Mona Lisa – Bilingual Lyrics French/English

• By: Booba, JSX
• Album: ULTRA

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the raw and authentic world of French rap with "Mona Lisa" by Booba and JSX. This powerful track offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in contemporary French language and culture through its vivid storytelling and powerful delivery. You'll encounter modern slang and expressions, gaining insight into the harsh realities depicted in the lyrics, while appreciating the dynamic interplay between Booba’s incisive flow and JSX’s melodic contributions. It’s not just a song; it’s a compelling narrative that makes learning French engaging and culturally relevant.

[English]

Yeah, hey, hey, hey

Yeah, hey, hey, hey

I'm so far away, the future's behind me

...

I have all the contacts, let's go take some dough

The gun is cold, it wants to speak in your ear

I hope I'm ready the day it all goes to shit

I've lost real friends, many angels have let me down

With the crew, gun in hand, in front of the party

I'll fall asleep at the morgue, wake up with a bullet in my head

I got duped like a calf, I don't know what my future's worth

Let us see our sons, tell us they're dads

Hating doesn't pay, apparently it does

I feel like things are off, I cut the gun with a saw

You're honoring the wrong flag, your banner lied to you

Pablo Escobar's getting himself killed, you're out there making a scene

Saint Martin, Dutch side, floating packs, cocaine

A cheat code for crypto, give me two Mona Lisas

They'll have to be smoked before things turn tragic

Diallo took 200 euros from me for a charm against bullets

I'm so far away, the future's behind you (me)

I see everything in purple, in PayPal

Half-Negro, half-Neanderthal

No blood, no revolution

Just dead ends on the agenda

Like in every execution

We ride the overloaded bikes, sending the Bédos to my guys

Only cash in the network, give me two Mona Lisas

They’ll have to be smoked before things turn tragic

Zizou told me "Bring them down, it'll earn us some bullets"

What we started, we’ll finish, ask Ibou

We light up your block (pah, pah) as long as the sky's with us

Talking, I’m not interested, I prefer to bring everyone to their knees (hey, hey)

Chat with my 12-gauge, maybe you'll catch his interest (pah, pah)

Hating doesn't pay, but I grew big

Honda, JSX, number 10, Maradona

We smoked hope, gotta knock on wood (pah, pah)

Fuck your abuse of power, here, bullets make the law

Saint Martin, Dutch side, floating packs, cocaine

A cheat code for crypto, give me two Mona Lisas

They’ll have to be smoked before things turn tragic

Diallo took 200 euros from me for a charm against bullets

I'm so far away, the future's behind you (me)

I see everything in purple, in PayPal

Half-Negro, half-Neanderthal

No blood, no revolution

Just dead ends on the agenda

Like in every execution

Floating pack, cocaine

...

[French]

Ouais, eh, eh, eh

Ouais, eh, eh, eh

J'suis tellement loin, l'futur est derrière moi

J'ai tous les contacts, allons leur prendre de l'oseille

Le canon est froid, il veut te parler à l'oreille

J'espère que je serai prêt le jour où ça va chier

J'ai perdu des amis, des vrais, de nombreux anges m'ont lâché

Avec la horde, flingue à la main, devant la fête

Je vais m'endormir à la morgue, m'réveiller d'une balle dans la tête

J'me suis fait piquer comme un veau, combien vaut mon futur, j'sais pas

Laissez-nous voir nos fils, nous dire qu'ils sont papas

La hagra, ça paye pas, apparemment si

J'ai l'impression que ça va pas, j'ai coupé l'canon à la scie

Tu honores le mauvais drapeau, ton étendard t'a menti

Pablo Escobar s'fait la peau, tu ressors faire un ient-cli

Saint-Martin, côté hollandais, paquet flottant, cocaïna

Un cheat-code pour la crypto', mettez-moi deux Mona Lisa

Faudra les fumer avant ou ça va tourner au drame

Diallo m'a prit 200 eu' pour un grigri contre les balles

J'suis tellement loin, l'futur est derrière oi-m

J'vois tout en mauve, en PayPal

Mi-négro, mi-Néandertal

Pas d'sang, pas d'révolution

Que des sans issue au sommaire

Comme dans chaque exécution

On remonte la deux roues surchargées, ça envoie l'bédo à mes timals

Que du cash dans le réseau, mettez-moi deux Mona Lisa

Faudra les fumer avant ou ça va tourner au drame

Zizou m'a dit "descends-les, ça va nous rapporter des balles"

