Shakira has admitted making her break-up album was "hard"

She has now told Marie Claire about how she spilled her emotions about the break-up into her record 'Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran' ('Women No Longer Cry'), which was released in March: "I'm not gonna lie to you, it's been hard.

"I was trying to either be reborn or die in the process. Each one of the 16 songs describes a moment in time when I was coping with or elaborating on intense emotion. I was in flight or fight mode."

Shakira added she is now on a mission to "empower others to find their own strength" through her music.

She said: "When my new work comes out fresh from the oven, it doesn't belong to me anymore, it belongs to the people who make it part of the soundtrack of their lives or celebrate their own victories through the songs."

Shakira's new album was her first in seven years and took two to make.

The front cover features the singer crying tears that transform into diamonds - an image she says symbolises turning her pain into something "healing".

She added: "(It was about creating) something positive from the intense emotions. It was like healing.

"I was able to transform the pain and anger I felt into creativity, productivity and resilience."

Shakira also admitted about her ongoing heartbreak: "Deep down, I always thought having a husband was the most important thing in my life.

"I was in search for that man like my dad, who I'd have kids with and then make plans to be with forever - like my parents, who are still so in love. I made many sacrifices for this.

"I was loyal. But sometimes things don't go as planned. You move on."