23 Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Everybody needs an anchor
A little something that makes you stay
An incentive, someone to fight for
'Cause no one really needs so much space
A couple years ago I was lonely
I used to think that there was no God
But then you looked at me with your blue eyes

And my agnosticism turned into dust

[Pre-Chorus 1]
How well you know me
That I don't care if the rest don't
It doesn't matter to me, no, oh
Oh-oh-oh, and as long as you love me
As long as we still have each other

[Chorus]
I knew we had something
From the moment I met you
And I knew we had something
No one thought it could be true
Hey, do you believe
Do you believe in destiny?
'Cause I do as I did then
When you were only 23
Pararapa-pararapa, pararapa-pararapa, pararapa-pararapa
Ah-ah
[Verse 2]
God knows that I'm a good dancer
My feet can move to the music he plays
But there were times I asked for an answer
When he was acting in mysterious ways
There were nights that I stayed up crying
'Cause I was certain that things wouldn't change
But then you came and I saw you smiling
Just like an angel, so beautifully strange

[Pre-Chorus 2]
And then you touched me
It's like you were made for me, oh-oh
Like it was all meant to be, oh-oh
And I was sure that you would love me
And that we'd always have each other

[Chorus]
I knew we had something
From the moment I met you
And I knew we had something
No one thought it could be true
Hey, do you believe
Do you believe in destiny?
'Cause I do as I did then
When you were only 23
Pararapa-pararapa, pararapa-pararapa, pararapa-pararapa
Oh-oh
[Bridge]
Always thought that I was fine, but I was wrong
It was you, that one piece I was missing
And I could do without you but, it'd be no fun
I found you and life was suddenly easy
There ain't no worries now
There ain't no feeling down

[Chorus]
I knew we had something
From the moment I met you
And I knew we had something
No one thought it could be true
Hey, do you believe
Do you believe in destiny?
'Cause I do as I did then
When you were only 23

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

This song celebrates Shakira’s relationship with football (soccer) star Gerard Piqué. Shakira met Gerard in 2010, when she was 33 and he was 23 years old.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Shakira say about "23"?
Genius Answer

“23 is one of my most personal songs, it narrates the time when I met Gerard when he was only 23 and how I believe in destiny and how he changed my life” – Shakira,

Comments