• Shakira

    Te Felicito → English translation

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Congratulations

[Intro]
I broke into pieces to complete you
they warned me, but I didn't listen
I realized that everything which is yours is fake
that was the straw that broke the camel's back
 
[Pre-Chorus]
Don't tell me you're sorry,
it feels sincere, but I know you well and I know you lie
 
[Chorus]
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance
 
[Verse 1]
I don't buy that philosophy crap
I'm sorry I don't fall off a turnip track anymore
I can't stand two-faced people
I bet my life on you
and you treat me like one of your flings
The wound you caused didn't open my skin but opened my eyes
they turned red from crying so much for you
 
[Pre-Chorus]
And now it turns out that you're sorry
it sounds sincere, but I know you well and I know you lie
 
[Chorus: Shakira & Rauw Alejandro]
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance (Hey, he says, Ra-Rauw)
 
[Verse 2: Rauw Alejandro]
I'm telling you straight, I don't need you (Yeah)
you lost someone who was genuine (Ah)
Ι had a gut feeling we didn't connect (Uh)
it's gonna sting when you remember how we made love, (Yeah)
how it was before (Hey)
You were leaning your back on the steering wheel (Hey)
burning off the tranquilizer
I didn't block you from all my social media just so that you can see that other chick in the Mercedes (Yeah)
 
[Bridge: Shakira]
Don't tell me any more stories, I don't wanna know
How could I be so blind not to see
You deserve an Oscar, you've performed so well
 
[Chorus: Shakira & Rauw Alejandro]
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance
no doubt about that
Do your part,
that show suits you well
Congratulations, nice performance
 
Original lyrics

Te Felicito

Click to see the original lyrics (Spanish)

Comments
Don JuanDon Juan
   Sat, 23/04/2022 - 15:04

I'm far from being fluent in Spanish slang, but I have a suggestion

I didn't block you from all my social media so that you can screw that dude in the Mercedes (Yeah) > I didn't block you from all my social media so you could see my chick in the Mercedes1

As for the line you mentioned in your thread
it's gonna sting when you remember how we ate > Here they use the naughty sense of the verb 'comer'. I wouldn't use 'fuck' because it's too vulgar (and the lyrics are not), but it's in that sense.

You lean your back on the steering wheel (Hey) / burning the tranquilizer - I'd translate that like 'You [were] leaning on the steering wheel / Burning off the tranquilizer' - it's what he just said, this likely refers to a sex act between the two of them in a car - burning off the effect of a tranquilizer (because that act was really intense, so there was no reason for them to be calm or just tranquil).

This is my interpretation of those lines, of course they may not really reflect what the lyrics imply, but it gives an idea.

  • 1. He says 'la otra', which could indicate his 'main' girlfried (the one that acts like that for all effects), or his number 1 girl (while Shakira would be his side chick - or so was my interpretation of the song). Anyway, it's a girl he's talking about, so 'that dude' doesn't fit.
DimitrisDimitris
   Sat, 23/04/2022 - 15:08

That clarifies a lot, especially the "Ate" part that was suspiciously vulgar but it's written in a nice way at least. I really don't get why he mentions "my chick". Does he imply that Shakira became best friends with his chick to signify woman empowerement? Smart lyric, if that's the case. I will translate those based on your suggestion cause they seem very logical.

Thank you so much for the contribution.

Don JuanDon Juan
   Sat, 23/04/2022 - 15:20

You're welcome.

No, it's the other way around, from what I could get he: 1. either cheated on his girlfriend with Shakira while making her promises or 2. was seeing a huge group of girls, among which Shakira. Both of these make sense, but considering the whole lyrics, I'm inclined to think 1 is the real thing.

GeborgenheitGeborgenheit    Sat, 23/04/2022 - 15:21

Hi, a few corrections:

that's the straw.... - that was the straw.....
we didn't connect together - we didn't connect1
burning the tranquilizer - burning off the tranquilizer
I didn't block you from all my social media so that you can screw that dude in the Mercedes - I didn't block you from all my social media just so that you could see that chick2 in your Mercedes

One more thing, "You lean your back on the steering wheel" is actually correct because the word "espalda" is used.

  • 1. "together" is not neccesary
  • 2. She is referring to another woman, hence the "la otra"
DimitrisDimitris
   Sat, 23/04/2022 - 15:47

Thank you so much for clarifying these ones as they helped me understand the context better. I still can't properly translate the tranquilizer part even though Juan gave it away to me. But that's Shakira, she always does that with her songs, especially her older ones. Spanish idioms and Colombian dialect comes into play a lot.

BlackRyderBlackRyder
   Thu, 19/05/2022 - 20:36

Good job Dimitris, nice translation! I particularly like how you translated the chorus. Regarding the tranquillizer part, to me, it kind of implies they were probably high or using something that relaxed them before the act, and the subsequent activity burns it off, of course. It's just a hunch, but in any case, I'd leave the word tranquillizer as such and the solution you came up with and that's already been checked by Juan and G works well. If anything, I'd suggest switching 'became' for 'turned' in line #26 but that's about it. Thanks for sharing it.

MissAtomicLauMissAtomicLau
   Sat, 21/05/2022 - 00:25
5

Congratulations to you for this wonderful translation! 😃
As soon as I noticed you used an adaptation of an idiom (that was the straw that broke the camel's back), I knew it was a good job.

DimitrisDimitris
   Sat, 21/05/2022 - 04:33

Thanks to everyone who helped, contributed and supported this since Spanish is neither my native language nor a language I've mastered yet so it was a bit challenging to translate some parts. 😊

Ahmed MetwallyAhmed Metwally    Fri, 03/06/2022 - 20:52

That's a very good translation 👍 keep up the good work