On Wednesday, Shakira — who confirmed her split from Gerard Piqué earlier this year — released her track “Monotonía” alongside Ozuna. In the new song, the Colombian singer seems to allude to the end of her marriage with Piqué.
In the clip, she’s minding her own business, shopping for snacks, when she’s blown away, literally, when she encounters a former love played by Ozuna. During their run-in, her past paramour shoots her in the chest. But despite the tragic occurrence, she finds a way to tend to her missing heart, even as people trample over it in the street, showcasing resilience even in the midst of major heartbreak.
The “Hips Don’t Lie” artist teased the release of the track for several days, posting herself singing lyrics from it a cappella, including “No fue culpa tuya/Ni tampoco mía/Fue culpa de la monotonía.” (“It wasn’t your fault nor mine/It was monotony’s fault.)
Shakira also released a trailer for the video, which the singer in sunglasses at a grocery store while her track “Te Felicito” with Rauw Alejandro plays in the background.
On Instagram, she shared a video of the single’s cover art, which features the title of the track in front of a heart with a sword through it. “A small king with a super queen,” wrote Ozuna on the post. In another post, Shakira holds what seems to be a human heart.
Shakira spoke to Elle magazine in September about her separation from her soccer player ex after Piqué was accused of cheating on the singer.
“I’ve remained quiet and just tried to process it all. It’s hard to talk about it, especially because I’m still going through it, and because I’m in the public eye and because our separation is not like a regular separation,” she said. “And so it’s been tough not only for me, but also for my kids. Incredibly difficult. I have paparazzi camping outside, in front of my house, 24/7.”
“I feel like in this moment of my life, which is probably one of the most difficult, darkest hours of my life, music has brought light,” Shakira added. When speaking about the lyrics for her song “Te Felicito” with Rauw Alejandro, Shakira said, “Everything I go through is reflected in the lyrics I write… when the glove fits, it fits.”
She also told the outlet that she has an album ready of music in both English and Spanish, adding that creating songs has been her therapy through this dark time.
“I’m really, really thrilled about … how gratifying the whole process has been for me. How therapeutic as well. I thought I was done with my album,” she said. “But every time I get in the studio to do, like, one line or something, or to mix a song that’s almost ready to come out, then I end up with new music because I feel creative right now, and I feel that is an incredible outlet for me to make sense of things.”