Keren Ann (b. 1974) is a singer/songwriter with dual Dutch-Israeli citizen… Read Full Bio ↴Keren Ann (b. 1974) is a singer/songwriter with dual Dutch-Israeli citizenship. She plays guitar, piano, and clarinet, and engineers and writes choir and musical arrangements. She is of Russian-Jewish descent on her father's side and Javanese-Dutch on her mother's.

Born Keren Ann Zeidel in Caesarea, Israel on 10th March 1974, she lived in the Netherlands and Israel until the age of eleven, when her family moved to France. Her first group, KAB (for Keren Ann Band), lasted three years. In 1997, she wrote the song "Father" for the film K by Alexandre Arcady, in which she also acted a small part. The next year, at the age of twenty-four, she formed Shelby with two other women; the group released one album and had a small success with the song "1+1+1", whose composer Benjamin Biolay became an important collaborator. In 2000 she began her solo career with La biographie de Luka Philipsen -- "Luka" in homage to the Suzanne Vega song, "Philipsen" after her maternal grandmother -- written with and produced by Biolay, who also co-wrote and -produced its follow-up, La disparition. (In return, she helped write his debut album, Rose Kennedy.) The pair also wrote several songs for Henri Salvador's best-selling, prize-winning 2000 comeback album, Chambre avec vue.

Lady & Bird is a collaboration with Bardi Johannsson of the Icelandic group Bang Gang.

Not Going Anywhere, which includes several songs from La disparition re-sung in English, was her first U.S. release, but her American breakthrough came with its follow-up, Nolita. Recorded in Paris and New York, it is named for Nolita, her neighborhood in lower Manhattan; it is sung half in French and half in English.

Nolita
Keren Ann Lyrics

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It's late

I think I'm gonna stay
I think I'm gonna bury you
I think I'm gonna bury you or myself

It's late

I think it's gonna rain
I think I'm gonna bury you
I think I'm gonna bury you or myself

Somewhere I'd like to be cold and safe
If you're here to cry over someone else
Through the upper tide
I would be insane but myself

It's late

I think it's gonna rain
I think I'm gonna bury you
I think I'm gonna bury you or myself

Somewhere I'd like to be cold and safe
If you're here to cry over someone else
Through the upper tide
I would be insane, to be cold and safe

If you're here to cry over someone else
Through the upper tide
I would be insane

If you're here to cry over someone else
I would be insane but myself

It's late

I think I'm gonna stay
I think I'm gonna bury you
I think I'm gonna bury you or myself

Somewhere I'd like

Overall Meaning

to be cold and safe, away from the pain and chaos of the world. The singer seems to be addressing a former lover, someone they want to bury either physically or emotionally. The repeated line of "I think I'm gonna bury you or myself" suggests a sense of hopelessness and despair, as if the singer sees no other way out of their situation. They are willing to embrace death or a figurative burial just to escape their pain.

The imagery of rain and the desire to be "cold and safe" reinforces the theme of seeking refuge and protection from the difficulties of life. The use of the word "insane" also suggests a level of desperation and instability. The singer seems to be struggling with their own emotions and the pain of their past relationships.

Line by Line Meaning

It's late
The singer acknowledges the time of day.

I think I'm gonna stay
The singer is choosing to remain in a particular place or situation.

I think I'm gonna bury you
The singer is contemplating the possibility of physically burying another person.

I think I'm gonna bury you or myself
The artist is contemplating the possibility of either burying themselves or the other person.

I think it's gonna rain
The artist anticipates that precipitation is forthcoming.

Somewhere I'd like to be cold and safe
The singer is envisioning a location that is chilly and secure.

If you're here to cry over someone else
The singer is addressing the possibility that the other person is present for the purposes of grieving another person's loss.

Through the upper tide
This phrase could be interpreted in various ways. It might refer to an actual tidal condition, or it could be symbolic. The meaning is not entirely clear.

I would be insane but myself
The artist would maintain their own sanity, even if the other person is not able to do so.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KEREN ANN ZEIDEL

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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