Nothin' On You – English Lyrics

• By: B.o.B, Bruno Mars
• Album: B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into this smooth blend of hip hop and pop to master conversational English and romantic expressions. Through its catchy melodies and rhythmic flow, you can learn how to express admiration and use common idioms used in modern pop culture.

[English]

Beautiful girls, all over the world

I could be chasin', but my time would be wasted

They got nothin' on you, baby

Nothin' on you, baby

They might say, "Hi," and I might say, "Hey"

But you shouldn't worry about what they say

'Cause they got nothin' on you, baby (yeah)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you) yeah

I know you feel where I'm comin' from (from)

Regardless of the things in my past that I've done (done)

Most of it really was for the hell of the fun (fun)

On the carousel, so around I spun (spun)

With no direction, just tryna get some (some)

Tryna chase skirts, livin' in the summer sun (sun)

And so I lost more than I had ever won (won)

And honestly, I ended up with none (huh?)

There's so much nonsense, it's on my conscience

I'm thinkin' maybe I should get it out

And I don't wanna sound redundant, but I was wonderin'

If there was somethin' that you wanna know (that you wanna know)

But never mind that, we should let it go (we should let it go)

'Cause we don't wanna be a TV episode (TV episode)

And all the bad thoughts, just let 'em go (go), go (go), go (hey)

Beautiful girls, all over the world

I could be chasin', but my time would be wasted

They got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

They might say, "Hi" (hi), and I might say, "Hey" (hey)

But you shouldn't worry about what they say (why?)

'Cause they got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you) yeah

Hands down, there will never be another one (nope)

I been around and I never seen another one (nah)

Because your style, they ain't really got nothin' on (nothin')

And you wild when you ain't got nothin' on

Baby, you the whole package, plus, you pay your taxes (huh)

And you keep it real while them others stay plastic (plastic)

You're my Wonder Woman, call me Mr. Fantastic

Stop, now think about it

I've been to London (yeah), I've been to Paris (yeah)

Even way out there to Tokyo (Tokyo)

Back home down in Georgia (yeah) to New Orleans (yeah)

But you always steal the show (steal the show)

And just like that, girl, you got me froze (got me froze)

Like a Nintendo 64 (64)

If you never knew, well, now you know (know), know (know), know (hey)

Beautiful girls (yeah), all over the world (all over)

I could be chasin', but my time would be wasted

They got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

They might say, "Hi" (hi), and I might say, "Hey" (hey)

But you shouldn't worry about what they say (why?)

'Cause they got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you) yeah

Everywhere I go, I'm always hearin' your name (name)

And no matter where I'm at, girl, you make me wanna sing (sing)

Whether a bus or a plane (plane), or a car or a train (train)

No other girl's in my brain and you the one to blame (blame)

Beautiful girls (yeah), all over the world (all over)

I could be chasin', but my time would be wasted (why?)

They got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

They might say, "Hi" (hi), and I might say, "Hey" (hello)

But you shouldn't worry about what they say (why?)

'Cause they got nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you)

Nothin' on you, baby (na-na-na-nothin' on you, baby)

(Na-nothin' on you) yeah

Yeah, and that's just how we do it

And I'ma let this ride

B.o.B and Bruno Mars

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
beautiful /ˈbjuːtɪfʊl/ A1	adjective - pleasing to the senses or mind aesthetically
worry /ˈwʌri/ A2	verb - to feel anxious or troubled about actual or potential problems
chase /tʃeɪs/ B1	verb - to pursue in order to catch or overtake
waste /weɪst/ A2	verb - to use or expend carelessly, extravagantly, or to no purpose
fun /fʌn/ A1	noun - enjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure
spin /spɪn/ B1	verb - to turn or cause to turn or whirl round quickly (past participle 'spun' used in lyrics)
direction /daɪˈrɛkʃən/, /dɪˈrɛkʃən/ A2	noun - the general line along which something exists, develops, or points
lose /luːz/ A1	verb - to be deprived of or cease to have or retain (something) (past participle 'lost' used in lyrics)
honest /ˈɒnɪst/ B1	adjective - truthful and sincere
nonsense /ˈnɒnsəns/ B2	noun - spoken or written words that have no meaning or make no sense
conscience /ˈkɒnʃəns/ B2	noun - an inner feeling or voice acting as a guide to the rightness or wrongness of one's behavior
redundant /rɪˈdʌndənt/ B2	adjective - not or no longer needed or useful; superfluous
wonder /ˈwʌndər/ A2	verb - to want to know or learn something
style /staɪl/ A2	noun - a distinctive appearance, typically determined by the principles according to which something is designed
wild /waɪld/ B1	adjective - (of a person) uncontrolled or unrestrained, especially in the pursuit of pleasure
package /ˈpækɪdʒ/ B1	noun - a set of proposals or items offered or agreed to as a whole (idiomatic: 'the whole package' refers to a person having all desirable qualities)
plastic /ˈplæstɪk/ B1	adjective - artificial and not sincere or genuine ('stay plastic' implying being fake or insincere)
steal /stiːl/ B2	verb - to take (another person's property) without permission or legal right (literal); to take all the attention or praise (idiomatic, as in 'steal the show')
freeze /friːz/ B2	verb - to turn into ice or a solid (literal); to become motionless or stuck in one position (idiomatic, as in 'got me froze')
blame /bleɪm/ B1	verb - to feel or state that someone or something is responsible for a fault or wrong

Key Grammar Structures

• I could be chasin', but my time would be wasted

  ➔ Conditional Type 2 (unreal present/future) with progressive aspect and Passive Voice

  ➔ This sentence uses the **second conditional** structure to talk about hypothetical or unreal situations in the present or future. Here, the 'if clause' is implied ("If I were chasing..."). "Could be chasing" indicates a hypothetical continuous action or possibility, and "would be wasted" uses the **passive voice** (be + past participle) to show that the time is the receiver of the action, emphasizing the consequence.

