The Statue Of Liberty Walked So The Giant New Shakira Statue Just Unveiled In Her Hometown Could Run

Shakira moved to Miami following her very public split from her longtime partner, the world footballing great Gerard Piqué, the father of her two sons. However, Barranquilla, Colombia will always be home, and it is now guaranteed that Shakira will lord over the city regardless of her physical location.

On Tuesday, December 26, a 21-foot bronze statue depicting Shakira from her “Hips Don’t Lie” video was unveiled. Per ABC News, the statue was sculpted by Yino Márquez, and The Guardian noted, “The statue is large but not necessarily the largest pop icon statue to ever be erected. That accolade would seem to go to Forever Marilyn, a 26-ft tribute to the screen goddess Marilyn Monroe that now sits outside a tourism agency in Palm Springs, California.”

Shakira posted twice to Instagram to commemorate the honor, noting how happy she was to share the historic moment with her mother on her birthday. An Instagram carousel includes photos of her parents posing next to the statue and of her brother and father with the Mayor of Barranquilla.

However, the more interesting social media activity was how fans reacted. Someone posted on X (formerly Twitter), “I’d happily live under it.” Another person going by Chombe wrote, “This statue is bigger than Piqué’s career.” A user named DK (probably accurately) pointed out, “In 250 years, people are going to think this was a Spanish goddess.” Several more people anointed Shakira’s statue as superior to The Statue Of Liberty.

See some of the many reactions below.