C'qu'on a commencé, on l'achèvera, tu peux demander à Ibou

On allume ton bout-mara (pah, pah) tant que le ciel est avec nous

Parler, ne m'intéresse pas, j'préfère tous les mettre à genoux (hey, hey)

Papote avec mon 12 coups, p't-être que tu l'intéresseras (pah, pah)

La hagra, ça paye pas, pourtant, j'ai grossi

La honda, JSX, numéro 10, Maradona

On a fumé l'espoir, faut toucher du bois (pah, pah)

Fuck ton abus d'pouvoir, chez moi, c'est les balles qui font la loi

Saint-Martin, côté hollandais, paquet flottant, cocaïna

Un cheat-code pour la crypto', mettez-moi deux Mona Lisa

Faudra les fumer avant ou ça va tourner au drame

Diallo m'a prit 200 eu' pour un grigri contre les balles

J'suis tellement loin, l'futur est derrière oi-m

J'vois tout en mauve, en PayPal

Mi-négro, mi-Néandertal

Pas d'sang, pas d'révolution

Que des sans issue au sommaire

Comme dans chaque exécution

Paquet flottant, cocaïna

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
contacts /kɔ̃takt/ B1	noun - people you are connected or in communication with
canon /kɑ̃nɔ̃/ B2	noun - a firearm, especially a large gun
futur /fytyʁ/ B2	noun - the time yet to come; the future
amitié /ami.te/ B2	noun - friendship; friendly relationship
pouvoir /pu.vwaʁ/ B2	noun / verb - the power or ability to do something; to be able to
sang /sɑ̃/ A2	noun - blood
révolution /ʁe.vɔ.ly.sjɔ̃/ B2	noun - a significant change or upheaval in a political or social system
drapeau /dʁapo/ B1	noun - a flag
cocaïna /kɔ.ka.in.a/ B2	noun - cocaine (a drug)
crypto /kʁyp.to/ B2	noun - cryptocurrency; encryption
Mona Lisa /ˈmo.na ˈli.za/ C2	noun - a famous portrait painting by Leonardo da Vinci
fumer /fy.me/ B1	verb - to smoke
tourner /tuʁne/ B2	verb - to turn; to rotate or spin

Key Grammar Structures

• J'suis tellement loin, l'futur est derrière moi

  ➔ Adverb of degree ('tellement') modifying an adjective ('loin'); inversion for emphasis ('l'futur est derrière moi').

  ➔ "Tellement" intensifies the distance; the inverted sentence structure emphasizes the distance from the future.

• Allons leur prendre de l'oseille

  ➔ Imperative mood ("Allons") with indirect object pronoun ("leur"); partitive article ("de l'oseille") indicating an unspecified quantity.

  ➔ "Allons leur prendre" is an imperative command to take money (slang "oseille") from them.

• J'espère que je serai prêt le jour où ça va chier

  ➔ Subjunctive mood ("serai") after "espère que" expressing doubt or uncertainty about a future event; impersonal expression "ça va chier" (literally "it's going to shit")

  ➔ "Ça va chier" is a vulgar expression implying that something bad will happen. The speaker hopes to be ready when things go wrong.

• Tu honores le mauvais drapeau, ton étendard t'a menti

  ➔ Use of the present tense to express a general truth or ongoing action ("Tu honores"); past anterior tense ("t'a menti") to indicate an action completed before another point in the past.

  ➔ The phrase suggests that the person is misguided and following a false ideology or leader. The banner ("étendard") has deceived them.

• Faudra les fumer avant ou ça va tourner au drame

  ➔ Impersonal verb "faudra" (future of "falloir") expressing necessity; conditional sentence indicating a potential negative consequence.

  ➔ It implies that they must eliminate something (possibly drugs or rivals) before a dramatic, negative situation unfolds.

• Diallo m'a prit 200 eu' pour un grigri contre les balles

  ➔ Informal verb conjugation ("prit" instead of "pris"); use of "contre" to indicate protection against something.

  ➔ Diallo charged him 200 euros for a good luck charm ("grigri") to protect him from bullets. The use of "prit" instead of "pris" is a common feature of informal speech.

• Mi-négro, mi-Néandertal

  ➔ Use of "mi-" prefix (meaning "half") to combine two nouns, creating a compound identity or characteristic.

  ➔ The phrase creates a striking contrast, implying a mix of modern and primitive traits within the speaker.