My man prefers meat over the bone.

The music teacher thought I sang like a goat. It was kind of devastating. A few months after that, I participated in a music contest and won. I took my little trophy to school and rubbed it in his nose. I said to him, "What do you say now?"

Writing in English was a major challenge. I didn't want other songwriters to write for me. I wanted to preserve the spirit of my songs in Spanish. I am the same Shakira in English as I am in Spanish.

I've always thought of myself as a woman who works hard, believes in herself, and wants to accomplish as much as possible.

I always had the intuition, even as a little child, that I was called for a big project.

It doesn't matter if you are a musician, a business leader, a president or a student. We all have a responsibility to give back.

For several years I worried a lot about protecting an image, but today, I have understood that the image cannot be preconceived.