Depara is a poetic verb that means 'to hold in store' or 'to bring', almost exclusively used when talking about the future, fate, or destiny.
In the song, Shakira sings "Nadie adivina que depara el destino" (No one can guess what destiny has in store). It's a more elegant and literary alternative to a common verb like traer (to bring), making it a fantastic word to add to your vocabulary for more sophisticated conversations about life's great mysteries.
Colombian superstar Shakira slows things down in "Nada" to talk about a very real problem: having success, money, and recognition, but feeling totally empty without the person you love. She wanders through cold, poetic scenery like walking over a sea of dry leaves while angels fly over Berlin ("Vuelan los ángeles sobre Berlín"). Yet, none of that grand atmosphere helps when she feels stuck in no man's land ("tierra de nadie") and suffocating without her partner. The big takeaway comes in the chorus: "No sirve de nada llegar aún más lejos / Ni toda la fama, ni todo el dinero" ("It's useless to go even further / Neither all the fame, nor all the money"). When loneliness sinks right into your bones, achievements mean nothing.
My favorite moment has to be when she gets delightfully dramatic and drops a clever detail: "Tiro mi bolso Chanel del barrio chino / Al suelo mojado y me lanzo a correr" ("I throw my Chinatown Chanel bag onto the wet ground and start running"). Pointing out that her luxury bag is actually a Chinatown knockoff adds a funny, grounded touch right in the middle of all the heavy heartache. She misses the simple, physical side of love, like hearing their voice, touching them and smelling them, and no amount of status can stand in for that.
Shakira signed to Sony Music Colombia at thirteen, and her debut album Magia sold about 1,200 copies in Colombia. Born in Barranquilla in 1977 to a family of Lebanese, Catalan and Colombian descent, she was belly dancing by four, after hearing Arabic drumming at a Middle Eastern restaurant near home, and she has written or co-written most of what she records.
The breakthrough came with Pies Descalzos (1995) and its single "Estoy Aquí", and ¿Dónde Están los Ladrones? (1998) followed with "Ciega, Sordomuda" and "Ojos Así". She moved into English on Laundry Service (2001), whose "Whenever, Wherever" was released in Spanish as "Suerte", then topped the US Hot 100 in 2006 with "Hips Don’t Lie", featuring Wyclef Jean. "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", recorded with the South African band Freshlyground, was the official song of the 2010 World Cup. Her 2023 session with Argentine producer Bizarrap won Latin Grammy Song of the Year, and Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran took Best Latin Pop Album at the 2025 Grammys, her fourth Grammy next to fifteen Latin Grammys.