Songfacts®:

• "TQG" is an empowering song where Karol G and Shakira bravely move on after high-profile breakups. Karol G split from her fiancée, Puerto Rican rapper Anuel AA, in spring 2021 after three years together. Shakira separated from Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué in 2022, after 11 years as a couple.
• "TQG" is an acronym for "Te Quedó Grande," a phrase used in the lyrics. The expression means "too big for you" in English and is typically used to describe when clothing is oversized and does not fit properly. In the context of this song, it means, "I was too good for you."
• At the end of the song, Karol G says, "TQM but TQG," which translates to "I love you very much, but you were too small for me" (with "TQG" meaning "te quedó grande" as before). This line implies that while she may have cared deeply for her partner, they were not a good fit for each other.
• Y que te quedó grande La Bichota
  
  Karol G refers to herself at the end of the second verse as a tough girl, implying that her partner could not handle her ("La Bichota" is a slang term for a bad girl).
• In Shakira's 2022 song "Monotonía," she blames her breakup with Piqué on the gradual erosion of that initial, joyous connection they had when they first met. But she later discovered he'd been unfaithful, which she sings about on her collaboration with Argentine DJ, Bizarrap, "Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53." Here, Shakira alludes to her heartbreaking realization of her partner's infidelity.
  
  Tú buscando por fuera la comida
  Yo diciendo que era monotonía
  
  Translates as:
  You looking out there for food
  Me saying it was just monotony
• "TQG" almost didn't see the light of day. Karol G wrote her verse for the song on the same day she wrote her part for another empowering breakup track, the Becky G collaboration "Mamiii." After "Mamiii" took off, the Colombian superstar hesitated to release another tune with a similar theme. She eventually had a change of heart and returned to the track after having a revelation. "I was just seeing what was happening with Shakira in her personal life and I was like, 'You know what? Let me contact her,'" Karol told Apple Music. "It was worth it for me to launch it again, for girls to represent that moment of the life."
• Karol G reached out to Shakira in October 2022. "I said, 'Hey, I know you're going through this, and I'm sorry to be so direct," she recalled to Billboard.
  
  Karol then played "TQG" for Shakira, who loved it. However, Shakira explained she had a collaboration with Bizarrap coming out soon, and Karol G was concerned about having too many songs with similar themes released around the same time.
  
  Shakira asked that Karol G wait to release "TQG," so they postponed the launch. Karol G also pointed out that Shakira already had other songs such as "Te Felicito," "Monotonia," and the Bizarrap session that touched on similar themes, but Shakira reassured her that just because the songs shared similar themes, it did not necessarily mean they were all about specific people.
• Karol G's go-to collaborator, Ovy On The Drums, produced the track. "TQG" was born after Ovy worked on Karol's "Mamiii" collaboration with Becky G in January 2022. While the producer never imagined Shakira on the track, Karol had a vision for a hit with her fellow Colombian and suggested Shakira's involvement. Karol sent the song to Shakira, who added her verse to the track.
  
  "The first version was ready for almost a year, but when Shakira stepped in, we changed it around," Ovy told Billboard. "She brought her ideas, and we joined them with Karol's ideas and began reworking the song as a team. Shakira entered the collab around December 2022. By January, the song was mastered and ready to go because we had to submit Karol's album."
• Karol G released "TQG" as the fifth single from Mañana Será Bonito. Although the album features a few English lyrics by guest artist Sean Paul on one track, the rest of it is in Spanish. When it debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart dated March 11, 2023, it became the first all-Spanish-language album by a female artist to reach this position.
• Ovy On The Drums didn't meet Shakira in person but was in touch with her thanks to the voice notes she sent to him through her manager. Through the power of technology, they could create the song without needing to be in the same room. Karol and Shakira didn't meet until the music video shoot.
• Ovy On The Drums initially wanted to name the track "La Nueva" ("The New One"), but Karol G came up with the title "TQG" instead. According to him, Karol has a knack for titling songs, such as with "Tusa." "She's really good at thinking of song names," he said. "She's a genius, and the title is perfect."
• Karol G co-wrote her portion of the song with Ovy On The Drums and the Colombian songwriter Keityn ("Tusa," "Provenza") in Los Angeles in January 2022. "Karol invited me because she was doing something in LA., and she asked me if I wanted to hang out and make music with her and Ovy On The Drums for a couple of days," Keityn told Billboard.
  
  The intro of "TQG" lingered in Keityn's mind for days before he connected with Karol. It was only when he joined forces with Ovy in the studio that the pieces finally fell into place and the magic truly began.
• "TQG" took Best Collaboration at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards, where Shakira also received the Video Vanguard Award.