His first steps as a musician were at the age of 15, in the local punk band Don Nadie. He also developed some of his musical skills in Argentina, where he travelled in 2 ocassions and played as second guitarist in the punk-metal band Diadema. and invited by the argentinian band Loquero, whose members got impressed by his skills as a performer, went to La Plata where he stayed there for some time doing live concerts at cafes and bars.
In 2007 he moves to Valparaíso to study Arts, but but drops out a little after, to focus exclusively to write and perform his songs at bars and other public locations. He started to get attention thanks to his way of playing the guitar, his androgynous voice and his ability to express. When Manuel García got to know Chinoy, he invited him to perform as the opening act at an event in the Council of Culture in Valparaíso, and in the Spain Cultural Centre, where he was being part. Soon he was traveling to various Chilean southern cities, and his song "Carne de gallina" got included in the 2007 compilation album Escuelas de Rock 1er Disco Bicentenario.
At the time he still hadn't release any record, several songs of him and illegal bootlegs were available in internet, and his MySpace reached the 130 thousand visits. His breakthrough came after filmmaker Andrés Wood asked him to create the theme song for his 2008 movie, La Buena Vida. Then he finally became a known musician in the whole the Chilean music scene. In late 2009 his long-awaited first original album Que salgan los dragones was released through the Quemasucabeza record label.
Plata pa pan
Chinoy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Volteé la hoja y prendí la luz
Vi mí mirar en el vidrio de un bus
Me fui a comenzar
Volaban mis zapatos sin betún
Colchón bajo una luna de cholhuan
Con hadas y sirenas de menú
Me ganaba mi pan
Entre el nunca jamás y el ataúd
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Plata pa′ pan
Plata pa' pan
Galán con pena, estrella de pared
Pegado a los recortes de un baúl
Isla de sangre, carne una vez al mes
Caricia de un después
Volver al mar de este tarro de atún
Un día que parece resbalar
Bajo de langa de un ebrio taur
Salté croando que soy príncipe azul
Anfibio de ciudad
Morboso y bostezando a todo full
De noche y de la boca de la mar
Oí que el pulpo halló inútil la cruz
Que el corazón del chisme era de pus
Que nada es para mal
Que el beso no era calidad del ruch
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Plata pa′ pan
Plata pa' pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Plata pa' pan
Plata pa′ pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Plata pa′ pan
Plata pa' pan.
"Plata pa pan" by Chinoy is a song that speaks to the struggles of everyday life, set against a backdrop of poverty and uncertainty. The lyrics describe the challenges faced by the singer as he tries to make ends meet, and the various ways in which he copes with these difficulties.
The song begins with the singer feeling as though time is standing still. He looks at himself in the reflection of a bus window and sees that his shoes are worn and tattered. Despite this, he is determined to keep moving forward and starts on his journey. The next verse describes his experiences living in a makeshift home under the open sky, surrounded by fantastical creatures like fairies and mermaids. He plays his guitar to earn a living, in a place that feels like somewhere between "neverland" and the grave.
The chorus is a repeated refrain of "Pan, pan, pan, pan/Plata pa' pan" which translates to "Bread, bread, bread, bread/Money for bread." This represents the main goal of the singer - to earn enough money to put food on his table. The next verse describes the struggles faced by a woman, who is compared to a "star glued to the walls." She is stuck in a cycle of menstruation, which the singer calls a "caress of after." He relates to her experience of feeling trapped and unable to escape.
The third verse describes a night on the town, where the singer is drinking and feeling like a "blue prince." He is a creature of the city, and he sees himself as both fascinated and disgusted by the world around him. He hears rumors and gossip about a variety of things, including the uselessness of religion. Despite all this, he maintains a sense of hope that things will get better, and that a simple kiss can make all the difference.
Overall, "Plata pa pan" is a poignant and emotional song about the struggles of everyday life and the need to persevere in the face of adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
Un día que parece no pasa
One day that seems to never end
Volteé la hoja y prendí la luz
I turned the page and turned on the light
Vi mí mirar en el vidrio de un bus
I saw my reflection in the window of a bus
Me fui a comenzar
I went to start anew
Volaban mis zapatos sin betún
My shoes were flying without polish
Colchón bajo una luna de cholhuan
Mattress under a Cholhuan moon
Con hadas y sirenas de menú
With fairies and mermaids on the menu
Guitarra de una noche de San Juan
Guitar from a San Juan night
Me ganaba mi pan
I earned my bread
Entre el nunca jamás y el ataúd
Between Neverland and the coffin
Pan, pan, pan, pan
Bread, bread, bread, bread
Plata pa′ pan
Silver for bread
Galán con pena, estrella de pared
Handsome man with a broken heart, wall star
Pegado a los recortes de un baúl
Stuck to clippings of a trunk
Isla de sangre, carne una vez al mes
Island of blood, meat once a month
Caricia de un después
Caress of an afterthought
Volver al mar de este tarro de atún
Return to the sea of this can of tuna
Un día que parece resbalar
One day that seems to slip away
Bajo de langa de un ebrio taur
Underneath a drunken bullfighter's cape
Salté croando que soy príncipe azul
I jumped, croaking that I am a prince
Anfibio de ciudad
City amphibian
Morboso y bostezando a todo full
Sickly and yawning at full throttle
De noche y de la boca de la mar
At night and from the mouth of the sea
Oí que el pulpo halló inútil la cruz
I heard that the octopus found the cross useless
Que el corazón del chisme era de pus
That the heart of gossip was full of pus
Que nada es para mal
That nothing is all bad
Que el beso no era calidad del ruch
That the kiss was not a measure of love
Plata pa' pan
Silver for bread
Writer(s): Chinoy
Contributed by William Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@candelarodriguez594
...ASÍ SE LE HACE EL AMOR A LOS SENTIDOS!!!..SIN SIQUIERA ROZARTE LA PIEL!!❤💣🔥✊🏾🙏🏾
@teadreamvl
Hermoso 💙
@diegonavia1404
Que lindo ver gente que aún difunde a chinoy, un abrazo
@teadreamvl
Chinoy es un tremendo artista, merece mucha más difusión que la actualmente posee. Gracias por tus comentarios hermano, un abrazo también 🙌💙
@abuelodedios9365
Es de lo mejor que escuché. Y humildemente escuché casi todo. Sin palabras. Es de un nivel intelectual y emocional poco antes visto.
@emilioosorio9733
Que grande Chinoy. No entiendo cómo no se aprecia cómo debería ser artistas como este gran poeta. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
@teadreamvl
Es lamentable, Chile no sabe valorar a sus grandes artistas. Por eso es importante que voces como Chinoy se difundan. ¡Saludos! 🙌
@emilioosorio9733
@@teadreamvl así es. Yo en mi trabajo pongo chinoy y Manuel García siempre. Ya compañeros cantas sus canciones jajaja. Saludos
@teadreamvl
@@emilioosorio9733 Qué bacán hermano, espero que sigan disfrutando de nuestros trovadores en su trabajo durante mucho tiempo más. ¡Saludos! 🙌
@hugoolave4480
Una frase muy común en mi infancia... Plata pa' pan... Grande chinoy.