Shakira

O2, Dublin 8pm Thurs 65.70/54.80/49.20 0818-719300

In the same way that George Michael’s guilty feet ain’t got no rhythm, Shakira’s hips sure don’t lie. Born in Colombia 33 years ago, multi-linguist Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll has leap-frogged over many genres since her emergence in the Latin American music scene of the early 1990s.

Until the middle of that decade Shakira was virtually unknown outside South America, but throughout the remainder and into the 2000s she broke through the language barriers with groundbreaking help from the likes of Ricky Martin and Enrique Eglesias. And she hasn’t stopped since, using her hips and business smarts in tandem with a refusal to forget her background.

Shakira remains one of the highest-selling Latin artists in the world, releasing bilingual albums and collaborating with urban music acts such as Beyoncé and Usher. As if all of this wasn’t enough, she also finds time to be a Unicef Goodwill Ambassador.

In short, Shakira shakes it big-time. Whether she can shake off the Irish winter blues this Thursday remains to be seen.

Can’t See That? Catch This

Kings of Leon Sat, Dublin