Shakira Played a Surprise Pop-Up Show at The Wynwood Yard Last Night

You already knew her hips don't lie, but did you know she can keep a secret?

Shakira surprised Miami fans with a surprise, two-song pop-up set at The Wynwood Yard last night in celebration of the release of her new album El Dorado, which dropped yesterday.

Prism Creative Group posted the Facebook and Instagram announcement shortly before 8 p.m. Friday night, igniting a mad dash to beat the crowd before the Yard hit capacity.

Pola Bunster, Prism's Director of Storytelling, says it all came together at the last minute. Shakira was in town for El Dorado's official album release party at The Temple House. "Her team reached out to us because she wanted to do a pop-up show in an open-aired space for free and open to the public, and we immediately thought [of] the Wynwood Yard."

By 10 p.m. the turf surrounding the stage was packed tight with sweaty bodies sitting cross-legged and biding their time on their phones on a particularly humid early-summer Miami night.

And there was plenty of time to kill. Live reggae played while the crowd waited patiently. Some signs of restlessness hit around 11 p.m., though there were few. By 12:30 p.m. some in the crowd whooped and hollered for the Colombian Queen to emerge. Lighting changes on stage sent fans scrambling for better views. Some stood on chairs and stools; while others overturned trash cans and held on for a glimpse of their idol.

Finally, just before 1 a.m., a black SUV pulled up and the petite pop goddess walked up to the yard, flanked by bodyguards and eager fans. She looked like any other singer-songwriter you might catch at the Yard on a weekday night; hippie overcoat, denim shorts, and her wild mane slightly tamed in a messy up-do. Her demeanor matched her down to earth and casual style. She ran around the stage shaking hands before beginning her short set.

She played "Toneladas," a song she explained was her son Milan's favorite on the record, and detailed the process of composing the song. It ran though iterations as a reggae, rock, and pop song before Shakira settled on an understated arrangement with only piano accompaniment.

She said she only came to play one song, but before she left the stage she graced fans with her current hit, "Me Enamoré," the lead track off El Dorado. The performance was plagued by technical issues; her live vocals were drowned out by the backing track and the mic crackled and popped. Neither Shakira nor the crowd seemed to mind, though, as she bounced around the stage and shared the mic with fans in the audience.
Then, just as quickly as she'd walked up, she was gone, and the crowd made a frenzied exodus out of the Yard to follow her out.

Was the four hour wait worth it for two songs? Judging from the crowd's post-show glow, the answer was a resounding, "yes."