Shakira with her brother, Tonino Mebarak, in 2018.Photo:Shakira Instagram
Shakira Instagram
Shakira grew up as the only child her parents,William Mebarak Chadidand Nidia Ripoll Torrado, shared. However, her father had nine children from a past marriage, so the “Acróstico” singer has several half-siblings: Robin, Moises, Tonino, Alberto, Jose, Lucila, Ana, Edward and an older brother who died when she was a child.
Despite finding fame and fortune after humble beginnings, Shakira still prioritizes quality time with her family, some of whom accompany her to events and on tour.
“No matter what, meals will always take a long time with Shakira,” Sony executive Luana Pagani toldRolling Stonein April 2002 about the singer enjoying meals with her loved ones. “It’s very important for her to eat with someone from her family. It’s how Colombians are.”
Here’s everything to know about Shakira’s siblings — Robin, Moises, Tonino, Alberto, Jose, Lucy, Ana, and Edward — and their relationship with the superstar.
Shakira and her siblings grew up in Colombia
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
Shakira was born and raised in the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. Though all nine of her siblings had a different mother than her, they still lived right down the street, and she shared a close relationship with them.
“The city is not a zoo, you know,” she toldRolling Stonein 2002 of her hometown. “Or maybe it is, but with one kind of animal.”
While William’s kids were raised in Colombia, he was born in New York City to Lebanese parents, and his family relocated to South America when he was 5 years old.
Shakira comes from a close-knit family
Shakira with her dad William Mebarak Chadid during the 2011 Latin Recording Academy’s Person of the Year honoring Shakira in November 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada.Ethan Miller/Getty
Ethan Miller/Getty
The “She Wolf” singer’s parents doted on her and her siblings, and she credits her close family for shaping the way she raisesher children— Milan and Sasha, whom she welcomed withex Gerard Piqué.
“Their dad and I both grew up in very close-knit families, and that has made us openly affectionate parents,” the three-time Grammy winner toldParents Latinain April 2015, perABC News.
Shakira lost a sibling at a very young age
Shakira at the album release party and concert for her first English language album “Laundry Service” in November 2011 in New York City.Scott Gries/ImageDirect
Scott Gries/ImageDirect
Shakira’s oldest half-brother died when he was 19 years old after a motorcycle accident involving a car. The singer was only 2 years old then, but she recognized her father’s heartache in the following years.
“Somehow it made me very necrophobic,” she toldRolling Stone. “For a long time I was somebody who feared death in all the aspects. And loss. Losses.”
To cope with her feelings, she wrote a song about her father’s pain when she was 9 called “Tus Gafas Oscuras” (“Your Dark Glasses”).
“One day, Shakira said to me: ‘Papa, I want you to hear this song, the name is ‘Your Dark Glasses,’ ” William said in aVH1 2006 interview. “From the moment I lost my eldest son, I hid the pain behind a pair of [sun]glasses, and she formed a connection between that and the glasses I used.”
The song was released in 1991 as part of her albumMagia.
Most of Shakira’s siblings are very private
Shakira and her brother Tonino Mebarak at an event in November 2013 in Madrid, Spain.Europa Press/Europa Press/Getty
Europa Press/Europa Press/Getty
Not much is known about the majority of Shakira’s siblings. Besides Tonino and Lucila, they have largely stayed out of the spotlight.
Shakira’s sister Lucila supported her through Milan’s 2013 birth
Left to right: Nadia Ripoll, William Mebarak and Lucila Mebarak at Teknon Hospital in January 2013 in Barcelona, Spain.Europa Press/Europa Press/Getty
When Shakira welcomed her first son Milan in 2013, her sister Lucila Mebarak Otero was spotted supporting her at Teknon Hospital in Barcelona, along with her parents.
Lucila spent many years in Spain as a renowned neurosurgeon, but she recently moved back to her native Barranquilla, Colombia, to work at theLa Misericordia International Clinicas a specialist in bone marrow tumors.
Shakira moved to Miami to be closer to her family post-split
On June 4, 2022, Shakira and Piquéannounced their separationin a joint statement. Amid the split, Shakira left Barcelona, where she shared a home with Piqué, to bring her kids back to America.
“For eight years they have been living in Barcelona, butshe and the kids are movingto Miami, where all her maternal family live,” a source told PEOPLE.
“I settled in Barcelona to give my sons stability, the same that we are now looking for in another corner of the world besides family, friends and the sea,” she wrote onInstagram. “Today we started anew chapter in the search for happiness.”
There, she has the support of her parents and some of her siblings, including Tonino.
Shakira appears to be closest with her brother Tonino
Shakira and her brother Tonino Mebarak at the ‘Zootropolis’ premiere in February 2016 in Barcelona, Spain.Europa Press/Europa Press/Getty
Shakira appears to spend the most time with her brother, Tonino, who is 10 years her senior. He has supported her personally through every stage of her fame and worked with her professionally as the road manager for herDorado World Tourin 2018.
In 2018, when Milan and Sasha watched their mom’s live performance for the first time,Tonino was seen backstageholding Milan while he waved proudly at the crowd.
Tonino has supported Shakira through her legal woes
Shakira and her brother Tonino at Barcelona’s Court of First Instance and Family Court No. 18 in December 2022.David Oller/Europa Press/Getty
David Oller/Europa Press/Getty
He was there for her again, albeit looking solemn, in June 2019 when she had tostand trialon atax fraud case.
Shakira’s brother Tonino is a real estate agent
Shakira’s brother Tonino is a real estate agency in Miami, currently working with Fortune International Realty. In fact, he’s been responsible for managing the singer’s vast portfolio of homes.
In 2018, Shakira put her stunning Miami Beach, Florida, property on the market for $11.648 million, with Tonino as one of her agents, according toArchitectural Digest. They listed it again in 2021 for $15.9 million before taking it off the market.
Shakira leaned on her family amid her split
Left to right: William Mebarak Chadid, Gerard Piqué, Shakira and Nadia Ripoll at an event in January 2013 in Barcelona, Spain.Europa Press/Europa Press/Getty
“[Music] just helps me process my emotions and make sense of them,” Shakira toldEllein October of that same year. “I think it’s the best medicine, and along with the love of my family and my kids that sustains me, music and writing music is definitely one of those tools — one of the few tools I have for survival in extreme conditions.”
source: people.com
