Elba Maria Nunes Ramalho (born August 17, 1951 in Conceição, Paraíba, Brazil)… Read Full Bio ↴Elba Maria Nunes Ramalho (born August 17, 1951 in Conceição, Paraíba, Brazil), best known as Elba Ramalho, is a Brazilian MPB singer, songwriter, performer, multi-instrumentalist and actress. Her musical style is characteristic for the traditional sounds of the Northeastern region of Brazil, such as baião, xote, xaxado, frevo, forró, and others.

Elba Ramalho was born in the rural area of Conceição, in Vale do Piancó. In 1962, the family moved to the city of Campina Grande, also in Paraíba. Her father became the owner of the local theater. Daughter of a musician, she became interested in music still as a teenager.

In 1966, she participated, for the first time, in a performance on stage, in the Choir of the Fundação Artística e Cultural Manuel Bandeira, of which she was a member, with "Evocação do Recife". The Manuel Bandeira and Cecília Meireles Talking Choirs gained fame and started to be seen all over the Northeast, and Elba, who made her first presentation on stage together with them, soon became the highlight in the presentations. She starred in the poetic montages of Castro Alves, Thiago de Mello, Lindolfo Bell, Carlos Pena Filho and Figueiredo Agra. He participated in the montages of the plays "Ministro do Supremo" and "Diálogo das Carmelitas."

In 1968, while attending college of Economics and Sociology at the Federal University of Paraíba, she formed the ensemble As Brasas, in which she acted as drummer, which later became a theater group. However, Elba never stopped singing, and performed in several festivals throughout the Northeast.

In 1979, she released her first album, "Ave de Prata", and since then she has consolidated her position as one of the main Brazilian singers in activity. On her father's side, she is a cousin of fellow singer Zé Ramalho.

She has two Latin Grammys for her albums: Qual o Assunto Que Mais Lhe importa?, released in 2008, and Balaio de Amor, 2009, in the category Best Brazilian Roots Album: Regional and Tropical. In over 35 years of career, Elba Ramalho has sold more than 10 million albums. She received from the Art Critics Association of São Paulo the award "Best Show of the Year" on two occasions: in 1989 for the show Popular Brasileira and in 1996 for the show Leão do Norte.

Kukukaya
Elba Ramalho Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

São quatro jogadores
Nessa mesa
Frente a frente pra jogar
São quatro cabras de peia
No desafio
No jogo da bruxa
Em noite de lua cheia
São quatro jogadores

Nessa mesa
Dando as cartas
No jogo sujo da vida
Kukukaya eu quero isso aqui
Kukukaya olha esse cachorro aqui
São quatro jogadores
Nessa mesa
Frente a frente sem dar
Falsa folga a ninguém

São quatro cabras de peia
De riso dócil
De rima fácil
Não vá se enganar
Hem, meu bem!
Eu tenho dois olhos
Eu tenho dois pés
Dos meus olhos, vá pra meus pés
Dos meus pés, pra dentro da terra
Da terra, para a morte
Kukukaya eu quero isso aqui
Kukukaya olha esse cachorro aqui
O ovo é redondo
Ventre redondo é
Vem amor vem com saúde
Onde eu sou sua chama
Seja você a brasa
Onde eu sou chuva
Seja você a água

Kukukaya eu quero você aqui
Kukukaya preste atenção em mim

Overall Meaning

The song "Kukukaya" by Elba Ramalho is about a game of cards played by four players. The first stanza sets the stage for the game, describing the four players sitting face to face, ready to play a game of cards that is known as the "witch game" on a full moon night. The game is known to be dirty and competitive, with each player vying for the win. The chorus of the song, "Kukukaya eu quero isso aqui" and "Kukukaya olha esse cachorro aqui" roughly translates to "I want this here" and "Look at this dog here" respectively, showing that the players are fully immersed in the game and focused on their cards.

In the second stanza, Ramalho describes the players as "four obedient goats" who are easy to deceive with words. She warns the players, "Don't be fooled, my love!" and goes on to describe how the game might become a trap, leading players down a path of loss and possibly danger. The song speaks about the circularity of life, describing the body and how it eventually returns to the earth. Finally, in the last stanza, Ramalho sings about the importance of partnership and how, together, a couple can be like fire and water, balancing each other out.

Line by Line Meaning

São quatro jogadores
There are four players at this table

Nessa mesa
At this table

Frente a frente pra jogar
Face to face to play

São quatro cabras de peia
There are four tough players

No desafio
In the challenge

No jogo da bruxa
In the witch's game

Em noite de lua cheia
On a full moon night

Dando as cartas
Dealing the cards

No jogo sujo da vida
In life's dirty game

Kukukaya eu quero isso aqui
Kukukaya, I want this here

Kukukaya olha esse cachorro aqui
Kukukaya, look at this dog here