“I’ve Always Loved Burna Boy. I Was Obsessed With Getting Him on the Track, So I Called Him” - Shakira Reveals Why She Chose Burna Boy for World Cup Song ‘Dai Dai’

Global music superstar Shakira has revealed that Nigerian Afrobeats star Burna Boy was her first choice for her 2026 FIFA World Cup anthem, Dai Dai, explaining that she had long admired the singer and was determined to have him on the track.

The Colombian pop icon opened up about how the collaboration came together, revealing that she personally reached out to Burna Boy because she had always wanted to work with him.

“I’ve always loved Burna, I was obsessed with getting him on the track, so I called him,” she reportedly said.

Shakira’s decision to feature Burna Boy was also influenced by the sound she wanted to create for the song. She imagined a song that would mix different styles of music from Afrobeats to Caribbean sounds and the Nigerian singer was a natural choice for the collaboration.

The two eventually worked together on Dai Dai, which dropped as the official song for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The song blended Shakira's global pop sound with Burna Boy's Afrobeats style in a collaboration intended to evoke the international spirit of football. 

The collaboration was another big World Cup moment for Shakira, who previously released the iconic Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) for the 2010 tournament. Her newest World Cup song with Burna Boy further solidified her link to football’s biggest global event.

Shakira’s revelation has since generated excitement among Nigerian music fans, with many celebrating the fact that one of the world’s biggest pop stars specifically sought out Burna Boy for such a significant global project. The partnership proved to be a major moment for Afrobeats as Burna Boy joined Shakira for the performance of Dai Dai during the historic first-ever FIFA World Cup final halftime show.  

For Burna Boy, the collaboration represents yet another milestone in his journey from Lagos to the global stage.