Underneath Your Clothes

"Underneath Your Clothes" is a song by Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira for her fifth studio album and English-language debut, Laundry Service (2001). The power ballad was the second English-language single released from the album; being released on 11 February 2002. It features lyrics by Shakira with music by Shakira and Lester Mendez. Production was handled by Shakira with additional production by Mendez. Lyrically, the song tells the story of the unconditional love that a woman has for her boyfriend, with lyrics about being worthy of somebody's love. Some critics commended the song for being a highlight from the album. However, others were more critical towards her songwriting and the song's production, which according to them resembled the Bangles' "Eternal Flame" and the Beatles' "Penny Lane". The song became a success on the charts, topping the charts of eight countries, while also reaching the top ten in several countries, including the United States. It was the fifth-biggest song of 2002 in Europe. The accompanying music video for the song was directed by fashion photographer Herb Ritts. It depicts Shakira's loneliness as a tourist musician. It features Shakira's then-boyfriend Antonio de la Rúa, whose unpopularity in Argentina led to a ban of her albums there. Shakira promoted the song with a series of live performances across the world, while also performing it on her worldwide tours, Tour of the Mongoose (2002–2003), Oral Fixation Tour (2006–2007), The Sun Comes Out World Tour (2010–2011) and El Dorado World Tour (2018).