I would sing anywhere they would invite me. That's how I made my first pesos. I used to sing at beauty pageants, local events of every sort.
My dad is a writer, and to see him always in front of a typewriter gave me the inspiration to write. He was my idol, my hero. I wanted to be just like him.
With pregnancy and nursing, the hormones mean your skin tends to be more sensitive to the light, so it's very important to use sun block every day.
The thing is, my dad's always been more of a bookworm; he was interested in more intellectual pursuits, but nobody can escape the passion that football stirs.
I've written many love songs for Gerard. But it's never enough. I feel that he deserves a million love songs written for him.
I was five years old; I got addicted to being on stage. I felt like it was the most wonderful place on Earth, performing in front of an audience, who in this case were a bunch of classmates, kids my age.
I do take advantage of, you know, feeling sensual and feeling sexy. And I think that is tremendously empowering and is not diminishing in any way. I fell that any woman who is in control, who is in touch with her femininity and sensuality, is a woman that is empowered.
Brazil is a country I hold very dearly. I've got followers there who I've been interacting with for years, as well as fellow artists like Ivete Sangalo, and it also has huge figures like Pele. I'd love to go to that World Cup - I'm not sure in what capacity, but I'll definitely be there. I know that nobody wants to miss it, least of all me.
Providing all Latin-American children with the education and early childhood development that they need is in the best interest of all, so it has to be a priority for all of us, not only the government and civil society, but also the business sector.
I thank God that I'm a product of my parents. That they infected me with their intelligence and energy for life, with their thirst for knowledge and their love. I'm grateful that I know where I come from.
I know that youngsters want to find something in common with each other and feel closer to each other ideologically through bridges such as the Internet.
It's incredibly liberating to spend an hour talking to someone and not caring about what you sound like. It's about understanding myself. Sometimes I'll speak to my therapist for an hour a day. It's become part of my routine.
Because of you, I'm running out of reasons to cry.
You're a song written by the hands of God.
Colombia is not how people think it is. We used to eat fish every Sunday at the beach. In the town where I grew up, people did not tell lies.
I admire Madonna because she always did whatever she felt like doing. She went through some controversial periods when people rejected her, but she kept on reinventing herself.
I came to understand that I'm never going to be the perfect mother, but I'm going to do the best I can. Same goes for everything in my life.
I pefer an ugly truth to a pretty lie. If someone is telling me the truth that is when I will give my heart.
I'm more afraid of marriage than death.
When you feel complete, you don't need to get married, and you don't think about it.
For a while, I could only wear sweat pants because I was that intermediate size that you're not a small, you're not a large.
It doesn't bother me to talk about my private life, it doesn't bother me to talk about anything. My life is like a glass of water, transparent.
You can't achieve anything in life without a small amount of sacrifice.
What happens is once you start to understand football, you realise that it's not just about the physical side of the game and chasing after a ball. It's a strategic sport which requires a lot of intelligence. It's a very mental game.
I now talk to different cultures, and I hope that I can bridge those gaps and differences between us. It's an adventure, a dream... I feel like I'm on an anthropological mission.
In Colombia, education is sometimes considered a luxury, not a human right. And it's not a priority in the agendas of many leaders.
We need to provide higher quality and innovative early childhood development programs all throughout Latin America.
Becoming a mom forced me to re-prioritize and make room for the things that are most important, while recognizing that there are things I can let go of, and the world won't crumble around me.
I actually support President Obama's initiatives on early childhood. He has appointed me as a commissioner to consult his administration on educational excellence for Hispanics in the U.S. We try to find ways to improve the education system for Hispanics in America, to achieve excellence.
I consider myself a laborer, building my career brick over brick under the sun.
I did not want to spend the rest of my life not being able to ride in a nice car.
I never made it to the school choir because the music teacher didn't like my voice. I was pretty sad. But he was probably right; I did have a voice a bit like a goat, but my dad told me to never give up and to keep going, and it's paid off.
From a psychoanalytical point of view, we start discovering the world through our mouths in the very first stage of our lives, when we're just born.
I think, that if you can prove the existence of God, it can only be proven through love.
Sensual is everything that refers to the delight of the senses. And that's what artists do, is stimulate the senses in any possible way.
I just think that it's very helpful to have a map of your psyche, because when you have a map, you know where to go.
Both the IDB and Fundacion ALAS believe that the future of prosperity and equality that we hope for has to start today with higher investment and higher quality in Early Childhood Development programs throughout the region.
I've shaken hands with every radio station, from Honduras to Ryan Seacrest's.
I always knew that I was tremendously creative. I recited love poems, I wrote stories and I got excellent grades in every subject, except for maths.
My man, Gerard, prefers meat over bone. That takes the pressure off. I already have a lot to worry about.
I like fragrances that have some sweetness to them. All three I have developed have that as a common element.
The ALAS Foundation was born as a consequence and a continuation of what we are doing with Pies Descalzos. I started the Pies Descalzos foundation in Colombia when I was 18, and since then, I have been very involved in the crusade for education.
Seeing me in love is a constant state: there are no questions, as the answer is simply there.
A good fragrance should have a certain personality that makes people identify the scent with you.
We've built six schools in Colombia and do work in South Africa and Haiti. We teach 5,000 students.
I adore my dad. He's a 78-year-old man and my inspiration.
I feel like there is a part of me that represents a minority in the U.S., a minority around the world. People who struggle, people who want to succeed with drive and ambition.
I have no idea where I want to go musically, but I'm fine that way. I don't need to be faithful to any concept, you know.
