“Don’t Ask Forgiveness”
Album: Dirty Bailarina (Dirty Ballerina), 2010
Style: Hip hop, with a spoken word vibe
Country: Spain
Listen: YouTube
About:
I was listening to an NPR short about Mala Rodriguez and they mentioned that she calls herself “Mala” (Bad) Rodriguez because her aunt would always scold her and call her a bad kid. That’s so sad, a little cute maybe, and also a great story. Mala Rodriguez has been gaining acclaim these past few years for her distinctive rap/hip hop style and her poetic lyrics. She collaborated with Julieta Venegas on the MTV Unplugged version of Julieta’s “Eres Para Mi.”
Two lines in this song’s transcription are a little iffy, so check back for edits in a few months. The song has been on my list since the NPR short in 2011, so it makes more sense to just post it as is and wait for comments. It’s a great song. Listen to it at YouTube here.
Translation:
Sa’ [sabe]
Lo peor ya ha pasa’o [pasado].
Dime, ¿de qué sirve seguir doblega’o [doblegado].
You know
The worst has already passed.
Tell me, what use is it to keep bowing down (in defeat)?
Vamos a buscar algo de retención,
Salvemos almas de la extinción.
Entre el polvo y la arena en estado latente
Como un sueño recurrente,
Mala semilla, bella durmiente.
Let us go search for a kind of permanence,
Let us save souls from extinction.
Between dust and sand in a latent state
Like a recurring dream,
Bad seed, sleeping beauty.
Elijo ser completamente consciente,
Superviviente y guerrera con hambre,
La madre que os parió.
I choose to be completely conscious,
A survivor and a hungry warrior,
The mother who bore you. [*often said as an insult, as in “your mother!” in English]
Yo no tengo miedo,
Por eso duelo, por eso vuelo,
No hay nada que haga a traición.
I am not afraid,
That is why I hurt, that is why I fly,
There is nothing I would do to betray that.
Quiero mojarme, quiero agitar el sistema con mi voz,
Son mis pies removiendo la rosa,
Aclarando mentes como los rayos de sol.
I want to get involved, I want to shake up the system with my voice,
It is my feet removing the rose, [*a symbol for silence]
Brightening minds like the rays of the sun.
Chorus:
————————————————————–
Mi madre va a llorar,
Tu madre va a llorar,
No pidas perdón si no lo vas a lamentar.
My mother is going to cry,
Your mother is going to cry,
Do not ask forgiveness if you are not going to repent.
Es así, en la cuidad todo cambia.
Cógelo con calma.
El amor no desaparecerá, oye.
It’s like that, in the city everything changes.
Grasp it without worrying.
Love will not disappear, hear this.
————————————————————–
(x2)
Brotes virus y plantas pisas de elefanta, [*Mistranscribed?]
En la mesa ceniza, cerveza,
El planeta reza [por] mundo sin pobreza.
Outbreak a virus and stand with the feet of an elephant,
On the table — ashes, beer,
The planet prays [for] a world without poverty.
Hasta acabaron ya las promesas,
¿Esa zanahoria no te deja ver
Qué se necesita pa’ [para] ver amanecer?
Alta tecnología pa’ [para] tomarte un café.
Even the promises have ended now,
That carrot doesn’t let you see
What one needs to see the sun rise?
High technology to drink (yourself a cup of) coffee.
Tú tienes que crecer, déjame creer,
Sin correr pa’ qué, si mi mente vuela,
Estoy tejiendo una tela.
You have to grow up, let me believe,
If we don’t run then why, for my mind flies, [*¿pa’ qué = lit. what for?]
I am knitting a web. [*alt. I am sewing a cloth]
Humanidad envela, la cosa encandela,
Ya es hora de ponerse en pie.
Humanity ships away, things get worse,
It is time now to rise to our feet.
Quiero mojarme,
Quiero agitar el sistema con mi voz,
Son mis pies removiendo la roja, [*Mistranscribed?]
Aclarando mentes como los rayos de sol.
I want to get involved,
I want to shake up the system with my voice,
It is my feet stirring The Red,
Brightening minds like the rays of the sun.
