Shakira landed at Madrid's Barajas Airport on Monday, arriving in the Spanish capital to take on a 12-night European residency that will close out her "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour."
The Colombian singer, who was born in Barranquilla, was met by crowds of fans as she arrived. She was accompanied by her brother Tonino, one of her nine siblings, who serves as head of security on her touring staff.
Speaking shortly after landing, Shakira said she was very moved by the welcome, thanking her Spanish audience for the affection they had shown her over the years, in good times and bad, a country where she also lived for a decade.
She said her fans had waited for her to rebuild herself as a mother, an artist, a woman and a professional, and that she was there to give them her best. She made the comments during an appearance on CADENA 100, a Spanish national radio network known for its pop and Latin music programming.
Thirty hectares of culture
Shakira gave more detail on what audiences can expect across the 12 dates at Iberdrola Music, a concert venue in Madrid. She said it had become necessary to take refuge in culture and in who they are, which is why she had prepared 30 hectares of space across nine pavilions dedicated to entertainment, culture, art, literature, music, food and film. She added that she herself was eager to walk through the site.
The residency goes beyond a run of concerts. Shakira has built a wider cultural festival around the shows called Es Latina, bringing in a varied lineup of artists she has personally made space for. The bill includes Spanish singer Amaia Romero, singer-songwriter Guitarricadelafuente, Argentine artist Nathy Peluso and newcomers Santos Bravos, with the festival centred on Latin culture and identity.
Santos Bravos as opening act
Shakira closed her remarks by thanking fans for so much love, saying she was very eager for the concerts to begin and that it was going to be an incredible experience. She arrives, by most measures, at one of the strongest points of a career that has never lacked recognition but which, after a quieter period, has surged back into full force.
'Dai Dai' surpasses a billion views
Beyond the tickets she has sold worldwide with this tour, Shakira has shown this summer that she can still dominate the charts with a single song. Her track 'Dai Dai,' commissioned by FIFA, has crossed a billion views on YouTube and continues to climb, having already overtaken the numbers reached by 'Waka Waka,' the song she performed for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
