Ojos Así
Encyclopedia
"Ojos Así" is a song in Spanish
by Colombia
n singer Shakira
, and was released as the fourth single from her album ¿Dónde Están los Ladrones?
on July 23, 1999. Today, "Ojos Así" is one of Shakira's most successful songs of her career. The song reached the top spot in countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, and even Romania, and fared well within the US Billboard charts
, Hot Latin Song, and Latin Pop Airplay
. The music video for "Ojos Así" features a red-haired Shakira with a more rock image, aside from a silver belly dancing hip scarf. Shakira's 2001 English language debut album, Laundry Service
, features an English version of the song titled "Eyes Like Yours", which is believed to have been recorded around the same time as "Ojos Así" when Shakira was considering translating her Spanish material. Shakira has performed "Ojos Así" in each of her world tours, most recently in her The Sun Comes Out World Tour
.
chants (contrary to popular belief, these were not written and sung by famous Egyptian singer Amr Diab
). It is based in the Phrygian dominant scale
to help lend to the song's famous Arabian feel. Shakira herself sings in Arabic in the album version, single version, and various remixes of the song.
"Ojos Así" became extremely popular in Latin American countries and has become Shakira's biggest hit in Spanish, since "Estoy Aquí
". It was also one of Shakira's smash hits in Romania.
in 1999. This new version of the song, the finale of the concert, was much quieter than the original version and its remixes, and it included an extended dance break with drums, eliminating Shakira singing in Arabic at the same time. Since then, most performances of the song have been similar, though for the Tour of the Mongoose
(2002–2003) and Oral Fixation Tour
's (2006–2007) versions, a violin has been played over the drums during the dancing break.
The Tour of the Mongoose's pre-song introduction (which was also the introduction to the concert itself, as "Ojos Así" was the opening number), was fast instrumental rock that would quiet down to a violin, which would lead into "Ojos Así" itself after an immense instrumental build-up. Shakira would wear tight black leather pants, a black belly dancing scarf, and a black bra.
The Oral Fixation Tour's version (an encore after the main setlist) also had a pre-song intro, using popular Arabian tune "Enta Omri" by famous Egyptian singer Om Kalthoum. Shakira danced to "Enta Omri" with a purple veil (this intro is thus known as the "Veil Dance"). "Enta Omri" would then become Ojos Asi with a bang as Shakira would throw the veil up into the air and spin off-stage as "Ojos Así"'s first intro played. Shakira would wear purple pants, a golden/purple hip scarf, and a silver or rainbow bra.
Shakira's The Sun Comes Out World Tour
features a dramatically reworked version of the song. Although the structure is quite similar to the song's live versions since MTV Unplugged, the instrumentation is quite different. After a lengthy and elegant solo by violinist Una Palliser
, the song would begin, the first main intro quite similar to previous tours. But as the beat kicked in, the drums would be much heavier, and as the song progressed, the instrumentation would become much more electronic. Gone were the Oud
s and Middle Eastern drums, and half way through the tour, the entire second verse and chorus of the song were removed. The tour's version also featured a new dance break, using excerpts from the piece "Move" by Middle Eastern DJ Said Mrad. Finally, Shakira would sing the chorus twice at the end of the song, instead of just once. Before its removal, the tour's signature prop, a giant head behind the stage, would feature mystical eyes and patterns during the song. Shakira would wear a black skirt, an animal-print skirt over that, a silver belly dancing scarf, and a skin-colored bra.
Notable performances of "Ojos Así" include Shakira's performance of the song at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2000
, in which she performed a slightly shortened, yet showstopping, rendition similar to the MTV Unplugged version. Also to be noted is the version at the Rock in Rio
music festival in 2008, which featured a reworked, more Middle Eastern instrumentation, and a featured Middle Eastern vocalist (a similar version was also performed at a New Year's Eve
celebration in Abu Dhabi
later that year). At the two 2010 Rock in Rio
festivals in Lisbon
and Madrid
, and also at the legendary Glastonbury Festival
(also in 2010), the song opened the concerts with a new Middle Eastern intro. At Glastonbury, the song was shortened similar to how it would eventually be during The Sun Comes Out World Tour
.
Shakira's 2001 English language
debut album, Laundry Service
, features an English version of the song titled "Eyes Like Yours", which is believed to have been recorded around the same time as "Ojos Así" when Shakira was considering translating her Spanish material. "Eyes Like Yours" contains no differences from "Ojos Así" besides each song's respective language (both still feature the Arabic). The rough, yet literal (in most places) translation of Ojos Así was written by Shakira and Gloria Estefan
, and was most likely recorded as far back as in 1998. "Eyes Like Yours" has an unreleased music video that was filmed around the same time as "Ojos Así"'s (as Shakira looks the same in both videos). A clip of this unseen video was released on a promotional CD-ROM for "Laundry Service
", only a minute in length, and containing very few shots of Shakira singing in English
"Ojos Así" is the unofficial song of SheiKra
, a Dive Machine roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
eye, which shoots out sparks and catches fire toward the end of the video. There are also clips of Shakira belly dancing in front of a dark purple background, standing in water. In these clips, there are snakes painted down her arms and red lines painted on her head. The video uses the "Single Mix" version of the song (though versions of the video with the album mix also exist). Featured instruments in the video include an Arabic string instrument with a bowl under the head, and a Danelectro
Longhorn electric bass guitar. Shakira's long-time musical partner and band manager Tim Mitchell
can be seen playing guitar in the video. The video won the International Viewer's Choice Award (North) at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards
, while it was also nominated for the same award in the South category.
with "Ojos Así" in 2000.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
by Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n singer Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
, and was released as the fourth single from her album ¿Dónde Están los Ladrones?
¿Dónde están los ladrones?
-Personnel:* Shakira - Producer, Songwriter, vocals, harmonica* Emilio Estefan Jr. - Executive producer* Javier Garza - Producer, engineer, mixer, programmer* Luis Fernando Ochoa - Producer, songwriter, guitar, bass guitar...
on July 23, 1999. Today, "Ojos Así" is one of Shakira's most successful songs of her career. The song reached the top spot in countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, and even Romania, and fared well within the US Billboard charts
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
, Hot Latin Song, and Latin Pop Airplay
Latin Pop Airplay
Latin Pop Airplay is a record chart published on Billboard magazine. It features Latin music information from pop music usually in Spanish. It was established by the magazine on October 8, 1994 with Mañana by Cristian Castro being the first song to reach number-one...
. The music video for "Ojos Así" features a red-haired Shakira with a more rock image, aside from a silver belly dancing hip scarf. Shakira's 2001 English language debut album, Laundry Service
Laundry Service
Some critics criticized the effectiveness of Shakira's lyrics, claiming that her English skills were too weak for her to write in that language, but nearly all agreed on her unique poetic imagery...
, features an English version of the song titled "Eyes Like Yours", which is believed to have been recorded around the same time as "Ojos Así" when Shakira was considering translating her Spanish material. Shakira has performed "Ojos Así" in each of her world tours, most recently in her The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour is the fifth concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter, Shakira. The tour is in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums, She Wolf and Sale El Sol. The tour will reach the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa...
.
Song information
"Ojos Así" contains interludes of ArabicArabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
chants (contrary to popular belief, these were not written and sung by famous Egyptian singer Amr Diab
Amr Diab
Amr Abdol-Basset Abdol-Azeez Diab is an Egyptian singer and composer of geel music; the contemporary face of Egyptian el-geel pop music, according to World Music. Diab is the best-selling Arab recording artist of all time, according to Let's Go Egypt...
). It is based in the Phrygian dominant scale
Phrygian dominant scale
In music, the altered Phrygian scale or Freygish scale , featuring an unusual key signature and a distinctive augmented second interval, is the fifth mode of the harmonic minor scale, the fifth being the dominant...
to help lend to the song's famous Arabian feel. Shakira herself sings in Arabic in the album version, single version, and various remixes of the song.
"Ojos Así" became extremely popular in Latin American countries and has become Shakira's biggest hit in Spanish, since "Estoy Aquí
Estoy Aquí
"Estoy Aquí" is a song written by Shakira and Luis F. Ochoa, released as the second single from her 1996 breakthrough album Pies Descalzos. It was her first successful worldwide single...
". It was also one of Shakira's smash hits in Romania.
Live performances
Shakira completely re-worked the song for her MTV UnpluggedMTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
in 1999. This new version of the song, the finale of the concert, was much quieter than the original version and its remixes, and it included an extended dance break with drums, eliminating Shakira singing in Arabic at the same time. Since then, most performances of the song have been similar, though for the Tour of the Mongoose
Tour of the Mongoose
-Tour Dates:-Broadcast and recordings:The tour was shot in Rotterdam, The Netherlands on April 22, 2003.The tour was chronicled on Live & off the Record. The disc included the concert along with a documentary showing the performer preparing for the show, her song writing process and her ideas about...
(2002–2003) and Oral Fixation Tour
Oral Fixation Tour
Oral Fixation Tour is the concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter, Shakira, in support of her fourth and fifth studio albums, Fijación Oral Vol. 1 and Oral Fixation Vol. 2...
's (2006–2007) versions, a violin has been played over the drums during the dancing break.
The Tour of the Mongoose's pre-song introduction (which was also the introduction to the concert itself, as "Ojos Así" was the opening number), was fast instrumental rock that would quiet down to a violin, which would lead into "Ojos Así" itself after an immense instrumental build-up. Shakira would wear tight black leather pants, a black belly dancing scarf, and a black bra.
The Oral Fixation Tour's version (an encore after the main setlist) also had a pre-song intro, using popular Arabian tune "Enta Omri" by famous Egyptian singer Om Kalthoum. Shakira danced to "Enta Omri" with a purple veil (this intro is thus known as the "Veil Dance"). "Enta Omri" would then become Ojos Asi with a bang as Shakira would throw the veil up into the air and spin off-stage as "Ojos Así"'s first intro played. Shakira would wear purple pants, a golden/purple hip scarf, and a silver or rainbow bra.
Shakira's The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour is the fifth concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter, Shakira. The tour is in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums, She Wolf and Sale El Sol. The tour will reach the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa...
features a dramatically reworked version of the song. Although the structure is quite similar to the song's live versions since MTV Unplugged, the instrumentation is quite different. After a lengthy and elegant solo by violinist Una Palliser
Una Palliser
Úna Palliser is an Irish born, London based violinist, violist, singer and multi-instrumentalist who as well as being classically trained, is recognised for her proficiency in many musical genres, including rock, balkan, pop, and Irish folk...
, the song would begin, the first main intro quite similar to previous tours. But as the beat kicked in, the drums would be much heavier, and as the song progressed, the instrumentation would become much more electronic. Gone were the Oud
Oud
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in North African and Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths...
s and Middle Eastern drums, and half way through the tour, the entire second verse and chorus of the song were removed. The tour's version also featured a new dance break, using excerpts from the piece "Move" by Middle Eastern DJ Said Mrad. Finally, Shakira would sing the chorus twice at the end of the song, instead of just once. Before its removal, the tour's signature prop, a giant head behind the stage, would feature mystical eyes and patterns during the song. Shakira would wear a black skirt, an animal-print skirt over that, a silver belly dancing scarf, and a skin-colored bra.
Notable performances of "Ojos Así" include Shakira's performance of the song at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2000
Latin Grammy Awards of 2000
The "1st Annual Latin Grammy Awards" were held in Los Angeles at the Staples Center on Friday, September 13, 2000. The big winners were Luis Miguel, Santana and Maná with 3 awards; Juan Luis Guerra, Shakira, Fito Páez and Emilio Estefan Jr. received 2 awards each.Winners were chosen by voting...
, in which she performed a slightly shortened, yet showstopping, rendition similar to the MTV Unplugged version. Also to be noted is the version at the Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in three cities: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Lisbon in Portugal and Madrid in Spain.Four incarnations of the festival were in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, 2001 and 2011, four in Lisbon, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, and two in Madrid in 2008 and 2010....
music festival in 2008, which featured a reworked, more Middle Eastern instrumentation, and a featured Middle Eastern vocalist (a similar version was also performed at a New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
celebration in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi , literally Father of Gazelle, is the capital and the second largest city of the United Arab Emirates in terms of population and the largest of the seven member emirates of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western...
later that year). At the two 2010 Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in three cities: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Lisbon in Portugal and Madrid in Spain.Four incarnations of the festival were in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, 2001 and 2011, four in Lisbon, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, and two in Madrid in 2008 and 2010....
festivals in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
and Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, and also at the legendary Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
(also in 2010), the song opened the concerts with a new Middle Eastern intro. At Glastonbury, the song was shortened similar to how it would eventually be during The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour is the fifth concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter, Shakira. The tour is in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums, She Wolf and Sale El Sol. The tour will reach the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa...
.
Alternative versions
Ojos Así's "Single Version", used for a version of the song's music video and promotional singles, contains a somewhat different introduction from the album version, replacing the three notes of accordion with one note on the violin in the song's introduction. The Single Version also has a slightly altered, more electronic arrangement. There are several other official remixes of the song, including the lengthy "Thunder Mix" and extra-Arabian "Mirage Mix". Other official remixes include the popular Meme remixes and the Desert Dub. Various other unofficial remixes also exist.Shakira's 2001 English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
debut album, Laundry Service
Laundry Service
Some critics criticized the effectiveness of Shakira's lyrics, claiming that her English skills were too weak for her to write in that language, but nearly all agreed on her unique poetic imagery...
, features an English version of the song titled "Eyes Like Yours", which is believed to have been recorded around the same time as "Ojos Así" when Shakira was considering translating her Spanish material. "Eyes Like Yours" contains no differences from "Ojos Así" besides each song's respective language (both still feature the Arabic). The rough, yet literal (in most places) translation of Ojos Así was written by Shakira and Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan
Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
, and was most likely recorded as far back as in 1998. "Eyes Like Yours" has an unreleased music video that was filmed around the same time as "Ojos Así"'s (as Shakira looks the same in both videos). A clip of this unseen video was released on a promotional CD-ROM for "Laundry Service
Laundry Service
Some critics criticized the effectiveness of Shakira's lyrics, claiming that her English skills were too weak for her to write in that language, but nearly all agreed on her unique poetic imagery...
", only a minute in length, and containing very few shots of Shakira singing in English
"Ojos Así" is the unofficial song of SheiKra
SheiKra
SheiKra is a Bolliger and Mabillard diving machine roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. It is situated in the Stanleyville section of the park. SheiKra was the first dive machine roller coaster in North America. It is tied with Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia as the second tallest roller...
, a Dive Machine roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
Music video
The music video for "Ojos Así" features Shakira performing the song for a crowd. In the background is a giant neonNeon
Neon is the chemical element that has the symbol Ne and an atomic number of 10. Although a very common element in the universe, it is rare on Earth. A colorless, inert noble gas under standard conditions, neon gives a distinct reddish-orange glow when used in either low-voltage neon glow lamps or...
eye, which shoots out sparks and catches fire toward the end of the video. There are also clips of Shakira belly dancing in front of a dark purple background, standing in water. In these clips, there are snakes painted down her arms and red lines painted on her head. The video uses the "Single Mix" version of the song (though versions of the video with the album mix also exist). Featured instruments in the video include an Arabic string instrument with a bowl under the head, and a Danelectro
Danelectro
Danelectro is an American manufacturer of musical instruments and accessories, specializing in rock instruments such as guitars, bass guitars, amplifiers and effects units.-History:...
Longhorn electric bass guitar. Shakira's long-time musical partner and band manager Tim Mitchell
Tim Mitchell
Tim Mitchell is a Grammy winning music record producer, songwriter, and guitarist from Detroit. He has helped create and produce multi platinum hits to a broad range of artists, musical styles...
can be seen playing guitar in the video. The video won the International Viewer's Choice Award (North) at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards
2000 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2000 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 7, 2000, honoring the best music videos from June 12, 1999, to June 9, 2000. The show was hosted by Marlon and Shawn Wayans at Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
, while it was also nominated for the same award in the South category.
Awards
Shakira won a Latin Grammy Award in the category of Best Female Pop Vocal PerformanceLatin Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album, Female
The Latin Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented annually at the Latin Grammy Awards, a ceremony that recognizes excellence and creates a wider awareness of cultural diversity and contributions of Latin recording artists, in the United States and internationally...
with "Ojos Así" in 2000.
Charts
| Chart (1999–2000) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
| Romania (UPFR Romanian Top 100 The Romanian Top 100 is the national airplay-based singles chart of Romania. It is weekly and it started running in 1996. It is recognized as an official chart by the European division of Billboard, Music & Media.... ) |
1 |