14 DAY TRIAL // Shakira may be experiencing some trouble with her third English studio album, as its release date has just been pushed back by more than one month. Although no mention of this is made anywhere in the media, word in the industry has it the singer is trying to vamp up the record following the lukewarm welcome in the US charts of the “She Wolf” singer. One thing is certain, though: “She Wolf” the album drops on November 17, as All Headline News informs.
“It’ll be a while before the ‘She Wolf’ album is unleashed. It’s been pushed back over a month to November 17th. The album was originally scheduled to be released on October 13th. Shakira, who recently performed the title track on America’s Got Talent, is prepping the release of the album’s second single. The Neptunes-produced ‘Did it Again’ is slated as the follow-up to ‘She Wolf.’ The album features four Neptunes productions, plus a re-teaming with ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ hitmaker and collaborator Wyclef Jean, who appears on the track ‘Spy.’ ‘She Wolf’ producer John Hill also helms two other album cuts, ‘Men in This Town’ and ‘Mon Amour.’” AHN says of the delay.
However, the announcement can’t put an end to ongoing rumors that Shakira might have lost something of her appeal with the public, since it’s rare for her to put out a single that doesn’t crack the Hot 100 top 10, such as it was the case with “She Wolf.” Gossip blogger Perez Hilton, for instance, sees in the delay and the America’s Got Talent performance, where Shakira lip-synched, a clear sign that perhaps fans are not as eager as they once were to get a new album from the artist.
With all this, people from Shakira’s camp insist the delay has nothing to do with the poor reception her single has had in the US charts. “Sources tell us that, ‘The album is being moved back a few weeks in order for her to finish up some amazing new tracks she’s been putting the finishing touches on.’ The label and Shakira are aware that songs have leaked ‘So she wanted to add these amazing ones shes’ been working on. They are HOT!’” Perez writes.
Still, if early reviews are any indication, Shakira has nothing to worry about the album as it is. Digital Spy’s The Sound, for one, attended a listening session of “She Wolf” and gave it a solid, four-star rating out of five, saying the album was pretty impressive, even if a bit confusing, as Shakira oscillated from sound to sound, and never stopped to work more on a specific genre.