[Chorus: “Mi madre va a llorar, tu madre va a llorar…“, x2]
Oye, oye…
Hear, hear…
[Chorus: “Mi madre va a llorar, tu madre va a llorar…“, x2]
Oye, oye…
Hear, hear…
Translation Notes:
Dime, ¿de qué sirve seguir doblega’o [doblegado]?
Tell me, what use is it to keep bowing down (in defeat)?
Tell me, what use is it to keep humbling ourselves? [*alt.]
Tell me, what use is it to keep giving in? [*alt.]
—
Elijo ser completamente consciente,
Superviviente y guerrera con hambre,
La madre que os parió.
I choose to be completely conscious,
A survivor and a hungry warrior,
The mother who bore you. [*lit.]
The last line is often said on its own as an insult, similar to how we say “your mother!” in English. Here, it is an interesting choice. Mala Rodriguez is assigning qualities to herself and, when she verbally emphasizes the last line, it does not really sound like an insult. This is not a coincidence; the phrasing is too exact. She is reappropriating negative words and taking advantage of their dual meaning, making the listener wonder if she is offending them or talking about herself.
This is consistent with earlier lines emphasizing duality like mala semilla, bella durmiente (bad seed, sleeping beauty).
Here are some discussions on the translation of madre que os/te pario:
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1082935
http://forums.tomisimo.org/archive/index.php/t-3510.html
http://en.glosbe.com/es/en/la%20madre%20que%20te%20pari%C3%B3
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1057304
The word os is a direct object pronounused mainly in Spain and occasionally in some parts of South America. Mexico uses los/las instead. Both mean “you” (familiar, plural).
The line about una guerrera con hambre (a warrior with hunger, a hungry fighter) does not necessarily mean hunger for food. I definitely think she means another type of hunger.
—
Son mis pies removiendo la rosa/roja [*mistranscribed?]
It is my feet removing the rose, [*a symbol for silence]
It is my feet stirring the red. [*alt.]
I might just be making up the symbolic meaning for the rose line. It might not be a reference to sub rosa at all.
Later, she says roja (red) instead of rosa (rose), but that makes no sense. I keep playing back the lines and I really do hear two different words. Let me know if you hear something else. For now, I am speculating that the red line might be a reference to the Spanish soccer team.
—
Aclarando mentes como los rayos de sol.
Brightening minds like the rays of the sun.
Clearing minds like the rays of the sun. [*lit.]
aclarar (verb) = to clarify, to explain; to make clear, to improve understanding; to clear away confusion; to brighten, to lighten
—
No pidas perdón si no lo vas a lamentar.
Do not ask forgiveness if you are not going to repent.
Word for word:
{No pidas} [perdón] (si) {no lo vas a} (lamentar)
{Do not ask} [forgiveness] (if) {you are not going to _____ it} (lament)
This line comes from the Catholic idea that in order to be forgiven for your sins during confession, you must feel regret.
—
Cógelo con calma. / El amor no desaparecerá, oye.
Grasp it with calm. / Love will not disappear, hear this. [*lit.]
F*ck him without worrying. / Love will not disappear, hear me. [*alt.]
coger, verb = (1) to seize, to take, to grab; (2) to impale, to enter; (3) to screw, to f*ck (slang)
The slang meaning is common in several Latin American countries. Mala Rodriguez is from Spain, where this meaning is not prevalent, so I don’t think the slang meaning is supposed to be the primary meaning. However, I doubt she is completely unaware of it.
To do something con calma [*lit. with calm] means to do it leisurely, without worrying.
—
Brotes virus y plantas pisas de elefanta [*mistranscribed?]
Outbreak a virus and stand with the feet of an elephant
The translation of this stanza will change if I decide on another transcription. I changed the first line from the transcription I found online, which was more nonsensical:
Brotes, virus y plantas, pisas de elefanta
Outbreaks, virus and plants, elephant stomps
I think the current transcription is better, but I am still unhappy with it. If you have suggestions, please comment.
—
Quiero mojarme, quiero agitar el sistema con mi voz
I want to get involved, I want to shake up the system with my voice.
I want to get (my feet) wet, I want to agitate the system with my voice. [*alt. lit.]
mojarse (verb) = to get oneself wet (literal); to get one’s feet wet (idiom); to get involved (idiom)
—
“No Pidas Perdon” by Mala Rodriguez – without accents so WordPress search finds this song translation
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