She released her first, self-produced solo album, Kamien (Stone), in 1996. It was a great success, consisting of melancholy pop songs. In the same year, she was voted ‘Vocalist of the Year’ by the Polish music industry and received a Fryderyk in recognition of her achievements.
In 1997, she received another Fryderyk, this time for the album Zebra, in the category of ‘Composer of the Year’. With Zebra she changed her style, moving in the direction of American soul music.
In 1999, she recorded one of the most popular Polish albums ever, with the Balkan composer Goran Bregović, entitled Kayah & Bregović: it is a blend of old Slavic songs and modern rhythms. Most of the music was composed by Bregović for the band Bijelo Dugme (White Button), which he had been a part of and movie soundtracks that he had worked on. The lyrics are both translations of the original text and inspired. In the same year she was awarded a Wiktor and another Fryderyk, in the category ‘Vocalist of the Year’.
In 2000, she released the album Jaka Ja Kayah which featured pop, jazz, and techno-influenced songs. She also released the single "Aniol Wiedzial" ("The Angel Knew") from the album, duetted with Cesaria Evora in Portuguese, and recorded English-language versions of some of her songs.
She was twice cast in advertisements for Polish mobile phone's Web - Orange POP (formerly Idea POP).
Sites: En.Wikipedia.
Jak liść
Kayah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
wszystkie samotne noce
mokre poduszki
które włosami pieścisz
A mówili o mnie że jestem
silna nie złamie mnie nic
a nie wiedzieli że wiecznie
Płaczę za twoje
chwile milczenia gdy
ty słów pełen
gryzłeś usta do krwi
A mówili o mnie że jestem
silna nie złamie mnie nic
a nie wiedzieli że wiecznie
drżałam na wietrze jak liść
Ja płaczę za twoje
lęki, zwątpienia i wstyd
że czasem płaczesz i ty
za swoje wszystkie
osamotnione
kobiety twego życia
a mówią o mnie że jestem
silna nie złamie nic
a nie wiedzą że wiecznie
drżę na wietrze jak liść
In Kayah's song Jak liść, the singer talks about crying for someone else's lonely nights and wet pillows, that they caress with their hair. The second verse talks about crying for the moments of silence where the person bit their lips to the point of drawing blood. However, the most important part of the song is the refrain, where Kayah talks about how people have always thought of her as strong and unbreakable, but they don't know that she always quivered in the wind like a leaf. The final verse is about how she also cries for the other person's fears and doubts, and how they also cry for all the lonely women in their life.
The song's lyrics seem to describe someone who is often seen as strong and capable, but who is secretly struggling with their emotions and fears. The metaphor of the leaf quivering in the wind suggests that this person may be vulnerable and easily shaken, despite their outward appearance. The reference to wet pillows and biting lips also suggests that there may be a lot of inner turmoil and sadness beneath the surface.
Line by Line Meaning
Płaczę za twoje
I cry for you
wszystkie samotne noce
all the lonely nights
mokre poduszki
wet pillows
które włosami pieścisz
that you caress with your hair
A mówili o mnie że jestem
And they said about me that I am
silna nie złamie mnie nic
strong, nothing will break me
a nie wiedzieli że wiecznie
but they didn't know that constantly
drżałam na wietrze jak liść
I trembled in the wind like a leaf
Płaczę za twoje
I cry for you
chwile milczenia gdy
moments of silence when
ty słów pełen
you, full of words
gryzłeś usta do krwi
bit your lips until they bled
Ja płaczę za twoje
I cry for you
lęki, zwątpienia i wstyd
fears, doubts, and shame
że czasem płaczesz i ty
that sometimes you cry too
za swoje wszystkie
for all of your
osamotnione
lonely
kobiety twego życia
women in your life
a mówią o mnie że jestem
and they say about me that I am
silna nie złamie nic
strong, nothing will break me
a nie wiedzą że wiecznie
but they don't know that constantly
drżę na wietrze jak liść
I tremble in the wind like a leaf
Contributed by Brody T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@beataburkacka543
Kayah, Kamień - dziękuję... Przez tyle lat nadal cudowna
@kamama1365
...mokre poduszki,które włosami pieścisz...Poezja!!!
@Tafel
Love from Finland
@robonmac
One of my all time favourite vocals.
@henrykstawiarski4510
Super cala plyta!@😍😍😍😍😍😍🤗🤗🤗🙂🤓🤠😎
@rsn66ful
...coraz bardziej mnie ciągnie do tej nuty sam nie wiem dlaczego!!!
@AnthonyBrown-em8ge
I love this song have no clue what she is singing about
@WillameloMelo
😭
@maciejlignowski4781
CALA PLYTA KLASA TO BAJKA FIM POEZIA
@maciejlignowski4781
PLYTA KLASA MASZ DAR I ROB TO DALEJ MASZ GO OOZDROW BIALYSTOK I OBOK MIASTO KLASA I WIELE INNYCH MASTECZEK I MIAST MARYCH I MALUTKICH ALE NIE PLOTKARSKICH WIOCH I NIE CIEKAWYCH LUDZI KTORZY KTORZY LUBIA SWJA PRACE I DAJO DAJA DAJA DAKA DAJA I CZASEM SIE KRECA A LUDZIE KORZYSTAJA SA PLOCVCHAM ROZNI LUDZIE NIE ZALEZNIE OD KOLORV SKORY I PREFERECI I PRACY PRACA PODOBNO JAKA BY NIE BYLA ALE DROGA JAK JEST CIEKAWA I DOBRA I TAK JEST A KAJAH TY JA MASZ