Born Maria do Céu Whitaker Poças on 17th April 1980 in São Paulo, Brazil, h… Read Full Bio ↴Born Maria do Céu Whitaker Poças on 17th April 1980 in São Paulo, Brazil, her father was a composer, arranger, and musicologist. It was from him that she learned to appreciate Brazil's classical music composers, particularly Heitor Villa-Lobos and Ernesto Nazaré, as well as popular musicians like Orlando Silva.

By the age of fifteen she had decided to become a musician, and by her late teens she had studied music theory, as well as the violão (nylon-stringed Brazilian guitar). Her songs reveal her many influences, which include samba, valsa, choro, soul, rhythm and blues, hip hop, reggae, afrobeat, and electrojazz. In particular, she cites as influences the music of Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Lauryn Hill, and Erykah Badu.

By her late teens Céu was performing onstage with major artists and exploring the repertoire of the marchinhas (turn-of-the-century carnival music). Soon after that she relocated temporarily to New York City, where she had a chance meeting with fellow Brazilian musician Antonio Pinto, who became her flatmate while he was going through some financial difficulties. She later learned that he was actually a distant cousin, and their relationship was renewed when he teamed up with lead producer Beto Villares, composer of the musical score for the film O Ano em que Meus Pais Saíram de Férias, to help her record her album.

O Ronco da Cuíca
Céu Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Roncou, roncou
Roncou de raiva a cuíca
Roncou de fome
Alguém mandou
Mandou parar a cuíca
É coisa dos "home"...(2x)

A raiva dá prá parar

Prá interromper
A fome não dá
Prá interromper
A fome e a raiva
É coisa dos "home"
A fome tem que ter raiva
Prá interromper
A raiva é a fome
De interromper
A fome e a raiva
É coisa dos "home"
É coisa dos "home"
É coisa dos "home"
A raiva e a fome
Mexendo a cuíca
Vai ter que roncar...

Roncou, roncou
Roncou de raiva a cuíca
Roncou de fome
Alguém mandou
Mandou parar a cuíca
É coisa dos "home"...(2x)

A raiva dá prá parar
Prá interromper
A fome não dá
Prá interromper
A fome e a raiva
É coisa dos "home"
A fome tem que ter raiva
Prá interromper
A raiva é a fome
De interromper
A fome e a raiva
É coisa dos "home"
É coisa dos "home"
É coisa dos "home"
A raiva e a fome
Mexendo a cuíca
Vai ter que roncar...

Roncou, roncou
Roncou de raiva a cuíca
Roncou de fome
Alguém mandou

Mandou parar a cuíca
É coisa dos "home"...(2x)

Overall Meaning

Céu's song O Ronco da Cuíca speaks about the sound of the cuíca drum, which rumbles with anger and hunger. The lyrics suggest that someone has instructed the drum to stop making noise, possibly because the sound is considered annoying or disruptive. However, the cuíca continues to rumble with resentment and hunger, as these emotions cannot easily be subdued.

The lyrics explore the relationship between hunger and anger, emphasizing that these two feelings are intertwined and cannot be separated. Hunger is portrayed as a force that cannot be easily controlled or silenced, while anger is depicted as an instinctive response to being denied food. The phrase "é coisa dos 'home'" is repeated throughout the song, which roughly translates to "that's just how it is," implying that hunger and anger are natural and unavoidable parts of the human condition.

Overall, the song seems to be a commentary on oppression and the struggle for survival. The cuíca represents a marginalized group that is being silenced and ignored, forced to deal with the constant frustration of hunger and anger. By giving voice to the cuíca's rumbles, Céu invites us to take notice of the experiences of those who are often silenced and overlooked.

Line by Line Meaning

Roncou, roncou
The cuíca made a sound, a rough and deep sound

Roncou de raiva a cuíca
The cuíca made this sound of anger

Roncou de fome
The cuíca made this sound of hunger

Alguém mandou
Someone ordered to stop the cuíca

Mandou parar a cuíca
Someone ordered to stop playing the cuíca

É coisa dos "home"...
It's something typical of men...

A raiva dá prá parar
You can control your anger, you can stop it

Prá interromper
To interrupt, to stop

A fome não dá
You can't control your hunger, you can't stop it

A fome e a raiva
Hunger and anger

É coisa dos "home"
It's something typical of men