MIAMI, June 16 — Latin pop icon Shakira has spoken candidly about her experiences as an immigrant in the United States, describing it as “living in constant fear” amid shifting immigration policies.
Reflecting on her own journey in an interview with the BBC, the Colombian singer said the current situation is much different from her experience back then when she moved to Miami at 19.
“It means living in constant fear. And it’s painful to see. Now, more than ever, we have to remain united,” she replied, when asked about how it feels to be an immigrant in the US nowadays.
“Now, more than ever, we have to raise our voices and make it very clear that a country can change its immigration policies, but the treatment of all people must always be humane.”
In recent years, she said she has been reflecting more on her identity and how it contrasts with what she described as increasingly hostile attitudes toward immigrants, particularly under the Trump administration.
Her connection to Miami holds particular significance, she added, as it was the city where she first tried to establish herself outside Latin America.
At the time, she was already a star in Colombia but knew international success would require mastering English.
“I was only 19 when I moved to the US, like many other Colombian immigrants who come to this country looking for a better future,” she said.
“I remember I was surrounded by Spanish-English dictionaries and synonym dictionaries – because back in the day I didn’t really have Google or ChatGPT to [help]. So it was all very precarious,” she recalled.
Shakira described how she eventually turned to poetry and lyrics by Leonard Cohen, Walt Whitman, and Bob Dylan to learn the language.
Shakira said these early struggles with English helped shape her songwriting and paved the way for her success in the English-language music market.
At the Grammy Awards earlier this year, where she won Best Latin Pop Album, Shakira used her acceptance speech to show solidarity with the immigrant community.
