Arca embraces fluidity and changing between states, whether it be gender, genre, or personality. In a 2020 interview, they say "We all have multiple personalities. Rather than causing panic, I think maybe that could cause some relief". "There was a clear intention on her fourth album, Kick i to allow every self to express itself. Not to decide how much air time each self would get, but to allow for modulation between them in a spontaneous way. There is no such thing as normal". In Mutability and ambivalence guide the sound of her music — the atmospheres they create often contain abrasive percussive blasts, metal-shop whine, the screech of subway brakes, the whine of jet engines overheating. Anthropomorphic and animalistic sounds abound —mewling cats, mooing cows, anguished screams, the grunts and groans of orgasm, commingling pleasure and terror and beauty and ugliness in the most thrilling ways possible.
She has also been credited for her writing/producing efforts on Björk's Vulnicura and the entirety of Utopia. Alongside FKA twigs' EP2 as well as for their collaborations with Dean Blunt, Frank Ocean, Kelela, Kanye West, ROSALÍA and Lady Gaga, among others.
Afterwards
Arca Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Soñé, ¡bendita ilusión!
Que una colmena tenía
Dentro de mi corazón
Y las doradas abejas
Iban fabricando en él
En él con las amarguras viejas
Blanca cera y dulce miel
Papi, I'm your mami
Come, let's trade milk
And let me heal you
Papi, I'm your mami
Let's trade milk
Come, let me heal you
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Papi, let me heal you
Together
And afterwards
The lyrics of Arca's song "Afterwards" are a combination of two different parts. The first part is a poem by Antonio Machado called "Anoche cuando dormía" (Last night while I was sleeping) which talks about a dream of having a beehive inside the poet's heart. The golden bees were producing honey and white wax inside the heart, even with the old bitterness. This dream symbolizes the process of transformation, turning something painful into something beautiful. It also represents the idea of love being like honey, which brings sweetness into one's heart and turns the bitterness into something good.
The second part of the song is a repetition of a couple of verses, spoken by Arca to her "Papi". The lyrics are very intimate and evoke a sense of healing and comfort. Arca addresses her lover as "Papi" (daddy), which can be interpreted as a term of endearment or a mode of power play within a BDSM relationship. The act of trading milk with him can be seen as a sexual euphemism, as well as a metaphor for the process of healing. Through this act, Arca is offering herself as a nurturing and maternal figure to her lover, who is in need of healing. The last two lines, "Together, and afterwards" represent a promise of unity and solidarity, and a hopeful outlook towards the future.
Line by Line Meaning
Anoche cuando dormía
Last night, while I was asleep
Soñé, ¡bendita ilusión!
I dreamed, what a blessed illusion!
Que una colmena tenía
That I had a beehive
Dentro de mi corazón
Inside my heart
Y las doradas abejas
And the golden bees
Iban fabricando en él
Were making in it
En él con las amarguras viejas
In it, among old bitternesses
Blanca cera y dulce miel
White wax and sweet honey
Papi, I'm your mami
Daddy, I'm your mommy
Come, let's trade milk
Let's share milk
And let me heal you
And let me heal you
Papi, I'm your mami
Daddy, I'm your mommy
Let's trade milk
Let's share milk
Come, let me heal you
Come, let me heal you
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Afterwards
Papi, let me heal you
Daddy, let me heal you
Together
Together
And afterwards
And afterwards
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Alejandra Ghersi, Bjork Gudmundsdottir
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Pablo Cañal
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que una fontana fluía
dentro de mi corazón.
Di: ¿por qué acequia escondida,
agua, vienes hasta mí,
manantial de nueva vida
en donde nunca bebí?
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que una colmena tenía
dentro de mi corazón;
y las doradas abejas
iban fabricando en él,
con las amarguras viejas,
blanca cera y dulce miel.
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que un ardiente sol lucía
dentro de mi corazón.
Era ardiente porque daba
calores de rojo hogar,
y era sol porque alumbraba
y porque hacía llorar.
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que era Dios lo que tenía
dentro de mi corazón.
Antonio Machado, 1907
emomu
I love how Bjork sings in Spanish while Arca sings in English, almost as if they have switched places lol
Christopher Toloza
Jamás creí que Björk llegara a cantar alguna vez en español. Ya puedo morir en paz.
Geraldine Carrasquel
Escuchar a björk cantando en español fue un sueño hecho realidad
Pablo Cañal
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que una fontana fluía
dentro de mi corazón.
Di: ¿por qué acequia escondida,
agua, vienes hasta mí,
manantial de nueva vida
en donde nunca bebí?
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que una colmena tenía
dentro de mi corazón;
y las doradas abejas
iban fabricando en él,
con las amarguras viejas,
blanca cera y dulce miel.
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que un ardiente sol lucía
dentro de mi corazón.
Era ardiente porque daba
calores de rojo hogar,
y era sol porque alumbraba
y porque hacía llorar.
Anoche cuando dormía
soñé ¡bendita ilusión!
que era Dios lo que tenía
dentro de mi corazón.
Antonio Machado, 1907
Claudia Semini
Björk sings a description of evocative Arca's path!
Brandi *
The voice of my soul...female = Bjork...male = Dax Riggs.
lara gui
BRAZIL LOVE YOU ARCA
Terrance Barnes
In love omg ✨
belkhir bensayah
and currently she's inspired by her latest model songs, As Well Bjork does a different for choice a new names to Album.
andrea alderuccio
Bjork magic