Shakira Page 4

Shakira is set to release a new single.

The 'Hips Don't Lie' hitmaker has announced she will release an upcoming track called 'Chantaje', which features Maluma, in a string of cryptic posts on social media.

Alongside her Instagram posts, which include one of her standing in front of a whiteboard with various cities penned, she wrote:''I hope you guys been paying attention to the clues I've been posting today. I will send a DM to one of the first to correctly guess the name of my new single and the artist I've collaborated with. Post your guesses in the comments below, and keep an eye on your Insta inbox...''

Continue reading: Shakira Will Release A New Single

Christina Aguilera is back in the red, swivelling chair of The Voice, USA. The platinum pop diva will be back for the eighth season, starting in early 2015, making the new line-up look suspiciously similar to the programme’s initial foursome.

Christina has announced she'll be back on The Voice USA for its eighth season

Xtina was part of the originals with Maroon 5 star Adam Levine, country singer Blake Shelton and singer-songwriter CeeLo Green: the quartet that steered the show for the first three seasons. Shakira and Usher took on the coaching roles in season four before the Genie in a Bottle singer returned with CeeLo for season five.

Continue reading: Xtina Is Back On The Voice USA!

Congratulations to Shakira and her boyfriend Gerard Pique! The pair are expecting their second child together. The Columbian-Lebanese pop singer first broke the news in the Spanish edition of Cosmopolitan magazine, before confirming through her Twitter account, posting "Yes, we are expecting our second baby!! Thank you all for your well wishes!". Her boyfriend, Spanish football star Pique, retweeted the announcement. 

Shakira pictured with her boyfriend Gerard Pique

The couple first met in 2010 when Pique starred in the video for Shakira's World Cup anthem, 'Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)'. They confirmed their romance in 2011 after months of media speculation about whether or not they were a couple. They announced the birth of their son Milan Piqué Mebarak in January 2013. 

Continue reading: Shakira And Gerard Pique Expecting Baby Number 2

We have our feminism hat on today, since we heard that Shakira recently admitted that boyfriend Gerard Pique won’t let her film music videos with men. Shakira told Billboard “He’s very territorial, and since he no longer lets me do videos with men, well, I have to do them with women”. We’re sure that Shakira’s latest news that she is only allowed to film videos with other women has been received well by hoards of rejoicing men who have absolutely no problem with this, but it all sounds a little stone age to us.

Shakira's boyfriend won't let her film videos with other men

Shakira has been a successful recording artist since the early 1990s and in 2002 was catapulted onto the global music scene with her English-language version of “Wherever, Whenever”. She immediately became a sex symbol (it might have been something to do with the lyric “Lucky that my breasts are small and humble, So you don’t confused them with mountains” and all of the seductive hip shaking in tight leather trousers) and has since been confirmed as one of the world’s sexiest women.  Along with being a talented singer and songwriter, her sex appeal is sort of one of her selling points as a pop star, and she’s never been shy about cashing in on this.

Continue reading: Forget Feminism! Gerard Is Pique-y About Shakira's Video Co-Stars

Shakira and Rihanna have teamed up for a steamy new video to Can’t Remember to Forget You, the newest single from Shakira. The video was released yesterday (January 30). The video is simple and straightforward, with the two songstresses doing what we already know they do well – writhing around in skimpy outfits and perfect makeup, pouting and lamenting a failed relationship. Well, it’s not so much “lamenting” as “aggressively paying tribute with guitars, a rain machine and homoerotic imagery.”

Shakira returns to the music scene, aided by fellow pop siren Rihanna.

The video opens with a nice aerial shot of a tropical beach, but quickly moves on to the main attraction. In what appears to be some sort of mansion, the Latin star writhes atop an assortment of beds and cushions, takes a dip in a steaming pool of water and does some hip swinging against a wall. Rihann, meanwhile, walks along a backlit corridor, singing and looking glamorous, as you do.

Continue reading: Shakira And Rihanna Team Up For The Sexy New Video To "Remember To Forget You"

Two of pop-music's biggest female stars have joined forces on the track 'Cant Remember To Forget You'.

Rihanna and Shakira's collaboration has got the music industry buzzing, so hopefully the single will exceed the hype.

