Je Me Promets by Meryem Aboulouafa
Due to a request this week, we're straying from our usual colloquial Arabic to translate a song from Fusha. Despite the French title, Je Me Promets is in Arabic. The artist, Meryem Aboulouafa (مريم ابو الوفاء), is a singer/songwriter from Casablanca, Morocco. Her musical style has been influenced by a mix of Arabic classics, French pop, and American and British rock, resulting in a layered and ethereal sound. In Je Me Promets, Aboulouafa ventures into an almost spoken-word style. The song gained some attention when it was included in the soundtrack of the popular Jordanian Netflix show, AlRawabi School for Girls. Both the song and the show are a bit dark and grapple with issues of self-image and societal judgment.
Lyrics by Meryem Aboulouafa, translation by Fi Kalam, edited by Saeed Alaktaa
كيفما سارت الأقدار
However fate went
و رفعتني عاليا ثم لطختني مع الأرض
It raised me up so high then stained me with the ground
و اشتق عظمي
I miss my bones
و سال دمي
My blood flows
أعدني أني سأحيي فخري من الرماد الحمر الداف
I promise myself that I will resurrect my honor from the warm, red ash
و أولع من عدمي حتى تشتعل في الحياة
I’ll revel in my nihilism until life goes up in flames
أعدني أنني ساحبني
I promise myself that I will love myself
أعدني أنني ساحبني
I promise myself that I will love myself
كيفما سارت الأقدار
However fate went
و بثرني الإنس من الاعتبار
The people rejected me
و كيفما وشم علي الزمن بالعار
Oh how time tattoos me with shame
و اتفق علي بالإجماع
And the majority agree about me
اني كالعشب البري الضار
That I am a weed
[Literal translation: that I am a harmful wild herb]
اعدني بالوفاء الى نفسي
I promise myself loyalty to myself
الى عرقي و مسقط راسي
To my heritage and to my hometown
ساحترمني لعيوبي
That I will respect my flaws
تناقضي فاشلي و ياسي
My contradictions, failures, and despairs
كيفما سارت الأقدار
However fate went
و رفعتني عاليا ثم لطختني مع الأرض
It raised me up so high then stained me with the ground
و اشتق عظمي
I miss my bones
و سال دمي
My blood flows
أعدني أني سأحيي فخري من الرماد الحمر الداف
I promise myself that I will resurrect my honor from the warm, red ash
و أولع من عدمي حتى تشتعل في الحياة
I’ll revel in my nihilism until life goes up in flames
أعدني أنني ساحبني
I promise myself that I will love myself
أعدني أنني ساحبني
I promise myself that I will love myself
سأحبني...سأحبني...أحبني
I will love myself…I will love myself…I love myself
Vocabulary / مفردات
الأقدار
Fate
The root, قدر, also means "to be able"
الأرض
The ground or the earth
عظم ج عظام
Bone/s
الرماد
The ash or the ashes
العدمية
Nihilism
تشتعل / اشتعلت
She/it/you (masc.) ignites / ignited
أعود / وعدت
I promise / I promised
يوشم / وشم
He tattoos / he tattooed
الزمن
Time
عشب / أعشاب
A weed / weeds
الوفاء
Fulfillment
عرق
Ethnicity or race
Also means sweat
احترام
Respect