• But you shouldn't worry about what they say

  ➔ Modal Verb 'shouldn't' for advice/recommendation + Noun Clause

  ➔ "Shouldn't" is a modal verb used to give advice or make recommendations, indicating something is not advisable. The phrase "what they say" is a **noun clause** acting as the object of the preposition "about". Noun clauses begin with words like 'what', 'where', 'who', 'how', 'that', 'if', or 'whether' and function as nouns (subject, object, complement).

• Regardless of the things in my past that I've done

  ➔ Prepositional Phrase 'Regardless of' + Relative Clause + Present Perfect

  ➔ "Regardless of" is a prepositional phrase meaning "without being affected or influenced by something." It introduces a contrasting or irrelevant factor. "That I've done" is a **relative clause** (or adjective clause) that modifies "the things," providing more information about them. It uses the **Present Perfect tense** ("I've done") to describe actions that happened at an unspecified time in the past but have a connection or relevance to the present.

• On the carousel, so around I spun

  ➔ Inversion for emphasis (Adverbial phrase + Verb + Subject)

  ➔ This sentence uses **inversion for emphasis**, where the usual subject-verb order is reversed. Instead of the standard "so I spun around," the adverbial phrase "around" is placed at the beginning of the clause for dramatic effect or to emphasize the direction of movement, followed by the verb ("spun") and then the subject ("I"). This structure is more common in literary or poetic language, or for heightened effect.

• And so I lost more than I had ever won

  ➔ Comparative 'more than' + Past Perfect tense

  ➔ "More than" is used to make a **comparison** between two quantities or qualities. The **Past Perfect tense** ("had ever won") is used to describe an action that happened *before* another action in the past. In this case, "winning" happened before "losing," providing a sequence of past events.

• And honestly, I ended up with none

  ➔ Phrasal Verb 'end up (with)'

  ➔ "End up" is a **phrasal verb** meaning "to finally be in a particular place or situation, often unexpectedly." When followed by "with" and a noun/pronoun (like "none"), it means to finish a process or situation having or getting something (or nothing, in this case).

• I been around and I never seen another one

  ➔ Informal / Non-Standard Use of Present Perfect (lack of 'have' and non-standard past participle)

  ➔ This line demonstrates **informal or non-standard English**, common in casual speech and song lyrics. Grammatically, it should be "I **have been** around" (Present Perfect for experience) and "I **have never seen** another one" (Present Perfect for an action not experienced up to now). The omission of "have" and the use of "seen" instead of "saw" or "have seen" (as a past simple equivalent, or just a simplified present perfect) are characteristic of **colloquial speech** but are not grammatically standard.

• And just like that, girl, you got me froze

  ➔ Informal Causative Verb 'get + object + past participle'

  ➔ This is an informal construction of a **causative verb**. The standard form would typically be "you made me frozen" (make + object + adjective/past participle) or "you caused me to freeze." Here, "got me froze" means "you caused me to become frozen" or "you made me feel frozen/stunned." "Got" (from "get") is used to mean "cause something to happen," followed by the object ("me") and then the **past participle** ("froze," which is informally used instead of "frozen").

• Everywhere I go, I'm always hearin' your name

  ➔ Adverbial Clause of Place + Present Continuous with 'always'

  ➔ "Everywhere I go" is an **adverbial clause of place**, indicating "in every place where I go." "I'm always hearin'" (informal for "I'm always hearing") uses the **Present Continuous tense** with the adverb "always." While "always" usually goes with Simple Present for habits, with Present Continuous it often expresses a repeated action that is continuous, ongoing, or describes a habit that is particularly noteworthy, or, in this case, a constant, pervasive experience.

• And no matter where I'm at, girl, you make me wanna sing

  ➔ Concessive Clause 'No matter where' + Causative Verb 'make + object + bare infinitive'

  ➔ "No matter where I'm at" is a **concessive clause**, conveying that something is true regardless of the location. "You make me wanna sing" uses the **causative verb "make"**. This structure means to force or cause someone to do something: "make + object + bare infinitive" (the infinitive without "to"). "Wanna" is an informal contraction of "want to."

• I've been to London (yeah), I've been to Paris (yeah)

  ➔ Present Perfect 'have been to' for experience/visited places

  ➔ The phrase "I've been to" uses the **Present Perfect tense** to express that the speaker has visited a place at some point in their life, emphasizing the experience rather than a specific past time. It implies that the speaker is no longer in that place but has the experience of having visited it.

• I been around and I never seen another one

  ➔ Informal / Non-Standard Use of Present Perfect (lack of 'have' and non-standard past participle)

  ➔ This line demonstrates **informal or non-standard English**, common in casual speech and song lyrics. Grammatically, it should be "I **have been** around" (Present Perfect for experience) and "I **have never seen** another one" (Present Perfect for an action not experienced up to now). The omission of "have" and the use of "seen" instead of "saw" or "have seen" (as a past simple equivalent, or just a simplified present perfect) are characteristic of **colloquial speech** but are not grammatically standard.