The Barbados hottie confirmed this new partnership by posting a photo via her Instagram page.

Continue reading: Rihanna & Shakira's Track 'Can't Remember To Forget' Expected To Drop Next Week

The Voice has nearly finished with it's successful fourth season, with the final three now battling it out for the coveted crown being given out by NBC, but decided on by the American public. Monday (June 17) night's show featured more than just performances from the contestants as the season looks to make it's cinematic end, but regardless of the treats on offer the real attention was of course of the final three.

Show judge Usher has already dubbed Michelle Chamuel 'the winner' of this season of the hit singing competition, but Usher's word does not guarantee success and for Chamuel, the race is still on for the prize. Fellow judge Blake Shelton is one person who doesn't rate Chamuel and he is still backing Zach and Colton Swon to take the crown and after their triumphant rendition of 'Danny's Song' before the judge made the duo into a three-piece for a version of Brad Paisley's 'Celebrity.' Even if you don't like country it was hard not to admit that the shaw was something special.

Blake's other entry into the final three, Danielle Bradbery, proved her worth to the panel too, with Adam Levine and Shakira both singling her out as the most impressive performer of the night. "I think Danielle's the winner of this thing," Levine told her after the rendition of Maybe it was Pam Tillis' 'Memphis.' They weren't the only ones who thought highly of Bradbery's performances either and by the end of the night her coach Shelton told the hopeful, "I'm one of the millions of people out there that you have wrapped around your finger. I just thank God that you came to The Voice to debut yourself."

Continue reading: As The Voice Enters It's Final Stage, Is There A Clear Winner In Sight?

It’s semifinals week on The Voice, oh goodie! Anticipation was abundant before last night’s show – who would leave, which judges’ teams would get to compete in the finale, is it going to be all-women or all-country? Once again, the iTunes chart provided some clue as to the rankings. The show kicked off with a performance by Fall Out Boy (who still exist as a band, apparently.) They performed their My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark and were joined by Michelle Chamuel, whose role in the whole performance seemed to be mostly nominal, since her voice was barely audible throughout.

Then, after an emotionally charged performance by season 3 finalist Nicholas David, at last it came time to announce the lucky members if the inner circle for this season – starting, predictably, with Michelle herself. This means that both team Usher and team Country will be represented at the final.

The second act to continue to finals was Blake's Danielle Bradbery, followed, at the very last minute by The Swon Brothers. This of course means that Team Shakira’s Sasha Allen and Team Adam’s Amber Carrington were sent home this week. So the results matched the iTunes charts pretty well and the finale is shaping up to be a tense one. Did the semifinal fit your predictions?

Continue reading: The Voice: Who Went Home And Who Made It To The Final?

Adam Levine made a half-apology to Americans yesterday for muttering "I hate this country" during the closing credits of The Voice. We say half-apology because the Maroon 5 took to Twitter to post dictionary definitions of the words "humourless," "lighthearted," "joke" and "misunderstand." Hmm.

In fairness to Levine, his remarks really were pretty throw-away and he was obviously upset that two of his three acts had been eliminated from the NBC singing contest - one of them, Judith Hill, had been the favorite for weeks. The pop singer also released a statement through NBC which classifies that he really doesn't hate America. "I obviously love my country very much and my comments last night were made purely out of frustration," Levine said. "Being a part of The Voice, I am passionately invested in my team and want to see my artists succeed."

Levine added that the elimination of two of his acts was "confusing and downright emotion," and that his remarks were based on "personal dissatisfaction with the results," adding, "I am very connected to my artists and know they have long careers ahead, regardless of their outcome on the show."

Continue reading: Adam Levine Tweets Americans The Definition Of 'Humorless'

It was another shock result on NBC's The Voice this week, with two of the clear frontrunners getting eliminated despite strong performances. Unfortunately for Adam Levine, it was both his acts Judith Hill and Sarah Simmons who got the boot, despite being tipped to reach the final, reports E! Online.

Hill, a former backing singer for Michael Jackson, was considered the one to beat since her opening audition, while Simmons had wowed the American public with her soulful tone and consistent performances. The shocking results leaves Team Adam with just one act, Amber Carrington, while Team Blake retains Danielle Bradbery, Holly Tucker and The Swon Bothers. Shakira has just one act left, Sasha Allen, while Usher has one too, Michelle Chamuel. It's looking increasingly like that Blake Shelton will field at least one singer for the grand finale, probably Holly. The Voice audience have really taken to the country singers on the latest season.

