Despite receiving a lukewarm reception in France, they have become one of the most successful French-language musical groups in the U.S. Apart from their two albums, they have also made appearances on songs by the Black Eyed Peas, Talib Kweli, and Yerba Buena.
Website: http://www.lesnubians.org/
September: Third Album "Nü Revolution" is released!
An unconventional female duo that came out of Bordeaux, France, in the 1990s, Les Nubians offered a jazzy, sophisticated style of R&B that combined French lyrics with the influence of Sade, Soul II Soul, hip-hop, and African pop. The duo consists of sisters Helene and Celia Faussart, who were born in France to a French father and a Cameroonian mother. After living in France as children, the siblings moved with their parents to the African country of Chad in 1985, when Helene (born 1975) was ten and Celia (born 1979) was six. The sisters lived in Chad for seven years before returning to France as teenagers. Helene and Celia had been singing most of their lives, and when they first formed Les Nubians, they were an a cappella group that specialized in covers of R&B, reggae, and African songs. Eventually, they started working with bands and performing original material. Helene and Celia absorbed a variety of music along the way, and they have expressed admiration for artists ranging from Ella Fitzgerald and Abbey Lincoln to the Fugees and African icons Miriam Makeba and Fela Kuti. Their promising debut album, Princesses Nubiennes, was released by Virgin worldwide in France, Switzerland, and Belgium in June 1998 before coming out on Omtown/Higher Octave in the U.S. in September of that year. It became America's most successful French-language album in more than a decade, and Les Nubians also graced recordings by Talib Kweli and Black Eyed Peas, as well as a Red Hot tribute to Fela Kuti, Red, Hot & Riot. Sessions for their second album brought the pair to Jamaica, Cameroon, London, and Paris, including a host of intriguing collaborators: top underground rapper Talib Kweli, fellow Cameroonian Manu Dibango, pianist Ray Lema, and broken-beat maestro IG Culture. The results appeared as One Step Forward, released in March 2003 by Higher Octave. In 2004, they recorded the track "Going All the Way" featuring reggae star Beres Hammond for UNITY: The Official Athens 2004 Olympic Games album. In 2005, Les Nubians issued Nubians Present Echoes, Chapter One, a collection of spoken word pieces by poets and hip-hop artists from the U.S., France, and Africa. The duo also covered "With or Without You," for inclusion on the compilation In the Name of Love: Africa Celebrates U2, in 2008. Les Nubians finally re-entered the recording studio in 2010, emerging with the EP Nü Revolution Nubiatic in the latter part of the year and the full-length, Nü Revolution in the spring of 2011. ~ Alex Henderson and Thom Jurek, Rovi
Me & Me
Les Nubians Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh give me
Give me some good sound that rocks
Give me music from all around the world
Give me some good sound that rocks
Anaye
Dziben dzewa bua me di
Mbol madzem
Akalzam
A mognanwam
Bibela bok' bya yon
Bibela bok' bya we
Bibela bok' bya dzem
Anaya
Dziben dzewa bua me di
Yi mewou mintie
Yi mewou dzom mading'
He
Ambiance.
The opening lyrics of Les Nubians’ Me & Me request for good sound that rocks, for music from all around the world. The song speaks to a yearning for diversity, different cultures, and sounds. The lyrics in the next verse suggest a desire for communication and understanding between people who may speak different languages or come from different backgrounds. The lines 'Anaye, Dziben dzewa bua me di, Ye wa vorle fua me kol mwe, Mbol madzem' are sung in Ewe, a language spoken primarily in Ghana and Togo by the Ewe people. The chorus’s lyrics recall Ewe and Beti languages, languages spoken in places including Ghana, Cameroon, and Gabon. The song’s refrain, 'Anaya, dziben dzewa bua me di,' translates to 'Give me, give me, I cry' or 'Give me, give me, divine music.'
The song is a blending of African rhythms and French lyrics, with the sisters singing of various experiences of African diaspora women, including pan-African unity and self-love. Me & Me is not only an Afrocentric song but an Afro-fusion song that appropriates from different cultures to produce a wonderful sound. The song’s heritage roots go back to when the African diaspora people were enslaved, and their songs were silenced. The song’s lyrics speak to the Black culture's resilience, to the value of Black creativity in music, to the power of the drums, the symbolic songs of exile, and the strength of African women throughout history.
Line by Line Meaning
Give me
I am requesting something
Oh give me
I really want something
Give me some good sound that rocks
I want music that is exciting and enjoyable to listen to
Give me music from all around the world
I want music that comes from many different cultures and regions
Give me some good sound that rocks
Once again, I want music that is exciting and enjoyable to listen to
Anaye
Greetings
Dziben dzewa bua me di
I have been looking for a long time for something very special
Ye wa vorle fua me kol mwe
To help me with my search
Mbol madzem
The great spirit (or God) will assist me
Akalzam
I am blessed
A mognanwam
With the gift of sharing
Bibela bok' bya yon
With everyone, including me
Bibela bok' bya we
With one another
Bibela bok' bya dzem
With our community
Anaya
Greetings
Dziben dzewa bua me di
I have been looking for a long time for something very special
Yi mewou mintie
I have found it
Yi mewou dzom mading'
I have found what was missing
He
Yes, success!
Ambiance
The overall feeling or mood of the surroundings
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MOUNIR BELKHIR, CELIA VICTORINE FAUSSART, HELENE FAUSSART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind