena Forum, where she was surrounded by security and staff.
As she entered the building, she stopped to chat with a little girl who was excited to see her.
Update: The 46-year-old Colombian singer was on hand for a chat about her whirlwind career, her songwriting inspirations, and her move from Barcelona, Spain, to the United States
Back in black: The hitmaker looked years younger than her actual age thanks to her flawless skin and a hot black leather mini dress that she wore on the way to the stage interview
Fit Figure: Shakira showed off a busty figure in her plunging dress. The glossy look included a thick belt around her waist to accentuate her hourglass figure
Curves ahead! The glossy look included a thick belt around her waist to accentuate her hourglass figure
Stand upright: With her high black leather boots that had platform soles and high heels, the 1.60 meter tall beauty increased her height a little
Gorgeous: She styled her long hair with a center part and wore her caramel locks in voluminous waves that fell over her shoulders and framed her immaculately made-up face
Cute: Shakira looked like a queen as she arrived at the Faena Forum, where she was surrounded by security and staff. As she entered the building, she stopped to chat with a little girl who was excited to see her
At the event, Shakira spoke about her long-standing career and her inspirations.
She joked that her creative juices were flowing freely at the moment, although she sometimes had to be “dragged” into the studio to record new music.
“I’m very inspired, I’m in the mood,” she said, according to Billboard. “There were times when they had to get me into the studio with a crane, they had to drag me.”
“Sometimes you struggle with your work, everyone does. But now I’m in a honeymoon phase with making music and my career. “I love what I do,” she gushed.
She went on to describe writing new songs as “therapeutic” and thanked her legions of fans for “hugging” and “comforting” her through her various struggles.
Shakira also admitted that her young sons Milan, nine, and Sasha, seven – both of whom she shares with her former partner Gerard Piqué – introduced her to new musical collaborators at a young age.
She also spoke about her move from Barcelona to Miami after her difficult breakup with Piqué. The singer is also facing two separate Spanish trials for tax evasion, which may have been the reason for her move out of the country.
She said she felt like living in Barcelona was “practically alone” as there was no “active music industry” in the city. She added that every time she had ideas for new music, she had to put them on hold until her producer was already in Europe and “felt like coming to Barcelona.”
Motivation: At the event, Shakira spoke about her long-standing career and her inspirations. She joked that her creative juices were flowing freely at the moment, although she sometimes had to be “dragged” into the studio to record new music
Change of location: She also talked about her move from Barcelona to Miami after her split from Gerard Piqué. She is facing two separate Spanish trials for tax evasion, which may have been the reason for her move
Away from the action: She complained that there wasn’t much of a music industry in Barcelona and that if she wanted to record something she had to wait for her producer to pass through there
The arrangement resulted in some of their ideas fizzling out before they could be developed in the studio.
“I think that’s why I was unmotivated,” she added. “Being here now, close to so many colleagues, producers, musicians and friends, is a great motivation.”
She also mused that singing in her native Spanish has become “the coolest thing” compared to her early breakthroughs in America, when she had to sing in English to attract new audiences.
“Age doesn’t matter, genre doesn’t matter, condition doesn’t matter, language doesn’t matter,” she said. “What matters is that an artist connects with their audience through music.”