“Whenever, Wherever” by Shakira
Shakira’s “Whenever, Wherever” is a classic illustration of a new romantic relationship filled with thrills and the excitement of meeting a person one is willing to devote all their love to.
In the first verse of the song, the narrator expresses that her lover is actually a foreigner and that she has come to love the land of his birth and his culture because of the close bond they now share. In fact, despite the distance between them, she is willing to climb the longest mountain range in the world (Andes), just to be with him.
Throughout, the writer expresses her undying commitment to this affair, while emphasizing on the fact that they are meant for each other. She is optimistic about the relationship and is willing to put in her best to keep things as smooth as they are.
Facts about “Whenever, Wherever”
Shakira wrote this classic of hers with help from the following musical icons:
- Tim Mitchell
- Gloria Estefan
In 2001, Shakira’s “Laundry Service” commercially successful album came out. It spawned six singles. And the first of these singles came out on August 27th, 2001 in the form of “Whenever, Wherever”. Both single and album were a global success, selling over 8 and 13 million copies respectively. At the end of the day, the album was included in the list of one of the 21st century’s most successful albums.
There is actually a Spanish language version of this song, which is titled “Suerte”. It was actually released before the famous English version.
In an interview with VH1, Shakira revealed that translating the song from its original form (Spanish) to English wasn’t a walk in the park. And this was because she was at that time learning English.
“Whenever, Wherever” was the song that transformed Shakira into a bona fide celebrity in the United States. It was so successful there that it gave her her first top-10 hit there. It remained her most successful song there until in 2006 it was surpassed by “Hips Don’t Lie“.
“Whenever, Wherever” even performed better outside the United States. It actually went as far as taking Shakira to No.1 in almost 30 countries, including Australia, Germany and France.
In Britain, it was also a serious hit, reaching number 2 there.
Super Bowl Performance
In 2020, Shakira co-headlined the halftime show of Super Bowl LIV with Jennifer Lopez. This was one of the 9 songs she performed at that event. The performance brought this song into the limelight again, almost 20 years after its release.