Adam Levine may have hurt his one remaining act's chances after a microphone caught him grumbling, "I hate this country!" upon learning that American hadn't voted for Judith or Sarah. The Maroon 5 man was probably joking, though there's some pretty touchy television viewers out there.

Continue reading: The Voice: Why On Earth Didn't You Vote For Judith Hill Or Sarah Simmons?

Last night saw another reaping on The Voice as two surprising contestants left the show. First came the highly unexpected booting of Usher’s 19-year-old protégé Veto. The singer had been singled out as a favorite to advance to finals early on. Veto also had the motivation to stay in the race, saying early on that he wanted to inspire kids with showbiz ambitions: 'Surviving would mean the world to me,' he said. 'It allows me more time to be an inspiration to the younger people who look up to me.' Alas, Veto didn’t survive (on the show at least, otherwise he seems peachy) and now all those disappointed kids will have to find someone else to look up to.

The second performer to get voted off, in a not-so-surprising twist, was Team Shakira’s Garrett Gardner. It may have been Shakira’s rather odd choice to have the rocker sing a toned down rendition of The Backstreet Boys’ I Want It That Way that put the final nail in Gardner’s coffin, but it just doesn’t seem like he was meant to win The Voice. This was his second time on the talent competition and the singer was bursting with confidence. “It doesn't prove anything if you don't try again,” he said. “I didn't make it the first time and look where I am now.”

Obviously it was too early to make such bold statements though, and Gardner soon found himself on the wrong end of the voting charts. "You guys have been incredible," Carson told them as the results were read out. 

Continue reading: Contestant Numbers On The Voice Keep Dwindling As Two More Get The Boot

Shakira has revealed that the most stressful thing about becoming a new mother has been shifting the baby weight, with the pop star talking to People about how it’s been since she gave birth to her and Gerard Pique’s son Milan.

“[Losing baby weight] is the only thing that’s been a little stressful,” said the 36 year-old, who had to get back to her duties as judge on The Voice fairly sharpish. She added: “I knew I had to come back here to do The Voice two months after I had delivered a baby. I didn’t have my four months of maternity like every woman on earth has. I’m not trying to complain, but it’s been a process full of challenges.”

Continuing, she said, “I think that our mothers and grandmothers weren’t under the pressure women of today are after delivering a baby. My dad says there’s nothing better than meat over the bones. So he likes my mom a little chubby. She was never under the pressure to have to get to her old weight — and she never did.” Shakira looks pretty much back to her ‘fighting weight,’ though she still insisted she had a bit more to lose. She also said “I do Zumba. Zumba has been actually really great for me. Even during pregnancy, I kept doing it until almost the end.”

Continue reading: Shakira Reveals Babyweight Loss Has Been The Biggest Challenge Since Giving Birth

Commotion over Beyonce's pre-recorded inauguration performance, a very heart warming clip of Steve Harvey, Shakira becomes a Madre and more!

In Defence Of Bey: Music fans recoiled with indignation this week after it was speculated Beyonce had the audacity to pre-record a live performance for President Obama's inauguration in Washington D.C. We'd point you towards the technical difficulties of singing to 800,000 on the sizeable Capitol Hill, and can think of far worse lip-syncing flubs.

Aww, Steve: YouTube fizzed into action this week with a very special video of everyone's favourite TV host Steve Harvey. The Family Feud star was surprised by an old friend, leading him to choke back the tears. We won't say too much, just check it out!

Continue reading: A Week In News: Beyonce Lip-Syncs, Steve Harvey Breakdown, Shakira Gives Birth!

Shakira and Gerard Piqué announced the birth of their baby boy, via a statement on the singer’s website. Their first baby came into the world yesterday (January 22, 2013), just a short while after the couple unveiled plans to hold an unusual, online ‘baby shower’ in aid of UNICEF.

The statement from the couple read “We are happy to announce the birth of Milan Piqué Mebarak, son of Shakira Mebarak and Gerard Piqué, born January 22nd at 9:36pm, in Barcelona, Spain.

