PETALING JAYA, Feb 3 — Colombian superstar Shakira turned into a viral internet meme after she playfully showed off a unique vocal move during her Super Bowl halftime performance.
Mid-way through her dazzling performance, the Hips Don’t Lie singer looked directly at the camera and wagged her tongue while letting out a high-pitched vocal trill.
It didn’t take long for Twitter users to come up with creative and humourous captions to commemorate the golden moment.
Y’all afraid to moan while shakira did this during the Super Bowl #HalftimeShow pic.twitter.com/ug1tyXLVuH
— rach (@rach_revello) February 3, 2020
When courage the cowardly dawg tryna explain what’s going on pic.twitter.com/HnJZbI9JHk
— #LudaFree (@ThatsLudaChriss) February 3, 2020
Thanks to Shakira for my new wake up alarm #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/VSOtqmPugD
— T̷R̷O̷Y̷ ̷H̷U̷G̷H̷E̷S̷ (@TommySledge) February 3, 2020
Some Twitter users later explained that the move is known in the Middle East as “zaghroota”, a vocal expression used to convey joy during a celebration such as a wedding or in this case, performing to a crowd of 65,000 people at the Super Bowl.
Noting that #Shakira is half Lebanese, I’d like to highlight that this high pitched toungue thrill is called a “Zalghouta”, a traditional Lebanese loud expression used to celebrate joyful events like getting a degree, welcoming a guest, or performing at the #SuperBowl 😂🏈 pic.twitter.com/t3rLtORcI5
— Farah Aridi (@faraharidi19) February 3, 2020
Lmao it's called zahgroota which is a type of sound Arabs make by moving the tongue left and right and breathing out. Shakira is half Lebanese 🇱🇧 from her father's side and half Colombian 🇨🇴 from her mother's side. Her name, Shakira (Arabic: شاكرة), is Arabic for "grateful". https://t.co/jVVoc7hTmj
— Khalid Aun ㊙️ (@khalid_aun) February 3, 2020
Shakira paid tribute to her mixed Colombian-Lebanese heritage during her set, which saw her belly dancing to her Spanish hit single Chantaje while dishing out some of her best-known bangers like She-Wolf, Empire, and Waka Waka (This Time for Africa).
She was joined by pop diva Jennifer Lopez during the show, which has since been hailed as a sparkling display of Latin pride and a celebration of girl power.
The show also drew attention to the political situation at the US-Mexico border when children in lit-up cages appeared for Let’s Get Loud, symbolising the thousands of kids torn away from their parents due to the family separation policy enacted by President Donald Trump’s administration in 2018.