When Shakira first picked up her guitar as a teenager in Barranquilla — pouring her poetic musings into intimate rock songs like “Estoy Aquí” or “Inevitable,” and experimenting with a sound few did in Colombia’s tropical-dominated scene — she couldn’t have imagined her name would one day stand shoulder-to-shoulder with music legends like Billy Idol, Lauryn Hill and Wu-Tang Clan.
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Yet, over 30 years after her breakthrough album Pies Descalzos introduced her to the world, the Colombian superstar now finds herself in that company as one of 17 nominees for the 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, announced last month.
“I thought someone was joking with me. I had to double-check, and then I just felt really grateful,” Shakira tells Billboard Español after hearing the news of her nomination. “It’s not something you expect. I’m so over the moon with my fans who’ve been supporting me for 30 years already, and they continue to accompany me and to make things like these that sound almost impossible happen.”
The “Hips Don’t Lie” No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hitmaker is no stranger to breaking records and barriers across cultures, genres, and languages. The first Colombian artist ever nominated for this honor, the Latin music icon also carries the potential distinction of becoming the first Latina woman inducted into the Rock Hall’s hallowed circle. “It’s pretty crazy, honestly,” she says of the honor. “I grew up in Barranquilla and I dreamt about things like these, but I never thought that they could come true.”
While her music has evolved drastically over the years — from her earlier introspective power ballads like “Antología” to reggaetón-powered global hits such as “Chantaje” — Shakira has always carried the fire of a rockera at heart. “I started out as a rock kid, playing guitar, harmonica, and crazy about bands like Nirvana, Metallica and Led Zeppelin, being just a huge rock fan and writing rock songs in my little room in Barranquilla, where I was growing up,” she reflects.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honors artists who have transformed the musical and cultural landscape, and Shakira’s journey epitomizes that ethos. Having debuted at just 13 with Magia (1991), she caught international attention with Pies Descalzos (1995) and cemented her stardom with Dónde Están Los Ladrones (1998) — two albums that not only introduced Spanish-language audiences to her poetic, often rock-leaning songwriting, but which spread internationally, all without compromising her roots.
In 2001, she starred in one of Latin music’s most successful global crossovers with Laundry Service, her fifth studio album and first in English, which catapulted her to global fame with a blend of pop-rock and Andean rhythms. The album reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and produced smash hits like “Whenever, Wherever,” which peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In the years since, her artistry has translated into countless chart successes: Fijación Oral, Vol. 1 and Oral Fixation, Vol. 2, both from 2025, reached No. 4 and No. 5 on the Billboard 200, respectively, while her self-titled 2014 album peaked at No. 2, her highest position on the chart. On Top Latin Albums, she has seven No. 1s, from Fijación Oral, Vol. 1, which ruled for 17 weeks, to her most recent, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran (2024). The latter album’s advance single, “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53” with Bizarrap, broke 14 Guinness World Records and became the first Spanish-language song by a female artist to hit the top 10 of the Hot 100.
“Every time I write, I do it because it’s therapeutic, it’s cathartic to me — it’s my own way to process my feelings, my thoughts, to elaborate life and whatever is happening in my mind,” she adds. “I wrote songs, I never really did it thinking or hoping that big things would happen. It was just my way of coping with reality and expressing myself.”
Her nomination also comes during an era when the Rock Hall has made strides toward greater inclusivity, particularly for women artists. This year’s all-star roster also includes powerhouse women like Mariah Carey, Sade, and P!nk, alongside other legends such as Iron Maiden, Oasis, Phil Collins and Joy Division/New Order.
For decades, women were glaringly underrepresented within the Rock Hall; in 1986, the inaugural Hall of Fame induction was an all-male affair. That specific trend persisted in years like 1992 and even as late as 2016. Now, Shak is part of a diverse class of nominees that champions a wide spectrum of musical styles and cultural identities.
“To be the first Colombian, or even to dream about the possibility of maybe becoming the first Latina woman inducted in the Hall of Fame, feels so surreal,” Shakira says. “I’d be so humbled and thrilled to be representing Latin music, Latina women, and the fans of rock and roll in my Hispanic community.”
Her ability to orchestrate genre fusion has remained unmatched. From the tango-infused rhythms of “Objection (Tango)” to the mariachi-meets-pop flare of “Ciega, Sordomuda,” all the way to her rock-driven tracks such as “Don’t Bother” and “Empire,” Shakira pushed boundaries before it became an industry norm.
“That mindset sort of stayed with me. I wasn’t afraid to try things,” she reveals about her willingness to experiment with genre. “Even though the musical scene in Colombia was quite different, it was more about tropical music than rock and roll. I [started] producing when I was 17 years old. I wrote and produced my first rock album Pies Descalzos and Donde Están Los Ladrones along with Luis Fernando Ochoa… In Fijación Oral, I started out playing with other genres and experimenting with those different sounds. My career became a lot about fusion, about making elements from different worlds coexist in the same song.”
The Colombian rock star is in the final stretch of her historic Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour, which kicked off on February 11, 2025, and will conclude with a grand finale in Spain. The tour set a Guinness World Record as the highest-grossing tour of all time by a Hispanic artist, earning an astounding $421.6 million from the sale of 3.3 million tickets across 86 shows, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore.
The Rock Hall’s Class of 2026 will be revealed in April with the induction ceremony taking place in the fall.
“Rock was always there, and I’ve been making rock songs [on] every album,” she says of her roots in the museum’s core genre. “So to me, just being nominated to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is a huge motivation. It’s a huge honor, but also I think it’s gonna inspire me even more for the next years.”
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