Shakira Says Being an Immigrant in the U.S. Means ‘Living in Constant Fear’
Shakira is dancing across U.S. stages right now—but behind the lights, she’s carrying something heavier.
During her Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran world tour, the Colombian superstar opened up in an interview with the BBC about what it really feels like to be an immigrant in the U.S. right now. Her words? Raw, honest, and all too real for millions of people across the country.
Let’s break down what she said and why it matters. And how it ties to the larger story of immigration, resilience, and the politics shaping our lives.
Shakira says being an immigrant in the U.S. means “living in constant fear”
Backstage after her Miami concert, Shakira spoke with BBC music correspondent Mark Savage, reflecting on the country where she’s lived since she was a teenager.
“For an immigrant in the U.S., it means living in constant fear,” she said. “And it’s painful to see.”
Her comment echoed what she told the Grammy crowd earlier this year when she dedicated her Best Latin Pop Album award to her “immigrant brothers and sisters,” adding, “I will always fight with you.”
In the BBC interview, she went on: “I just hope that they can be treated and that we all can be treated under principles of equity and freedom—those same principles that shaped this nation and so many other big, powerful nations in the world.”
She continued: “What I worry the most is that this country, as well as many other countries that have issues with immigration, find a solution to those issues.”
This isn’t the first time Shakira has taken a stand
Even though she’s in the middle of one of the biggest tours of her career—64 sold-out stadium shows and more than $150 million in ticket sales, according to BBC News—Shakira has used her platform to bring visibility to issues that hit home. Especially immigration.
In 2023, during her acceptance speech at the Latin Grammys, she made it clear: “You are loved, you are worth it, and I will always fight with you.”
Her Instagram clip from a BBC reel, now circulating widely, shows her reiterating that message.
Shakira’s immigration story started in Miami with a dream—and a dictionary
Long before she became a global icon, Shakira moved from Barranquilla, Colombia, to Miami at just 19. “I was only 19 when I moved to the U.S., like many other Colombian immigrants who come to this country looking for a better future,” she told the BBC.
With no Google or ChatGPT, Shakira taught herself English through poetry. “I was surrounded by Spanish-English dictionaries and synonym dictionaries,” she recalled. “And then I got into poetry… Leonard Cohen, Walt Whitman, Bob Dylan… trying to understand how the English language works within songwriting.”
Her lyrics eventually earned her a global fanbase and a reputation for poetic storytelling in both English and Spanish.
