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The Real MVP Of The Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show Was Shakira’s Tongue (21 Tweets)

Sunday’s Super Bowl Halftime Show was basically instant iconic performance status as J. Lo and Shakira went absolutely H.A.M. on stage, pulling out all the stops, from the stripper pole to playing their own instruments, to flying the Puerto Rican Flag, to showing kids singing in cages, to including Lopez’s own daughter out there harmonizing with mom. It was so much to take in, you just had to let the greatness of these two Latina stars wash over you. The show was so larger than life, it almost escaped being broken into little Shakira memes. Almost.

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via Twitter

The one moment that’s been recorded and shown over and over is a clip of Shakira leaning into the camera and doing something called a “zaghrouta,” a form of vocalization called ululation. With the sound off, it looks like her tongue is just waggling back and forth pretty powerfully (and suggestively). With the sound on, you can hear she is making the high-pitched trill that is used as a sound of celebration or applause in some cultures. Shakira is half-Lebanese, and many Arab cultures use the zaghrouta. She was representing all of her cultural backgrounds that night.

But not everyone at home knew…any of this. Shakira memes quickly spread, especially by people who were pretty confused by what Shakira was doing and why.

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via Giphy

Below are some of the most baffled and funny reactions to the clip misheard around the world.

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