Chris Martin knows how to be there for his friends – just ask Shakira.

The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer (47) celebrated the Coldplay frontman’s empathy in his Rolling Stone profile posted on Thursday, December 19. Shakira gushed about how much she supported Martin, 47, as she went through her public split with ex Gerard Pique (with whom she has two children).

“He was there for me when I broke up and it broke my heart,” Shakira said of her longtime boyfriend (who went through his own public split with ex-wife Gwyneth Paltrow when the pair “consciously disconnected” in 2014. “Every day checking in on me, sending me words of support, strength and wisdom.”

“I see him as someone who sees life through a different lens, who is sensitive to other people’s needs and very empathetic, very empathetic,” gushed Shakira. The support came at an “incredibly difficult” time for the singer, who briefly opened up about the 2022 split in an interview with Elle magazine.

“It’s really hard to talk about in person, especially since it’s the first time I’ve addressed this situation in an interview,” said the mother of two. “I’ve stayed quiet and tried to process it all… It’s hard to talk about, especially because I’m still going through it and because I’m in the public eye and because our separation isn’t like a regular separation.”

The “Try Everything” singer explained that it was “hard” not only for her, but also for her children Milan, 11, and Sasha, 9, who she shares with Piqué.

Calling it “incredibly difficult” to go through the changes amid the publicity, she added: “I tried to keep the situation a secret from my children. I try to do that and protect them because that’s my number one mission in life. then they hear things at school from their friends or come across some nasty, nasty news online and it just affects them, you know?”

Shakira and Piqué announced their separation in a joint statement in June 2022. “We regret to confirm that we are separating. For the well-being of our children, who are our highest priority, we ask that you respect their privacy,” the statement read.

Not long after, Piqué moved on with Clara Chia Martí, and Shakira said so People in Spain that she felt “betrayed” by speculation that her ex had been unfaithful as she dealt with her father William Mebarak Chadid’s hospitalization. At the time, Shakira said she thought she would “not survive” the strain, telling the publication: “I found out in the press that I was betrayed when my father was in ICU.”

The split inspired Shakira’s song “Monotónía” and her record-breaking diss track with Argentinian producer and DJ Bizarrap, known as “BZRP Music Sessions #53” or “Out of Your League”.

In “Out of Your League,” Shakira says she’s “worth two 22-year-olds”—referring to the young age of Piqué’s new girlfriend Martí—and suggests that her ex traded “a Ferrari for [Renault] Twingo” and “Rolex for a Casio.” The four-minute diss track was viewed more than 63 million times in 24 hours, making it the most viewed Latin track, behind BBC.