The name Milan (pronounced MEE-lahn), means dear, loving and gracious in Slavic; in Ancient Roman, eager and laborious; and in Sanskrit, unification.

Just like his father, baby Milan became a member of FC Barcelona at birth.

The hospital confirmed that the couple’s first child weighed approximately 6lbs, 6 ounces, and that both mother and child are in excellent health.”

Earlier in the day yesterday, Gerard had confirmed that Shakira would be induced at the Teknon Clinic in Barcelona, the city that the couple call home and where Gerard plays for the city’s professional football team. A website entitled Shakira and Gerard Piqué’s World Baby Shower is online; fans can donate money to UNICEF via the website as well as tracking the progress of all donations. 

Continue reading: Bound For FC Barcelona : Shakira And Gerard Pique Announce Birth Of Milan Pique Mebarak

Shakira and her husband have kept Shakira's pregnancy fairly public and in various headlines for the past nine months, but now the big wait is over and they have welcomed a baby boy the world. This time around it's actually true, and not a joke via twitter. 

In a statement on Shakira's website, the name of the baby, the reason for the name and the weight and health of the child were revealed: "We are happy to announce the birth of Milan Piqué Mebarak, son of Shakira Mebarak and Gerard Piqué, born January 22nd at 9:36pm, in Barcelona, Spain," Shakira wrote on her website. "The name Milan (pronounced MEE-lahn), means dear, loving and gracious in Slavic; in Ancient Roman, eager and laborious; and in Sanskrit, unification... Just like his father, baby Milan became a member of FC Barcelona at birth...The hospital confirmed that the couple's first child weighed approximately 6lbs. 6 ounces, and that both mother and child are in excellent health." 

Just like Pique's joke, Shakira used Twitter to call for support from her fans, saying "I'd like to ask you all to accompany me in your prayers on this very important day of my life." Those prayers seem to have worked and now we just can't wait to see the littl'un. With such good genes he's bound to be beautiful

The man who is alleged to have been the mastermind behind Manti Te’o’s imaginary girlfriend reportedly auditioned to be on The Voice. According to US Weekly, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo spun an elaborate and tragic story, about his cousins dying, which producers now suspect may have been a lie, in light of his apparent involvement in the ‘dead girlfriend’ story.

Ronaiah Tuiasosopo allegedly told the show’s producers that he had started a Christian band, together with his cousins, but that they died in a “massive car crash” on the way to a youth conference in Nevada. According to Ronaiah, a truck crashed into their vehicle and sent the family members sprawling across the freeway. Miraculously, he claims, they were all fine, despite doctors fearing that one of them could be brain-dead. According to the inside, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo had taken the same background check and psych evaluation that all contestants go through and nothing out f the ordinary had cropped up. In light of the Manti Te’o death hoax, though, people are starting to think that he could have been making this up as well.

Luckily for the producers, his journey on the show ended there. He tried to impress the judges – Shakira, Adam Levine, Usher and Blake Shelton with his version of Matisyahu’s ‘One Day’ but they were unimpressed. “No one turned their chair around,” the insider confirmed.

The Columbian pop star Shakira has announced that she and her soccer star fella Gerard Pique are expecting their first child together. Shakira made the announcement in what has now become the conventional manner for all celebrities… yep, you guessed it… via Twitter.

The tweet, which read “We’d like to celebrate the imminent birth of our first child with you all,” was accompanied by a snap of Shakira wearing just a bikini top and a skirt and a similarly topless Gerard, both looking rather sumptuous in black and white and both holding Shakira’s notable baby bump. The due date wasn’t publicised by judging by the size of the bump and of course the use of the word ‘imminent,’ we’re guessing we won’t be waiting too long to meet the new arrival.

The FC Barcelona star and his girlfriend are also making use of the pregnancy as an opportunity to raise money for charity, too. A website set up as Shakira & Gerard Pique’s World Baby Shower allows people to donate to Unicef to help “save children’s lives.” In a video, Shakira explained “As you all know, we will soon be welcoming our first child into the world, and to celebrate his birth, we’ve organized a virtual baby shower in association with UNICEF… In lieu of receiving gifts for our baby, as with a traditional shower, we would like to offer support for babies who live in conditions of extreme poverty throughout the world.” Now – just imagine if Kim Kardashian had had the same idea… 

Continue reading: Great News From Shakira: Pregnant And Raising Money For UNICEF

With all of the baby news this week, it seems only natural that Shakira would follow suit and give birth to her own long-awaited offspring.

