“Being With Me” Lyrics Translation
Album: Sí (Yes), 2003
Style: Pop, popular radio song. It was nominated for “Record of the Year” in the 2004 Latin Grammy Awards.
Country: Mexico
Listen: YouTube
Translation:
Hay tanto que quiero contarte
Hay tanto que quiero saber de ti,
Ya podemos empezar poco a poco.
Cuéntame qué te trae por aquí.
There is so much I want to tell you
There is so much I want to know about you,
We can begin little by little now.
Tell me what brings you to these parts.
No te asustes de decirme la verdad.
Eso nunca puede estar así tan mal.
Yo también tengo secretos para darte
Y que sepas que no me sirven más.
Do not be afraid of telling me the truth.
It can never be as bad as that.
I also have secrets to give you
And know that they aren’t useful to me anymore.
Chorus:
———————————————–
Hay tantos caminos por andar…
There are so many paths to thread…
Dime si tú quisieras andar conmigo, oh, oh, oh
Cuéntame si quisieras andar conmigo, oh, oh, oh
(x2)
Tell me if you would like to be with me, oh, oh, oh
Tell me if you would like to be with me, oh, oh oh
(x2)
————————————————
Estoy ansiosa por soltarlo todo,
Desde el principio hasta llegar al día de hoy.
Una historia tengo aquí para entregarte,
Una historia todavía sin final.
I am anxious to let it all go,
From the very beginning to today.
I have a story here to hand over to you,
A story still without an end.
Podríamos decirnos cualquier cosa
Incluso darnos para siempre un siempre no,
Pero ahora frente a frente aquí sentados
Festejemos que la vida nos cruzó.
We could tell each other anything
Even give each other forever a forever no,
But right now sitting here face to face
Let us celebrate that life has crossed our paths.
[Chorus]
Si quisieras andar conmigo…
If you would like to be with me…
Translation Notes:
Andar conmigo
To be with me, lit. to go with me
Being with me, lit. going with me
(Depends on the sentence)
andar [v] = to go, to travel, to walk
conmigo = with me
Andar conmigo means “being with me” as I move, sometimes literally (physically move from place to place), sometimes figuratively (move through time), usually romantically (going out with me, getting into a romantic relationship with me). The romantic meaning is relevant here. She is asking the guy if he wants to go out with her.
For an explanation of the -go at the end, see this page on the history of the Spanish language.
—
Cuéntame qué te trae por aquí
Tell me what brings you to these parts
Tell me what brings you by here [*literal]
—
Eso nunca puede estar así tan mal
It can never be as bad as that
It can never be like that so bad [*literal]
—
Y que sepas que no me sirven más
And know that they aren’t useful to me anymore
And know that they no longer serve me (any use) [*literal]
servir [v] = to serve (like a waiter serves food); to serve (a use), to be useful; to work, to be functional (often used for appliances)
Examples:
¿Me podría servir otro plato, por favor? = Could you serve me another plate, please?
Este libro no me sirvió. = This book didn’t help me. This book wasn’t useful to me.
Esta televisión ya no sirve. = This TV doesn’t work anymore.
—
Dime si tú quisieras andar conmigo, oh, oh, oh
Cuéntame si quisieras andar conmigo, oh, oh, oh
Tell me if you would like to be with me, oh, oh, oh
decir vs. contar: both mean “to tell” here
decir [v] = to say, to utter; to tell the facts
decirle [v] = to tell her/him
decirme [v] = to tell me
contar [v] = to tell, to narrate; to inform
contarle [v] = to tell her/him
contarme [v] = to tell me
decir is used for just the action of telling someone something, very literal
contar is used for telling a story, for telling in more detail; for explaining; for gossiping
—
Desde el principio hasta llegar al día de hoy
From the very beginning to today
From the beginning until arriving to the day of today [*literal]
—
Una historia tengo aquí para entregarte
I have a story here to hand over to you
I have a story here to deliver to you [*alternative]
—
Pero ahora frente a frente aquí sentados
But right now sitting here face to face
But right now sitting here facing each other [*alternative]
But right now sitting here front to front [*literal]
frente [f. noun] = front; forehead
Careful not to translate “frente a frente” as “forehead to forehead.” The phrase is used more generally than that. It is like the English phrase, “face to face.”
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