“I always pictured Cardi on this song,” the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer said of their new tune.
Cardi B manifested one day working with Shakira, and the chance to collaborate with the Colombian icon came earlier this year after meeting at Paris Fashion Week. “Punteria” is set to arrive on Friday (March 22) as part of Shakira’s Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran album.
Cardi and the Queen of Latin Music sat down to interview each other while taking a break on set for the collab’s music video, where they gushed about being fans of one another and detailed how “Punteria” came about.
“When I first met Shakira, it was in Paris at the Fendi show, and I was very, very nervous,” Cardi B admitted. “I was nervous because I wanted to get next to her, but I was like, ‘I’m not gonna get next to her until they call me.’ I manifested it, but I didn’t know when it was coming.”
Shakira returned the favor and waxed poetic about Cardi B’s work ethic while championing 2021’s Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit “Up” as her favorite track from the Bronx bombshell. “‘Up,’ I love that song. Such a good writer — she’s such a pro and an amazing lyricist and performer,” she said.
The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer explained how she’s “always wanted to” work with Cardi, and the timing was finally right for “Punteria.”
“I wanted to do something with Cardi. We were always discussing internally if it was a good idea to put someone on this song. I always pictured Cardi on this song. I reached out, and here we are,” she added. “It’s been so fun to work with you. It’s so easy, honestly. She’s like, ‘I’ll do everything.’ I’m like, ‘Are you ready to work long hours? Because I work long hours.’ She’s like, ‘I’ll be there from 6 to 6 a.m.’”
Cardi was ecstatic to get the call from Shakira, which she dubbed a “dream.”
“I knew it. I knew this day would come. It came. God is good, Jesus,” Cardi B gushed. “I don’t care if she wants me to meow — I’m doing it. I cannot wait. Seriously, that is my dream.”
“I always look at your videos,” she added, “and it’s so crazy doing a video with you because all of your videos, you could just tell you take your time from the angle, to the dancing, to the things that pop.”
Shak’s new album follows the Colombian hitmaker’s 2017 set El Dorado, which spent five weeks at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Latin Albums chart, and included hit songs such as “Chantaje” with Maluma, “La Bicicleta” with Carlos Vives and the Prince Royce-assisted “Deja vu.
Watch the full interview between Cardi and Shakira below. “Punteria” arrives on Friday (March 22).