After all, celebrities always do things in groups of three, right? Alas, that isn’t the case with the Loca singer, as it turns out that her boyfriend, Gerard Piqué’s recent Twitter announcement about the birth of their first baby boy was, in fact, a prank.

On the 28th, Pique tweeted the announcement in Spanish, which roughly translates to: “Our son is already born! We are very happy! Thank you all for your messages!”, but since the timing fits in with Día de los Santos Inocentes (the equivalent of April Fool's Day) across the Spanish-speaking world, the announcement came across as more than a little suspicious. It turns out that the fans were right to suspect the couple of foul play and, less than twelve hours later, Gerard came out with a follow up announcement, sharing that the baby’s name is Innocent and wishing his fans a happy Day of the Innocent. No baby then, how disappointing! Don’t toy with our feelings like that, Gerard!

Continue reading: Shakira Did Not Give Birth After All

Despite what some people may have read, particularly those who follow her husband on Twitter, Shakira has not yet given birth, following the 'announcement' on Twitter by her husband Gerard Pique that the two were parents at last.

The Barcelona football ace took to Twitter on Thursday (Dec 27) to write: "Ya ha nacido nuestro hijo! Estamos muy felices! Gracias a todos por vuestros mensajes!" This roughly translates to "We're having a baby! We're very happy, thanks to everyone for the messages." But alas, this was just a rouse on the public by the football star, who again hit up Twitter to say (in Spanish): "We have a name! He's called Inocencia! Happy Dia de los Inocentes to everyone!"

The prank was played by Pique for Dia de los Inocentes [Day of the Innocents], which is the Spanish equivalent to April's Fools, and he sure did have plenty of people fooled. A representative for Shakira confirmed that the announcement was a prank yesterday (Dec 28), telling Entertainment Tonight: "She hasn't had the baby yet."

Continue reading: No, Shakira Isn't A Mother. Yet.

The world stops for a few seconds whenever a celebrity or their spouse gives birth, so when Gerard Pique tweeted that his and Shakira's baby had been born, naturally thousands of well wishers expressed their own joy. However, a few hours later, he left another tweet which seemed to imply that the first was a joke.

"Ya ha nacido nuestro hijo! Estamos muy felices! Gracias a todos por vuestros mensajes!" He said, which translates as "Since our son was born! We are very happy! Thank you all for your messages!" However, what many fans failed to remember is that today is the Spanish version of April Fool's day, otherwise known and Day of the Fools/Innocents- a day to prank. His latter tweet made that more explicit when he said "It has a name! His name is Innocent! Happy April Fool's Day to all!" 

Footballers aren't necessarily always known for their sense of humour, but this is a pretty good one. Although his name really might be 'Innocent', which is still certainly better than 'Apple' or many other ridiculous names that people choose to give to their children. As the Daily Mail reports, Pique recently spoke on Spanish radio about their unborn son and the difficulty they're having with choosing a name, "Concerning the name, we just haven't been able to decide. There are ridiculous names, like Ulisito, that came out of the press's need to report nonsense." He said, "There was also Biel, which we like, but I don't think it will be that one either, or Gerard. We'll see."

Continue reading: Gerard Pique Jokes About His And Shakira's Baby's Birth, Or Did He?

Shakira’s hips may not lie, but her mouth might well have done, with the Colombian pop star’s ex-boyfriend Antonio de La Rua taking her to court to the tune of an eye-bogglingly large $100 million. History tells us that such ridiculous claims for money made by people much less famous than those they want it from, tend to be given fairly short shrift.

However, this one might have sort of basis on truth, given that de La Rua claims he managed her career and was responsible for her multi-million dollar success. There’s also the small matter that they dated for over a decade before splitting last year, but we’re sure his jilted heart and sudden realization that being out of her life means being out of business affairs hasn’t affected this suit whatsoever.

