Shakira Releases Sale El Sol / The Sun Comes Out Today, October 19th

NEW YORK, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- On the heels of the momentous success of "Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)," a sold out tour, and her newly released single "Loca," Shakira releases her 9th album, Sale El Sol / The Sun Comes Out, through Epic Records today, October 19th.

Sale El Sol marks a return to the eclectic approach that defined Shakira's music and established her unique sound and style.  The album, which Entertainment Weekly calls an "eclectic, adventurous mix," has three distinct, yet interwoven styles of sound that explore Shakira's roots from a new perspective.  There's the romantic direction as found on songs such as "Antes de las Seis" and "Lo Que Mas", reminiscent of the intensity of some of Shakira's earlier ballads; a rock and roll vibe on "Devocion" and title track "Sale el Sol" which has Shakira revisiting her artistic roots; and a Latin, tropical flare blending sounds such as Merengue and Reggaeton on "Loca", "Rabiosa" and "Addicted to You".

Shakira's new bilingual LP is "full of idiosyncratic crossovers and hybrids, often tied to very specific places," as described by the New York Times. On the new album, Shakira found herself "going back to basics." "I'm very excited about the new album, because it reminds me of different eras and stages of my career," she said.  "It's been quite interesting making it as well, I've been reconnecting with myself and with my sensibility. It's very introspective, but also very joyful."

Though the album stems from from Shakira's retrospective center, she also calls on the inspiration of other artists, bringing in Puerto Rican sensation, Residente, from Calle 13 on "Gordita" for a hip hop twist, and cover's The XX's "Islands."  The album also includes the hit single "Loca" featuring Dominican artist El Cata and UK phenomenon Dizzee Rascal (on the Spanish and English versions respectively). Both the "Loca" video and album have already reached #1 on Latin iTunes.

The disc also features Shakira's worldwide smash "Waka Waka," the theme song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which turned into a global phenomenon, reaching Number One in sixteen countries.  It sold over two million singles, making it the biggest World Cup song ever released. The official video has seen over 200 million YouTube hits, making it the Number Four most watched video of all time and the Number Three most watched music video. The track was also the soundtrack to Shakira's 1Goal campaign for universal education.

Sale el Sol is the next chapter after 2009's critically-acclaimed, dance-oriented She Wolf, which was the long-awaited follow-up to 2005's groundbreaking one-two punch comprised of Fijacion Oral, Volume 1 and Oral Fixation, Volume 2—a pair of albums which combined to sell over 12 million copies worldwide and secured the young Colombian-born singer's place among pop music royalty.

Over the course of her career, Grammy winner Shakira has sold nearly fifty million albums. She has four of the twenty top-selling hits of the decade, more than any other artist—including 2006's unforgettable "Hips Don't Lie," the biggest-selling single of the 21st Century, which reached the Number One spot in an astonishing 55 countries.

SOURCE Epic Records