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.
Moja Sukienka
Kayah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
jak kryształowa
nie pochwycona ciekła woda
pod twym oddechem
choć byłam lodem
wciąż zmieniasz moje ciało w wodę
już nie jestem tą kobietą co
czesze włosy ze spokojem, bo
w nicość stapiam się
więc się nie dziw gdy zobaczysz że
Zostanie Ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
zostanie Ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
więc nie dziw się więcej
w Twoich rękach sukience
to wszystko co po mnie zostaje gdy dłonie
nade mną zamykasz
Dla Ciebie noszę skóry aksamit
choć jęk rozkoszy niknie w ciszy
pod twym spojrzeniem mięknę i gnę się
i tak jak trawy źdźbło kołyszę
teraz jestem już jak najlżejszy puch
który z wiatrem ci umyka gdzieś
bo gdy dotykasz mnie
ze szczęścia topię się
więc się nie dziw gdy zobaczysz że
Zostanie ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
zostanie ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
więc nie dziw się więcej
w Twoich rękach sukience
więc nie dziw się więcej
w Twoich rękach sukience
Zostanie ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
zostanie ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
więc nie dziw się więcej
w Twoich rękach sukience
to wszystko co po mnie zostaje gdy dłonie
nade mną zamykasz
na wieczność mnie chwytasz
na wieczność kochanie
co gaśnie nad ranem ...
The song "Moja Sukienka" by Kayah tells the story of a woman who is deeply in love with a man. She compares herself to a crystal-clear uncaught water that he can't resist, even though before him, she used to be as cold as ice. The man changes her body into water, and she melts away when he touches her. She is not the same woman who used to comb her hair calmly because she has now become this fragile being that dissolves into nothingness in his arms.
The woman describes how she even wears velvet skins for her lover, and her cries of pleasure fade into silence under his gaze. She is now this lightweight puff that drifts away with the wind because she melts in his presence. The song's chorus is a repetition of “zostanie ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka” which translates to "Only my dress will remain in your hands." She knows that everything she is readied to depart, and their affair will inevitably come to an end.
The song's story speaks about how the woman's love and attachment to the man are so intense that he is the only person who can have her, and all that will remain after her are her clothes. This song is a poignant piece that reminds us of how much we can give to someone we love and how our identity can dissolve in it.
Line by Line Meaning
Dla Ciebie jestem jak kryształowa nie pochwycona ciekła woda
I am like a crystal-clear, unbridled water for you.
pod twym oddechem choć byłam lodem wciąż zmieniasz moje ciało w wodę
Under your breath, despite being frozen, you still turn me into water.
już nie jestem tą kobietą co czesze włosy ze spokojem, bo gdy dotykasz mnie w nicość stapiam się
I'm no longer the woman who calmly brushes her hair, because when you touch me, I dissolve into nothingness.
więc się nie dziw gdy zobaczysz że Zostanie Ci w rękach tylko moja sukienka
So don't be surprised when you see that only my dress remains in your hands.
w Twoich rękach sukience to wszystko co po mnie zostaje gdy dłonie nade mną zamykasz
In your hands, the dress is all that's left of me when you close your hands over me.
Dla Ciebie noszę skóry aksamit choć jęk rozkoszy niknie w ciszy
For you, I wear velvet skins, although the moan of pleasure fades away in silence.
pod twym spojrzeniem mięknę i gnę się i tak jak trawy źdźbło kołyszę
Under your gaze, I soften and bend, and like a blade of grass, I sway.
teraz jestem już jak najlżejszy puch który z wiatrem ci umyka gdzieś
Now I am like the lightest of feathers, which escapes you with the wind.
ze szczęścia topię się więc się nie dziw gdy zobaczysz że
I dissolve with happiness, so do not be surprised when you see that
na wieczność mnie chwytasz na wieczność kochanie co gaśnie nad ranem ...
You catch me for eternity, my love, which fades away in the morning...
Contributed by Eliana E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.