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Singer Shakira, 45, at the premiere of the film "Elvis" in Cannes: "I've invested everything I had in this relationship and my family"
Photo:
Joel C Ryan/AP
According to the singer Shakira, she is going through one of the hardest times of her life: her father had an accident, the separation from her long-term partner Gerard Piqué continues to burden her - and then the Spanish state accuses her of tax evasion.
In an interview with the fashion magazine »Elle«, Shakira spoke in detail for the first time.
"I'm currently going through one of the hardest, darkest hours of my life," said the singer.
A walk with their children is impossible
The singer, 45, announced in June that she had split from her partner, FC Barcelona soccer star Gerard Piqué, 35, after a 12-year relationship.
The couple have two sons, nine-year-old Milan and seven-year-old Sasha.
According to the Spanish press, the couple are fighting over custody of the children.
Asked about this, Shakira said, "We as parents have an obligation to these two wonderful boys. I believe that we will agree on what is best for their future and dreams and find a fair solution for all involved."
The reports, said Shakira, put a lot of strain on the children: »Paparazzi sit in front of my house 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
There is no place where I can hide from them with my children except in my house.” She cannot go for a walk without being accompanied by photographers.
The separation also affects the children.
She herself, said Shakira, also suffered greatly from the breakup: »There were days when I was broken on the floor«.
Making music helped her not to drown: "It's like a piece of driftwood for a man who's about to drown in the sea - a piece of wood to hold on to when he feels like he's drowning."
Her statements also contain bitterness about what she sacrificed for her partner: "I invested everything I had in this relationship and in my family." So that Piqué could continue to play football at FC Barcelona, she had her Moved from the US to Barcelona and put her career on the back burner, Shakira said.
In addition to the separation, her father's health also bothers her, the singer said.
He fell and hit his face on the ground, she said.
He then had brain surgery.
But just a week after the operation, he fell on his face again and broke several bones.
However, he is now on the mend.
Allegations of tax evasion "false" and "fictitious"
Shakira also commented on the allegations by the Spanish authorities that she had evaded taxes totaling 14.5 million euros.
She called them "false" and "fictitious."
The Spanish tax authorities took a sharp stance.
“They saw that I was dating a Spaniard and started drooling.” In the meantime, she says, she has paid all the money she owed.
"I don't owe them anything anymore." In 2018, Shakira transferred a total of 17.2 million euros to the Spanish tax authorities.
The authorities are fomenting an obscene press campaign against her that has no basis to tarnish her reputation.
You want to get them to give in and agree to an agreement.
Shakira faces a total of up to eight years and two months in prison and a fine of 23.8 million euros because of the allegations.
She has so far rejected an out-of-court settlement.
In an interview, she said she wanted to go to trial: "It's about the principle." She compared herself to other stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, who were also accused of tax evasion.
Shakira is Colombian.
The core question is where she was taxable in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
The Spanish authorities consider that she should have paid income tax in Spain because she stayed there for more than half a year in each of the three years.
The singer denies that. Her lawyers also point out that her income comes mainly from international tours.
At that time she lived in the Bahamas and only visited her then partner Piqué in Barcelona.
Only from 2015 did she live permanently in Barcelona.
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