Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll

• Influences
Shakira has told many interviewers that she has grown fond of listening to oriental music, which influenced many of her earlier works. For example, Shakira used the Indian theme for her performance of "Hips Don’t Lie" at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards in New York City. She has also been influenced by her Arab heritage, which was a major inspiration for her breakthrough world hit "Ojos Así". She told Portuguese TV "Many of my movements belong to Arab culture." She also cites her parents as major contributors to her musical style.
In childhood, Shakira preferred rock and roll music, listening heavily to her favorite rock bands like Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Nirvana, The Police and U2. She lists John Lennon as her No.1 musical influence. She was also deeply influenced by Prince, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, The Who, The Pretenders, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Cure, Tom Petty, Depeche Mode, The Clash, Ramones, whose influence can be heard on her many prominent songs. In a recent interview to Elenco magazine, she noted that in her opinion the perfect songs are "Imagine" by John Lennon and "No Woman, No Cry" by Bob Marley.
Shakira made several covers of prominent artists such AC/DC and Aerosmith, using them to sing in her tours, resulting in performances of "Back in Black" and "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" during her Tour of the Mongoose. She also sang the classic Elvis Presley song "Always on My Mind" at the VH1 Divas Live. In her 2010–2011 tour called The Sun Comes Out World Tour, she sings "Nothing Else Matters" by the heavy metal band Metallica in an oriental style. She is also strongly influenced by Andean music and South American folk music, using her native instrumentation for the Latin dance-pop "Whenever, Wherever" and "Despedida". Shakira recently performed two songs for two separate Haiti benefit events: "I'll Stand By You", by The Pretenders, and "Sólo le pido a Dios" by León Gieco.