Shakira Opens Up About Finding Strength After Split From Gerard Piqué

Months after her split from Gerard Piqué, Shakira opened up about finding strength and herself after heartbreak. 

The singer sat down for a Spanish-conducted interview with Enrique Acevedo of Canal Estrellas on Wednesday and reflected on what she learned following the end of her 11-year relationship. 

“I’ve always been very emotionally dependent [on men] – I have to confess this. I was in love with love,” Shakira, 46, told the host, adding that she once believed that a woman needed a man to feel complete.

“One way or another, I’ve managed to learn it from another perspective and feel that I’ll be fine on my own,” she said. “When a woman has to face [hardships] in life, she comes out stronger. When you come out stronger it means you’re learning to recognize your weaknesses and accept your vulnerability.”

“I feel complete — because I feel like I can depend on myself and I have two kids who depend on me,” she said of sons Sasha, 8, and Milan, 10, whom she shares with Piqué.

“I have to be stronger than a lion. That strength, in order for it to be real and not a façade… it needs to be the result of a great pain. Accepting that pain and tolerating the frustration because there are things in life that don’t turn out the way we want them to.”

The singer and soccer star announced their separations in June in a joint statement, saying, “We regret to confirm that we are separating. We ask for privacy at this moment for the well-being of our children, who are our maximum priority. Thank you in advance for your understanding and respect.”

In January following the split, Piqué went Instagram official with his new girlfriend Clara Chia Marti. In what seems to be a response to his new girlfriend, Shakira released three new songs addressing the split.

“Seeing you with the new one hurt me / But I’m already set by myself,” Shakira sang on the track in lyrics translated from Spanish to English. “What we lived I forgot / And that’s what offended you / That even life improved me / You are no longer welcome here / I saw that your girlfriend threw at me / It doesn’t make me angry, I laugh.”