Veloso is the fifth of the seven children born to José Telles Veloso ("Seu Zezinho") and Claudionor Vianna Telles Veloso ("Dona Canô"). His younger sister Maria Bethânia, another popular and renowned artist in Brazil, preceded him to fame as a singer in the mid-1960s. He began his career around 1965 singing bossa nova and he has cited his greatest musical influences from his early period as João Gilberto and Dorival Caymmi. (João Gilberto would say later about Caetano's contribution that it added an intellectual dimension to brazilian popular music.) But with such musical collaborators Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, Tom Zé, Chico Buarque, and Os Mutantes, and greatly influenced by the later work of The Beatles, developed tropicalismo, which fused Brazilian pop with rock and roll and avant garde art music resulting in a more international, psychedelic, and socially aware sound. Veloso's politically active stance, unapologetically leftist, earned him the enmity of Brazil's military dictatorship which ruled until 1985; his songs were frequently censored, and some were banned. Veloso was also alienated from the socialist left in Brazil becasue of his acceptance and integration of non-nationalist influences (like rock and roll) in his music. Veloso and Gilberto Gil spent several months in jail for "anti-government activity" in 1968 and eventually exiled themselves to London. Caetano Veloso's work upon his return in 1972 was often characterized by frequent appropriations not only of international styles, but of half-forgotten Brazilian folkloric styles and rhythms as well. In particular, his celebration of the Afro-Brazilian culture of Bahia can be seen as the precursor of such Afro-centric groups as Timbalada.
In the 1980s, Veloso's popularity outside Brazil grew, especially in Israel, Portugal, France and Africa. By 2004, he was one of the most respected and prolific international pop stars, with more than fifty recordings available, including songs in soundtracks of movies such as Pedro Almodovar's Hable con Ella (Talk to Her), and Frida. In 2002 Veloso published an account of his early years and the Tropicalia movement, Tropical Truth: A Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil.
His first all-English CD was A Foreign Sound (2004), which covers Nirvana's "Come as You Are" and compositions from the Great American Songbook. Five of the six songs on his third eponymous album, released in 1971, were also in English.
Disseram Que Eu Voltei Americanizada
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Com o burro do dinheiro
Que estou muito rica
Que não suporto mais o breque do pandeiro
E fico arrepiada ouvindo uma cuíca
E disseram que com as mãos
Estou preocupada
E corre por aí
Que já não tenho molho, ritmo, nem nada
E dos balangandans já não existe mais nenhum
Mas pra cima de mim, pra que tanto veneno
Eu posso lá ficar americanizada
Eu que nasci com o samba e vivo no sereno
Topando a noite inteira a velha batucada
Nas rodas de malandro minhas preferidas
Eu digo mesmo eu te amo, e nunca I love you
Enquanto houver Brasil
Na hora da comida
Eu sou do camarão ensopadinho com chuchu
The lyrics of Caetano Veloso's "Disseram Que Eu Voltei Americanizada" are a response to rumors that the singer had returned from the United States with a lot of money and had become "Americanized." The song begins by acknowledging these rumors, but Veloso quickly denies them, saying that he still loves Brazilian samba and enjoys listening to instruments like the pandeiro and cuíca. He also dismisses the idea that he has lost his sense of rhythm, saying that he still loves to play the drums with his malandro friends.
Veloso is clearly frustrated with the way others perceive him, as he sings, "But what's the point of all this venom directed at me? Can't I be Americanized while still loving samba, while still spending all night dancing to the old batucada?" He emphasizes his connection to Brazilian culture and the importance of his roots, declaring that he will never say "I love you" instead of "eu te amo."
Overall, the song is a powerful statement of Veloso's identity and his rejection of stereotypes and negative assumptions about him. It demonstrates his deep love for Brazilian culture and music and his refusal to be defined by anyone else's ideas about who he should be.
Line by Line Meaning
Disseram que eu voltei americanizada
People are saying that I came back from America with a new mindset and culture.
Com o burro do dinheiro
They say that I came back with a lot of money.
Que estou muito rica
They say I am very wealthy now.
Que não suporto mais o breque do pandeiro
They say that I don't enjoy the traditional Brazilian music and dance anymore.
E fico arrepiada ouvindo uma cuíca
They say I even feel uncomfortable listening to some specific Brazilian instruments like cuíca.
E disseram que com as mãos Estou preocupada
Some say I am constantly worried and anxious.
E corre por aí Que eu sei certo zum zum
Rumors are spreading that I am aware of what they are saying about me.
Que já não tenho molho, ritmo, nem nada
They say that I lost the groove and rhythm in my soul, and I don't have anything left anymore.
E dos balangandans já não existe mais nenhum
They say that I don't wear Brazilian traditional jewelry anymore.
Mas pra cima de mim, pra que tanto veneno
But why do people spread so much negativity about me?
Eu posso lá ficar americanizada
As if I could become completely Americanized.
Eu que nasci com o samba e vivo no sereno
I was born with samba in my blood and I still live a simple life under the moonlight.
Topando a noite inteira a velha batucada
I still go out to parties and dance to traditional Brazilian music all night.
Nas rodas de malandro minhas preferidas
My favorite social gatherings were always within the malandro community.
Eu digo mesmo eu te amo, e nunca I love you
I express love in my own cultural way, not conforming to American standards.
Enquanto houver Brasil Na hora da comida
As long as Brazil exists, I'll always enjoy my traditional Brazilian cuisine.
Eu sou do camarão ensopadinho com chuchu
I prefer shrimp stew with chayote over any American dish.
Contributed by Xavier K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Renan Gabriel
Eu digo mesmo “ eu te amo” e nunca I LOVE YOU.
XxTeNtAcIoN Xx
Excelente Caetano Veloso
Hi zza
A voz dele parece um sussurro de tão dócil
Leandro de Barros Motta
OTIMA VERSAO.TBEM INTERPRETADO POR CARME MIRANDA!
canal GAMES
caetano o melhor , alias a mpb e a melhor
Andre Elias
Gostei da versão dele, mas admito que prefiro quando essa música é tocada mais lentinha, mais arrastada. :-)
Marcos Elbem
Concordo plenamente. Nosso gosto
Marcelo Veloso
Também achei que Caetano acelerou demais.rs
Gabriella Feijó
Melhor versão.
ALEX ALEX
Acelerou demais. Pena ..