In today's Countdown to Shakira post, I will be ranking her top studio albums, plus some live compilations and a few honorable mentions. I've been a Shakira fan since 2001, so you can trust that I know her music. It all started when I caught the end of the Whenever, Wherever music video one day while my sister was watching TV. It held my complete attention and I couldn't wait to catch the full video. Back then, I had to listen to the radio so I could record it on an old cassette tape. I even had a hand help cassette recorder that I would put up to the TV speakers later on to record the audio of her live performances. My, how things have changed since then! During Christmas break that same year, my sister borrowed the Laundry Service album from one of her friends. Once I heard the full album I was officially a Shaki fan! I listened to it every chance I could—while doing after dinner chores and even in my discman at bedtime so I could fall asleep to it—until my sister had to return it and my parents bought me my own.
My dearest Devin introduced me to the Spanish albums she previously released and that's when I started to really get into Latin music. We would listen to her music on the bus to band competitions. I thought it was so cool that we loved a lot of the same music. His Christmas gift to me in 2002 was the Grandes Exitos album (the special edition with the VCD). I cherish it to this day!
I've had the honor of experiencing the hype and anticipation of all of her album releases since Laundry Service in 2001. Back then, I would get all of my info from "ShakiraMedia" and was heavily active on Shakira Fan message boards. My username was BLandShakiFan2006. I would swap and share rare remixes and photos with other Shakira fans, chatted all about her songs, albums and music videos, and what we would like to see from her on tour. Luckily I was able to see her live during her Oral Fixation Tour in 2006 (a part of my high school graduation gift I talked my parents into getting me).
Shakira's music has gotten me through most of my adolescence and has continued to motivate and move me well into my adulthood. I've seen her grow and evolve as an artist for over 20 years now. And I can't wait to see what she will accomplish in the next 20!