According to Us Weekly, the lawsuit claims that Shakira failed to uphold their business agreement and now owes him a large share of “past and future profits”. It also accuses the star of breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty. De la Rua has admitted that they never had anything signed in writing – which is probably going to be quite a big factor in whether he gets this 100 mill – but he more than upheld his end of an “oral agreement” which saw him supposedly offering his business acumen in return for a share in any money they made. We’re pretty sure we know which way this one’s going to go, but let’s wait and see…

Shakira's ex-boyfriend/manager, who alleges she defaulted on a deal to keep paying him his share of her business profits after they broke up, has begun legal proceedings against her, according to The New York Post.

Antonio De La Rua - who's relationship with Shakira started in the year 2000 - says he transformed the then struggling Shakira Mebarak Ripoll into a financial success story in his Manhattan Supreme Court suit. Under his management, she earned "tens of millions of dollars" touring, and scored a $300 million deal with Live Nation, the suit says. The suit continues to say that their business partnership continued until October 2011, when she had her lawyer fire him, the suit says. The pair, by this point, had already broken up in 2010. The couple opened up to E! News at the time of their break up, saying, "They have been the most wonderful years of our lives, and thanks to that love and the respect that we share for one another we have been an exceptional couple and partners. However, since August 2010, we made a mutual decision to take time apart from our romantic relationship. Throughout this time we have continued to work together hand in hand, have remained close and have kept the details absolutely private until now."

Shakira is currently dating soccer star Gerard Pique, who is thought of as one of FC Barcelona's most important player. The pair is currently expecting a baby. Shakira's people are yet to comment on this story. 

It’s all go for Shakira, right now! The 35 year-old Columbian singer has just announced on her website that she’s pregnant. And on Tuesday, it was revealed that she will be replacing Christina Aguilera for Season 4 of The Voice. It looks as though 2013 is going to be a pretty busy year for Shakira and her FC Barcelona soccer boyfriend Gerard Pique. Good news for Shakira, then but bad news for fans of the exotic pop star, if they were expecting to see her at the iHeart Radio Music Festival. Shakira has cancelled that particular appearance, after learning that she’s expecting her first child.

On her website, Shakira posted a message to her fans which read “As some of you may know, Gerard and I are very happy awaiting the arrival of our first baby! At the time we have decided to give priority to this unique moment in our lives and postpone all the promotional activities over the next few days. This means I will not be able to be a part of the iHeartRadio Music Festival, but I’m sure this weekend in Las Vegas will be spectacular and I will be closely following everything that happens there! 

I’d like to thank Clear Channel and my fans for their constant love and understanding. Big kiss!
And will see you very soon!
Shakira.”

The Shakira pregnancy rumours have been floating around for some time now. When she was spotted shopping for maternity clothing back in July, that was one of the bigger giveaways!

It seems that motherhood is just days away for Colombian pop star Shakira after she revealed that she's pulling out of an upcoming appearance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival and postponing all further work for the next few days in relation to the child that she and footballing other half Gerard Pique are expecting.

In a message on her personal website, the Hips Don't Lie star wrote "As some of you may know, Gerard and I are very happy awaiting the arrival of our first baby! At this time we have decided to give priority to this unique moment in our lives and postpone all the promotional activities planned over the next few days." Continuing, she added "This means I will not be able to be a part of the iHeartRadio Music Festival, but I'm sure this weekend in Las Vegas will be spectacular and I will be closely following everything that happens there! I'd like to thank Clear Channel and my fans for their constant love and understanding."

Shakira has been dating Pique for two years, although the two only went public last year, and the news of her imminent arrival caps a big month of announcements for the singer, who also confirmed recently that she will replacing Christina Aguilera as a coach on The Voice next season.

Shakira, pregnant? Well, we can’t say we weren’t expecting it. The Columbian pop star – now 35-years-old – has been in a settled relationship with Barcelona star Gerard Pique for some time, and it appears as though they’re ready to start a family.

