The song was written and produced by Shakira, with additional writing and production from longtime collaborators Luis Fernando Ochoa and Lester Mendez, respectively.

"La Tortura" is a pop, reggaeton, and dancehall track, which lyrically tells the story of a woman who has been emotionally "tortured" because her boyfriend cheated and eventually left her for another, and has now returned begging forgiveness.

Upon its release, "La Tortura" received generally positive reviews by music critics, who agreed that the song was a highlight from Fijación Oral, Vol.

It was eventually certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for a million digital copies sold in the region.

[5] For the album, Shakira worked with previous collaborators along with new partners, such as Argentine musician Gustavo Cerati and Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz.

Sanz, who records himself and is the engineer of his own songs, spent three nights in a row going to bed at five in the morning to create the perfect sound for the track.

[1] Shakira stated that she spent a full month tweaking the track, as she thought that it was "a song that needed clearly the right, the accurate production.

[6][12] "La Tortura" was written by Shakira and Luis Fernando Ochoa, while produced by the former and Lester Mendez, who also played keyboards on the song.

Other instrumentation for "La Tortura" included bass by Paul Bushnell, accordion by Umberto Judex and Frank Marocco, and percussion by Archie Peña.

[6] Musically, "La Tortura" is a pop, reggaetón and dancehall song,[13][14][9] with some reviewers noting elements of flamenco, cumbia, and electronica in its composition.

[18] According to Shakira, "La Tortura" lyrically deals with "love and hate, infidelity, doubts, a chance of being forgiven... it's a song a [I] wrote in order to reflect that Latin reality called machismo, which is both tragic and comic at the same time".

Matt Cibula from PopMatters wrote that "what really matters are these two overheated voices working with and against each other, and the way that undeniable beat really comes alive when there is actually a beautiful melody underneath it".

[21] Described as a "beat-heavy scorcher" by Geoff Harkness from Chicago Tribune, it was seen by the journalist as the best track on the album, who saw its choice as the lead single as a "no-brainer".

[22] The staff of Houston Chronicle agreed, naming the track an "obvious standout", and complimenting Sanz's vocals, as his "raspy delivery gives the song a razor-sharp edge".

[23] For Los Angeles Times' Agustin Gurza, "La Tortura" was "so deliciously pop you forgive the crass calculation of mixing restrained reggaeton beats (narcissistically called 'Shaketon'), a dash of Gipsy Kings, a touch of Colombian accordion.

[24] Jon Pareles of The New York Times complimented the song and its "Shaketon Mix", arguing that "one of it sounds forced: for Shakira it's all pop, taut structures for volatile passion".

[12] Jorge Patiño of Rolling Stone Argentina described the remix as "a cleaner work than the original version until the percussion enters and falls into the reggaeton that invades the stations".

Music opined that the original song was "slightly disappointing" but was "greatly improved by the remix, tacked on as a bonus track" on the album.

Scenes from the time they were still a couple are shown, with the pair seen eating Chinese food, and Shakira crawling across the table as Sanz admires her.

[71] The next year, "La Tortura" was nominated for Best Short Form Music Video at the 7th Annual Latin Grammy Awards.

[73] The first live performance Shakira gave for "La Tortura" was on the German television show Wetten, dass..?, filmed in the ancient Roman amphitheater of Aspendos, near Antalaya, Turkey, and aired on 15 May 2005.

[74] She then went to the United States and gave performances for the track on MTV's Total Request Live, on 31 May and on Good Morning America, three days later.

[78] Shakira was also part of the MTV Day festival in Madrid, Spain which took place on 29 June 2005, performing "La Tortura" and "No", another song from Fijación Oral Vol.

[79] On 2 July, she appeared at Palace of Versailles in Paris to sing "La Tortura" and "Whenever, Wherever" as part of the Live 8 benefit concert.

[80] Days later, she went to Argentina and gave a performance of "La Tortura" on her own television special titled Shakira: Íntimo, aired by Telefe.

[20][71] On 8 September, she performed it on Fashion Rocks event, which took place at Radio City Music Hall and aired a day later by CBS.

Launch, and gave a performance of "La Tortura" along with "Don't Bother" and "Hey You", songs from Oral Fixation Vol.

[85] Shakira included "La Tortura" on her setlist for the KIIS-FM's Jingle Ball at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

The performance of the song during the concert in Miami, Florida, on 9 December 2006, featured Sanz, and was filmed for a live album release.

[99] In 2011, Puerto Rican singer Gilberto Santa Rosa performed a live cover of "La Tortura" as part the Latin Recording Academy tribute to Shakira where she was honored Person of the Year.