Shakira Practices Some Spirited Baile de Tubo In “Rabiosa”


Latin-flavored pop music rarely crosses over in America unless the lyrics are sung entirely in English, but you can’t blame Shakira for trying. Her latest album, the bilingual Sale el Sol/The Sun Comes Out, debuted at #7 on the Billboard 200 (#4 among Digital Albums) when it was released in the first week of November against tough competition (namely, Kings of Leon and Sugarland), but the English-language version of single “Loca” featured British rapper Dizzee Rascal, who’s talented but hardly an American hitmaker.

“Rabiosa,” on the other hand, features Miami rapper Pitbull, so it’s getting a much bigger push, which seems warranted, since the lyric video posted a week ago already has nearly half a million views. (Granted, Latin artists perform disproportionately well on YouTube when compared to other charts.)

The video for “Rabiosa” features Shakira going back to her roots with a brunette wig, albeit cut much shorter than her pre-“Whenever, Wherever” look. A combination of Steadicam and handheld cameras track her through a party stocked with more Patr?n than The-Dream‘s house as she flirts and dances with a dude while, of course, lip syncing (and gesturing for the few Spanish lyrics that sneak in, e.g. pointing to her mouth for “la boca”). Pitbull doesn’t appear in the video, but a not insignificant amount of pole dancing does.

This song is basically a lock to make its way to the top of the U.S. Latin charts, and the video will no doubt rack up millions of streams, but does the merengue-tinged track have the crossover potential to be a true Song of the Summer? We’re not so sure. Let us know what you think in the comments!