Jamala has been fond of music since her early childhood. She made her first professional recording at the age of 9 years old, singing 12 children and folk Crimean Tatar songs. Graduating from the Music school piano class in her native Alushta, the singer entered the Simpheropol Music College named after Tchaikovsky followed by the graduation from the Kiev National Music Academy named after Tchaikovsky as well, with the major in opera singing. Being at the top of the class, Jamala planned to devote herself to the classical music, envisioning her career as a soloist at the famous Milan La Scala Opera. Nevertheless her true passion for jazz and experiments with soul and oriental music has changed her plans defining the main streams of the future career.
Jamala made her first steps on the big stage at the age of fifteen. During the next few years she took part at the dozens of vocal contests of Ukraine, Russia and Europe, where she received some prestigious awards, not mentioning the 1 Concorso Europeo Amici della musica International contest in Italy. The terrific performance at the Dо#Dj junior 2006 Jazz festival of young artists brought Jamala a special award, while attracting the attention of the famous choreographer Elena Kolyadenko, who in her turn invited Jamala to perform the leading part in the “Pas” multi genre musical. This part in the musical became an essential step in Jamala’s performing career.
Jamala has been active since 2005, but the turning point in Jamala’s career path came with her performance at the “New Wave - 2009” International contest of young pop singers in summer 2009. The contest’s chief director statements regarding Jamala’s “not fitting the format” didn’t stop her from reaching the finals and more than that receiving a grand prize of the contest.
Following the triumph in Jurmala, Jamala instantly jumped into the top artists’ category, performing at the various spots from Moscow to Berlin. Two large Jamala’s concerts The Revue Show are taking place in Kiev, where she is to reveal to public the whole range of the singer’s vocal potential and the diversity of the music material.
During the few months Jamala is going to take part almost in all the main TV shows of Ukraine, from the “TV Triumph2009” awards ceremony and One Night Only (tribute to Michael Jackson of the Ukrainian top artists) to “Christmas Celebration with Alla Pugacheva”. Cosmopolitan entitles her a “Breakthrough of the Year”, she wins the “Singer of the Year” ELLE Style Award and the “Ukrainians’ Idol” nomination at the “Person of the Year 2009”.
Being busy with the intense tour schedule, Jamala finds time to devote to classical music. In summer 2009 she performed the leading part in “The Spanish Hour” opera by Maurice Ravel, and in February 2010 she took part in Vasiliy Barchatov’s opera production on Bondiana motif, for which she was noted by Jude Law, the famous British actor.
Jamala’s début video on classic standard - History Repeating appeared on Ukrainian TV in November 2009, while the second video on her own composition You’re Made of Love followed in February 2010.
The third singer’s video on It’s Me, Jamala! composition appeared on Ukrainian and Russian music channels on October 18th, 2010. (http://jamalamusic.com/#/video/1). Charley Stadler, the German director, best known for his “Dead Fish” feature film starring Gary Oldman, became the video director. The famous Briton Fraser Taggart who was shooting such Hollywood blockbusters as “Troy”, “The Da Vinci Code”, “National Treasure”, etc. became the video director of photography.
It became known just few days before the new video appeared, that Jamala has proceeded to the “Eurovision – 2011” song contest elimination round finals, presenting Smile, an absolutely new composition, to the jury.
The singer’s debut album release was planned for spring 2011. Most of the songs are of Jamala’s own composition, while Evgeny Filatov (The Maneken), an outstanding Ukrainian artist, became the sound producer of the record.
In 2016 Jamala won the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "1944".
http://jamalamusic.com
All Or Nothing
Jamala Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why I pretend it's easy?
When our love
Like song without a melody
I'll be with you
I'll share my love and sorrows
So will you turn your back on me?
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
Love or leave
All in your hands, our love falls to pieces
Set me free
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
All or nothing, nothing at all
Why can't you see
I'm willing to be part of you
I'm not at ease
If you still hold her in your dreams
I'd rather be
Alone than have you shared
It's time to choose priorities
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
Love or leave
All in your hands, our love falls to pieces
Set me free
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
All or nothing, nothing at all
Meeting you was fate
Becoming your friend was my choice
But falling in love with you was beyond of my control
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
Love or leave
All in your hands, our love falls to pieces
Set me free
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
All or nothing, nothing at all
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
Love or leave
All in your hands, our love falls to pieces
Set me free
All or nothing
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
All or nothing, nothing at all
The lyrics of Jamala's song "All or Nothing" speak to the complexities of love and the lengths people are willing to go to keep it. The song reflects on the ambivalence and vulnerability felt when in love and the power that love can have to inspire dedication and sacrifice. The opening lyrics, "Why I love you? Why I pretend it's easy? When our love like song without melody," suggest that love is not always straightforward, but rather something that requires effort and perseverance. Despite the challenges, the chorus repeats the sentiment that the singer will give their all and expects the same level of commitment in return.
As the song progresses, the lyrics touch upon issues of trust and jealousy, highlighting the struggles of loving someone who may still be holding onto a past love. The lyrics, "Why can't you see? I'm willing to be part of you. I'm not at ease if you still hold her in your dreams," demonstrate the turmoil of not knowing whether their partner can fully let go of someone else to be with them. This ultimately culminates in the final lyrics of the song, "Meeting you was fate. Becoming your friend was my choice. But falling in love with you was beyond my control." These lyrics express how love can be both exhilarating and frightening, with individuals often finding themselves pulled towards someone they did not expect.
Overall, Jamala's "All or Nothing" speaks to the depths of love and the effort required to maintain it. The song addresses common fears that come with loving someone else and the power dynamics present in any relationship. Additionally, the lyrics have a powerful message about the importance of choosing one person and committing to that decision.
Line by Line Meaning
Why I love you?
I am questioning why I love you.
Why I pretend it's easy?
I am pretending that loving you is easy, even though it is not.
When our love, like song without a melody
Our love feels incomplete without something vital, like a song without a melody.
I'll be with you
I will be by your side.
I'll share my love and sorrows
I will share my love and my pain with you.
So will you turn your back on me?
I am asking if you will abandon me.
All or nothing
We must give our all to make this work.
If you really loving me so tenderly, don't go away
If you truly love me with gentle affection, don't walk away from me.
Love or leave
We must choose between fully loving each other or ending things entirely.
All in your hands, our love falls to pieces
The fate of our relationship is in your hands. If you choose wrong, it will crumble.
Set me free
Free me from this uncertainty and pain.
Why can't you see
Why are you unable to see and understand my feelings?
I'm willing to be part of you
I want to be a part of your life and your heart.
I'm not at ease
I am feeling uncomfortable and uneasy about our situation.
If you still hold her in your dreams
If you still dream about someone else, our love is not enough.
I'd rather be alone than have you shared
I would rather be alone than share you with someone else.
It's time to choose priorities
We need to decide what is most important in our lives and relationship.
Meeting you was fate
Our meeting was destined to happen.
Becoming your friend was my choice
Becoming your friend was something I actively chose to do.
But falling in love with you was beyond of my control
I did not have control over falling in love with you.
All or nothing, nothing at all
Either we give our full effort to making this work, or it will not work at all.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind