Woman as Author and Autor: Shakira

A female artist who has surpassed various barriers with her individuality is Shakira. This Colombian singer, song-writer, choreographer, and philanthropist is a positive role model for not only hispanic females, but women in general. Shakira is the second most successful Latin female artist of all time. 

Shakira began her career at the age of thirteen. Since then she has sold more than 50 billion albums, has won a profuse amount of awards, has gained her own star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and has started her own foundation, "Piez Descalzos," to help impoverished children in need of education. Her song "Waka Waka" was also chosen as the official 2010 FIFA World Cup song and the music video for the song was the 5th most watched video on YouTube. It is needless to say she is an accomplished woman. 

However, things did not begin so smoothly for this Colombian-Lebanese singer. As a little girl in catholic school she was rejected for the choir due to her strong "vibrato." Also, when auditioning for Sony, the director had very little hopes for her. Shakira also had backlash when switching over to english albums. Critics deemed her English skills to be too weak, therefore causing her songs to sound silly. Her Latin fan community also felt she was abandoning them to please the English mainstream music industry. Regardless of these critiques, Shakira went on to sell millions. 

Shakira may also be viewed as overtly-sexualized for her sensual dance moves and half-nude performances. However, her dance moves are derived from her Lebanese background and her lack of clothing part of the performance. Gabriel Garcia Marquez personally asked her to play a role in Love in the Time of Cholera but Shakira declined due to the nudity involved. Therefore, though her music videos and concert performances cause her to show skin, she will not demean herself by posing completely naked.

In regards to Auter Theory,Shakira is both Auter and Author. Being that she writes her own music, she is able to express her material however she wants to. She wrote her own English lyrics even when her English was not that great. 

Shakira is definitey a positive female to look up to because she embodies determination, generosity, and ingenuity.

References: 

Wikipedia 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakira

Shakira's Official Webpage

http://shakira.com