Shakira said 'the husband was dragging me down' following Gerard Piqué split

Shakira has had some choice words about ex Gerard Piqué over the years since their breakup, and some of these words are making the rounds online right now — because they're pretty striking.

During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in March, the singer explained why she finally had enough content to make a full album at that time — and released Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran.

"I’ve been putting out music here and there, but it was really hard for me to put together a body of work. I didn’t have time, because the husband factor," the singer explained. "Now I’m husband-less, but yeah, the husband was dragging me down. Now I'm free. Now I can actually work."

This of course triggered lots of laughs from the audience and Jimmy.

Elsewhere in the interview, Shakira explained that the title of her record translates as "women no longer cry."

"It's men's turn now," she said. "We've done that for too long, you know. For too long, we've been sent to cry with a script in our hands and without an end just because we're women. We have to conceal our pain in front of our kids, and from society. We have to heal in a certain way. And I don't think anyone is supposed to tell us how to heal."

She continued: "I think now women decide when to cry, how to cry, and until when."

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Shakira and Gerard weren't technically married but as good as since they were together between about 2011 and 2022. They share sons Milan, 11, and Sasha, 9.

The "Waka Waka" singer has previously made similar comments, for instance speaking to The Sunday Times in March. She said: "For a long time I put my career on hold, to be next to Gerard, so he could play football. There was a lot of sacrifice for love."

Speaking to Marie Claire for our latest cover story, the international superstar explained how helpful the creative process was for her as she recovered from the contentious breakup: "It was like healing," she told us. "I was able to transform the pain and anger I felt into creativity, productivity and resilience."

And we're all the richer for it.