Cairaguas (cairaguas) wrote in songlations,
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songlations

"Intro: Crónica de un Nacimiento" by Calle 13, English translation of lyrics

"Introduction: Chronicle of a Birth"

Album: Los de Atrás Vienen Conmigo (The Ones Behind Are Coming with Me), 2008
Style: Classic storytelling, autobiographical
Country: Puerto Rico

Listen:

Best album introduction ever. For their third album, Calle 13 wrote an autobiographical account of the group’s history after their second album did not sell as well as their first. The story is a warning to fans that without their support, Calle 13 will disappear. It is told in the classical dramatic style of a children’s story narrative, complete with genre-appropriate background music and sound effects. Listen to it at YouTube here.

[Expand embedded video]

Translation:

Un 29 de noviembre del año 2005 por accidente nació el Residente.
El Residente acaparó los medios de repente, casi como un asalto.
Se metió dentro del cuerpo de un joven en Trujillo Alto.


One 29th of November in the year 2005*, the Resident was born by an accident of fate. [*release date of 1st album]
The resident hoarded resources immediately, almost like an assault.
He took over the body of a young man in Trujillo Alto [*a municipality of Puerto Rico].

Al joven René Pérez lo convirtió en su marioneta:
Le arrancó su apellido, le quitó su identidad completa,
Le robó su familia, le quitó su novia...
Le amarró su cabeza a un baúl repleto de todas sus fobias.


He turned the youth René Pérez into his marionette:
He stripped off his last name, he took away his entire identity,
He stole his family, he took his girlfriend…
He tied his head inside a trunk filled with all his phobias.

Le puso una pistola en la boca y dos rifles en cada oreja.

He put a handgun in his mouth and two rifles in each ear.

-¡No me mates!

-Don't kill me!

-¡Callate! ¡No quiero quejas! ¡Y no me levantes las cejas!
¡Yo soy el Residente Calle 13, ja ja ja ja ja!


-Shut up! I don’t want complaints! And don’t raise your eyebrows at me!
I am the Resident Calle 13, ha ha ha ha ha!

...Gritaba el Residente enloquecido,
Despertando en aquel mundo a todos los dormidos.


...Yelled the Resident madly,
Waking up all those who slept in that world.

Con una navaja el Residente le arrancó la piel de la cara;
El joven René Pérez casi ya no respiraba.
Le dijo al Residente con valentía y repudio:
"Ahora voy a desconectar los cables del estudio..."


With a pocket knife, the Resident tore René’s skin from his face;
The youth René Pérez almost couldn’t breathe now.
He told the Resident with valor and disapproval [*lit. repudiation]:
"Now I am going to disconnect the studio cables..."

[Sound of electricity going out]

Como por arte de magia el Residente desapareció,
Por aquellos mundos confusos nadie más lo vio,
Y es que sin música el Residente Calle 13 no puede existir.
Escuchándolo es la única manera de volverlo a revivir.


As if by (an act of) magic, the Resident disappeared,
By those eclectic worlds, no one saw him again,
And it’s because without music the Resident Calle 13 cannot exist. [*reference to 2nd album not selling well]
Listening to him is the only way to bring him back. [*lit. ...the only way to revive him again.]

Tuvo que venir un imbécil y su música escuchar
Para que el Residente Calle 13 nos volviera a visitar...


There had to come by some imbecile to listen to his music
So that the Resident Calle 13 would visit us once more…

Translation Notes:

This introduction closely mimics a popular style used to dramatize children’s stories in the Spanish-speaking world. When I was little, my mom bought us cassettes of children’s stories in Spanish and the narratives sounded just like this, with the sound effects and the background music, and the speaker’s lively voice. This is a great imitation. I love it.

---

Como por arte de magia el Residente desapareció
As if by (an act of) magic, the Resident disappeared
As if by the art of magic, the Resident disappeared [*lit.]

Por aquellos mundos confusos nadie más lo vio
By those eclectic worlds, no one saw him again
By those disordered/mixed-up worlds, no one saw him again [*lit.]

This line is utilizing a lesser used meaning of the word confuso, which more commonly means confusing or incoherent.

---

Tuvo que venir un imbécil y su música escuchar
There had to come by some imbecile to listen to his music
There had to come an imbecile and his music listen to [*lit.]

Calle 13 teasingly insults their fans here.

General Announcement:

Hello readers! You might have song requests. Please send them to me. I tend to translate several songs at once and post them as they finish. Currently, my works in progress folder needs more artist variety. Send me variety. I take most song translation requests provided that they are something that I can do. I need to listen to the song (so post a link where I can listen for free), have a transcription of the lyrics (I will find it online and edit it as long as I can make out the words in mistranscribed lines), and be able to understand it well (so very obscure slang might be a problem, but that comes up rarely). Feel encouraged to send more than one request. The process is very simple: Post a comment somewhere in Songlations asking for "Some Song Title" by Some Artist, and provide a YouTube/Vimeo/etc. link. Thank you!
Tags: calle 13
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