Bu Fadia – Bilingual Lyrics Portuguese/English

• By: Leo Pereira

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the emotive sounds of Cape Verdean Kizomba with Leo Pereira's 'Bu Fadia'. This song offers a great opportunity to immerse yourself in the Portuguese-based Creole language of Cape Verde through its romantic and soulful lyrics. Learning with 'Bu Fadia' can give you a deeper appreciation for the cultural expressions of love and relationships in Cape Verdean music.

[English]

Leo Pereira

Who knows what happened

My lover stays away

It reminds us of yesterday

You're telling me, but I believe in you

Our moments of fantasy

We were perfect

Just me and you, no one in between

But everything gets ruined by time

It stays unrecognizable

Little by little we become strangers

Black, white, and all our plans

Today everything turns to dust

Who with the fool

We'd be nothing without you, you brought your charms

We let others ruin us

Ruin our love

Where we were meant to be forever

Promises for the time

A flame for love that ends everything

Was it I who loved you?

A flame for love that ends everything

Promises for the time

A flame for love that ends everything

Was it I who loved you?

You're everything out on the street without direction, our heads, our time

It was me who put my ambition into common relations that have no place

In hearts that have no love

In some place that's not even gold

Nanana, you don't know gold

Girl, you're crazy

It's just that it won't go down

No time heals it

It stays with anger inside every piece

Violence that never ends

Seriously, you're crazy

Nothing remains, just emptiness

Nothing, just emptiness

Where we were meant to be forever

Promises for the time

A flame for love that ends everything

Was it I who loved you?

A flame for love that ends everything

Promises for the time

A flame for love that ends everything

Was it I who loved you?

Girl, you're crazy

It's just that it won't go down

No time heals it

It stays with anger inside every piece

Violence that never ends

Seriously, you're crazy

Nothing remains, just emptiness

Nothing, just emptiness

[Portuguese]

Leo Pereira

Ni sibi ki eriz

Nha ora kinta sta lonji

Ta lembra-nos di onté

Bu ta fla-m ma mi ku bo kréa

Nos momentos di fantasía

Nos era perfeito

Mi ku bo si ninguen na meiu

Ma tudo straga ku tempu

Fika ka ta rikoñesel

Pamodi ki nu bira stranhu

Pretu, branku e tudu nos planos

Oji txa bira po

Ken ki ku bobo

Nu ka na era bu bota panu

Nu dexa's gañanu, straga nos...

Straga nos love

Undi nos era pa sempre

Promessas pa tempu

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Será ki foi mi ki bu ama?

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Promessas pa tempu

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Será ki foi mi ki bu ama?

Bo todu tan ta na rua sin direçon, kabesa nu ora

Foi mi ki poi nha ambison pa kumun relason ki ka ten lugar

No koraçon ki ka ten amor

Na un algen ki ka sta ma doro

Nanana bu ka koñeshe doro

Minina bu fadja

Sô li é ka ba bája

Nenhun tempu ka ta sara

Fika ku raiba dentu dodu

Violentu ki ka ta kaba

A sériu bu fadja

Ka resta ma nada, sô vaziu

Nada, sô vaziu

Undi nos era pa sempre

Promessas pa tempu

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Será ki foi mi ki bu ama?

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Promessas pa tempu

Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

Será ki foi mi ki bu ama?

Minina bu fadja

Sô li é ka ba bája

Nenhun tempu ka ta sara

Fika ku raiba dentu dodu

Violentu ki ka ta kaba

A sériu bu fadja

Ka resta ma nada, sô vaziu

Nada, sô vaziu

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
amor /ɐˈmoɾ/ A1	noun - love
tempu /ˈtẽpu/ A1	noun - time
fadja /ˈfadʒɐ/ B2	verb - to betray; to be bad or sufficient
straga /ˈʃtɾagɐ/ B1	verb - to spoil; to ruin
kaba /ˈkabɐ/ A2	verb - to end; to finish
ama /ˈɐmɐ/ A1	verb - to love
lugar /lugˈaɾ/ A1	noun - place
nada /ˈnadɐ/ A1	noun - nothing pronoun - nothing
vaziu /vɐˈziw/ A2	adjective - empty
raiba /ˈʁajbɐ/ B1	noun - anger
violentu /viulenˈtu/ B2	adjective - violent
sériu /ˈsɛɾiu/ B1	adjective - serious
korason /koɾɐˈzõŋ/ A2	noun - heart
promessas /ppɾomeˈsas/ B1	noun - promises
momentos /momenˈtɔʃ/ A2	noun - moments
fantasía /fɐntɐˈziɐ/ B1	noun - fantasy
branco /ˈbɾɐ̃ku/ A1	adjective - white
preto /ˈpɾetu/ A1	adjective - black
direçon /diɾeˈsõŋ/ B1	noun - direction

Key Grammar Structures

• Ni sibi ki eriz

  ➔ Use of interrogative marker 'ki' to form yes/no questions.

  ➔ In this line, 'Ni sibi ki eriz', the word 'ki' is used as a question marker similar to 'do' in English questions like 'Do you know?'.

• Ta lembra-nos di onté

  ➔ Habitual aspect marker 'ta' indicating ongoing or habitual action.

  ➔ In 'Ta lembra-nos di onté', 'ta' is used before the verb 'lembra' to show it's a habitual or ongoing recollection of yesterday.

• Nos era perfeito

  ➔ Imperfect past tense 'era' for describing a state in the past.

  ➔ In 'Nos "era" perfeito', 'era' indicates that 'we were perfect' as a temporary or descriptive past state.

• Pamodi ki nu bira stranhu

  ➔ Negation with 'ka' and reason clause introduced by 'pamodi ki'.

  ➔ In 'Pamodi ki nu "ka" bira stranhu', 'ka' negates the action, and 'pamodi ki' means 'because' or 'that's why'.

• Foi mi ki poi nha ambison

  ➔ Relative pronoun 'ki' used after nouns in relative clauses.

  ➔ In 'Foi "mi" ki poi nha ambison', 'ki' relates 'mi' to the verb 'poi', forming 'who put my ambition'.

• Un flan pa amor ki tudu kaba

  ➔ Present perfect with 'kaba' indicating completed action.

  ➔ In 'Un flan pa amor "ki tudu kaba"', 'kaba' shows that the love has completely ended, like perfect tense in 'has ended'.

• Será ki foi mi ki bu ama?

  ➔ Subjunctive mood or doubt marker 'será' for hypothetical questions.

  ➔ In '"Será" ki foi mi ki bu ama?', 'será' introduces doubt, equivalent to 'could it be' in English.

• Fika ku raiba dentu dodu

  ➔ Imperative or state verb 'fika' meaning 'stay' or 'remain'.

  ➔ In '"Fika" ku raiba dentu dodu', 'fika' is used to express remaining in a state of anger inside the body.