In our “The Stars Behind the Stars” franchise, Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors share stories that have yet to be told, directly from those who aren’t often in front of the spotlight. Think “todo lo que no se ve detrás de cámaras,” or “everything that happens behind the scenes.” These unsung heroes are essential to an artist’s team and its foundation. Today, we highlight Renee Old, a celebrity wardrobe stylist who has been part of crafting Shakira’s looks from videos to performances throughout the FIFA World Cup.
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Over the past six years, Renee Old has worked behind the scenes with styling teams for some of the industry’s biggest stars, including Lily Collins, Willow Smith, Meghan Trainor and Halsey. These days, however, much of her creative focus has been on Shakira.
Old, who grew up playing soccer for 20 years, works closely with the Colombian superstar’s team to help bring her stage wardrobe to life, contributing custom pieces for numerous productions tied to the FIFA World Cup and the Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour. Among her prominent creations is the custom triangle top made from cutouts of Colombia’s national soccer team jersey that Shakira wears in the music video for her World Cup anthem alongside Burna Boy, “Dai Dai,” a piece that began as one of Old’s original sketches.
“I designed it, drew it out, and [the tailor] brought it to life,” Old tells Billboard in mid-June, shortly after returning from the FIFA World Cup opening ceremony. “It’s about knowing the overall concept of either the music video, the photo shoot or something and just incorporating artistic flair to it. It was kind of just working with [her team], knowing, listening, learning, and [understanding] what she likes. It ended up working. I was so happy. At the music video [set] I was like, ‘Oh my god, this is, like, the best moment ever.’”
The 31-year-old’s work extends past Shakira’s “Dai Dai” — which has become an international smash, topping Billboard’s Global 200 Excl US chart. She also helped shape Shakira’s look in her March collaboration with Beéle, “Algo Tú,” and painstakingly handcrafted the crystal-covered hat featured in the 2024 music video for “(Entre Paréntesis)” alongside Grupo Frontera, applying each gem by hand. It’s this level of craftsmanship that fuels her ability to dream up one-of-a-kind concepts for large-scale productions.
“It took six hours to make the entire hat. It was wild, and it was on a whim, too, because we couldn’t find a green hat, and I was like, ‘Well, I do custom hats, and I don’t think it would be too hard to do if you give me the day,’ And he was like, ‘Okay, you got the day,’” she explains. “So, that was a day-of situation which was actually wild. It looks so good with the jacket that the other designer made and everything, and then it came together really nicely.”
Old, who grew up in San Diego, California, says creativity has always come naturally to her, even if she once questioned whether pursuing a career in styling was a realistic path.
“Having that ability to kind of look at something and be like, ‘Yeah, I can make that,’ is, I think, just natural, honestly. Like, I don’t know where it came from. I just feel like when I look at different projects, I can really pinpoint what I can do and what I can’t do.”
As she prepares for another major World Cup performance taking place on July 19 — where Shakira will once again take the stage in a custom look created by a team that includes Old — she admits projects of that scale can be meticulous. Fortunately, she says, Shakira’s creative vision makes the design process remarkably collaborative.
“She knows what she wants, and she knows how to put what is in her brain onto paper, if that makes sense,” explains Old. “She’ll be like, ‘I want this skirt, but I want it in this material and this color,’ and it’s easier that way, I think, for me and my brain. It’s going to be like finding a diamond in the rough to find that specific color [she wants], but also there are so many skills that I have learned just by working with her team that I’m like, ‘We can get that done.’”
Below, Old tells Billboard about the thought process behind curating Shakira’s looks, experiencing the World Cup opening ceremony in person and what her experience has taught her about following her dreams of being a stylist.
Walk us through your creative process for you. How do you go from “I need to curate a concept for Shakira to wear in her music video” to designing that top?
For the Shakira Colombia top, it was really just like knowing her and what she likes, and knowing what styles fit her best and what we know was going to be like a top-tier winner. We had a couple other options as well — and if all else fails, this is more of a simple solution, but it’s also something that we know she’s going to like as far as structure goes. Then we needed to incorporate the Colombian crest, and what is Colombian when you look at the top. Obviously the stripes are really big, the crest is really big and the colors are blue — but it’s like a royal blue, and a red, so we needed the red to pop, we needed the yellow to pop.
Are you involved in everything for the World Cup?
Yeah, I just actually got back from the opening ceremony, which was absolutely wild, and so many emotions involved. They did incredible, and everyone looked amazing. The World Cup is huge, and growing up I have always played soccer. I played soccer for like 20-plus years, you know? So it’s always been a part of my life, and for that to happen on the biggest stage and the opening ceremony, I was feeling it for sure.
For the opening ceremony, did you guys also design the dancers’ outfits?
They were concepts sent to us, but they were redesigned as far as body shapes and stuff like that, and what we could do and what Shak wanted as well. There were 50 dancers. So, it was definitely a lot of matching tops and bottoms and like, “Who wants a skirt?” and “Who wants a short… who wants pants?” So it was a lot, but it was fun for sure.
So, the team put together what Shakira and the dancers wore for the opening ceremony?
It was all Off-White, and they designed hers. There [were], I think, three different top options, but the shorts were pretty much the same, or the skirt. But the dancers is where we needed everyone to look cohesive but not messy — and also, in a sense, we needed them to look hot. So adding, you know, different trims that were good that I found downtown and like different pieces that we can attach to the bottom and getting the right shade of yellow because we had a swatch of yellow. So basically buying everything in that color.
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO – JUNE 11: Shakira performs during the Opening Ceremony before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group A match between Mexico and South Africa at Mexico City Stadium on June 11, 2026 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images) Getty ImagesWhat would you say to yourself 10 years ago when you were looking forward to a career in the arts or in design, and you didn’t know it could look like this, and it kind of looked so, maybe, impossible and far away?
I would say believe in yourself, and stick to who you are. ‘Cause I think sticking to who I was or who I am, even in the beginning, [was important] — and knowing when not to take jobs with certain people and when to say no to like things I literally cannot do. Even now, like — I say “no.” I said “no” to a job last week based off tailoring, and it was a different type of tailoring that I’ve never done, and I was like, ‘I’m sorry. I can’t do that.’
But that relationship isn’t necessarily over with that person. It’s more about, ‘If you find something that fits in my realm, [ I ] would love to work together.’ So I think being true to yourself, and knowing who you are and what you can do, really is going to help — instead of just thinking you can do everything, and then having your plate be absolutely full and then not doing anything to the standard that you want to do.