The singer announced the news in both England and Spanish on her website Wednesday (September 19, 2012), telling fans, “As some of you may know, Gerard and I are very happy awaiting the arrival of our first baby! At the time we have decided to give priority to this unique moment in our lives and postpone all the promotional activities over the next few days,” before confirming that her scheduled appearances with Enrique Iglesias and Pitbull in Las Vegas would now be cancelled. Rumours of the singer’s pregnancy first began doing the rounds in June, when Fox News reported that Gerard and she had bought a plush mansion in Barcelona and the pair were spotted shopping for maternity clothes in Miami. The baby will be the first for both Shakira and Pique, who first began dating in April 2011. Shakira is still considered one of the biggest Latin artists in the world, while roving centre-back Gerard has been integral to his sides’ success in recent years.

It’s certainly shaping up to be a busy year for Shakira, who will be replacing Christina Aguilera on season four of ‘The Voice’ next spring. How will she fit it all in?

The Voice is already securing it’s mentoring line-up for the forthcoming spring season in 2013, bringing in Columbian superstar Shakira in a straight swap for Christina Aguilera.

The show, which demolished The X-Factor USA in its season premiere, has also brought in Usher for Cee Lo Green, according to Entertainment Weekly. The new additions are part of NBC’s plan to develop an “on-going tent of talent” for the show, though Aguilera is likely to return after promoting her new album. Executive producer Mark Burnett said of the new line-up, “Having award-winning artists as coaches means they need to be able to tour…Whether in the red chair or on tour, our coaches have their chairs for life. This is exactly why, after three seasons, we needed to allow them to rotate out so they can get on the road amongst their fans. Meanwhile, we’re incredibly excited to have singular artists like Usher and Shakira joining the fold.” It’s probably a wise move by show bosses, who will be all too aware of the sinking ratings of The X Factor and American Idol, both of which have failed to come up with original concepts in recent years and relied too heavily on all-star judging names.

Country singer Blake Shelton and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine will continue on the spring season of The Voice.

We're only one week into the third season NBC's The Voice, but the network is already announcing changes and they involve the departure of Christina Aguilera, as well as fellow original judge Cee-Lo Green. This season will be the last that's seen of the pair, as there is a new Aguilera album, Lotus to promote and tour, whilst Green is taking time off to work on new music and a scripted comedy about his life.

In their place? None other than Colombian singing sensation Shakira and general R'n'B superstar Usher. Not bad, as replacements go. "We are thrilled to welcome Usher and Shakira to The Voice, " Robert Greenblatt, the chairman of NBC Entertainment, said in a statement reported by The Clicker. "The addition of these popular iconic artists continues the tradition established by Christina, Cee Lo, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton. Doing two back-to-back cycles of this show requires a tremendous amount of time, and we are happy to accommodate the commitments made by Christina and Cee Lo."

Those disappointed at the news need not fear, though. Both have indicated that they will be returning to the show once they've finished with their other projects. "By pursuing my first passion of music during the break, I am also able to come back and offer even more to my team on 'The Voice' in the future," Aguilera said in a statement, whilst Green commented "Thank you, NBC, for supporting my decision to take this season four hiatus! I will return for season five and will be watching season four."

If you thought The Voice would rest on its laurels after last season’s huge success, then you thought very, very wrong. Not content with demolishing The X-Factor USA in its season premiere, show bosses have already begun tweaking the judging line-up for the forthcoming spring season.

Christina Aguilera – perhaps the most high profile of the four mentors – is being replaced by Colombian pop princess Shakira, while Cee-Lo Green will make way for R&B star Usher, according to Entertainment Weekly. The new additions are part of NBC’s plan to develop an “on-going tent of talent” for the show, though fans of Christina and Cee-Lo shouldn’t worry too much: they haven’t been sacked. The former is releasing a new album and will go on tour, while Green is developing new music and working on a scripted comedy series based on his life – both are likely to return for a later season. Having a rotational judging line-up is an interesting concept, and executive producer Mark Burnett firmly believes that it’s the way forward, saying, “Having award-winning artists as coaches means they need to be able to tour…Whether in the red chair or on tour, our coaches have their chairs for life. This is exactly why, after three seasons, we needed to allow them to rotate out so they can get on the road amongst their fans. Meanwhile, we’re incredibly excited to have singular artists like Usher and Shakira joining the fold.”

Country singer Blake Shelton and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine will continue on the spring season of The Voice – though it’s unclear whether this is through lack of work, or just because they love spinning their mechanical chairs around.