One is a 9 person … Read Full Bio ↴There are two artists performing under this name.
One is a 9 person Valencian band that formed in 2010 and performs exclusively in Spanish with a focus on social issues.
One is a soloist singer-songwriter who began releasing music in 2015. Mafalda describes her music as "dark pop" and cites Lana Del Rey, Cat Power, Lauryn Hill, The Strokes, Belle & Sebastian, and Kaiser Chiefs as musical influences. She has both Spanish- and English-language songs. She started writing music when she was fourteen years old. She released her first single, Don't Let Go, in 2015 while she was a student at Berklee. She released an extended play titled Daisy Chain in June 2019, which was produced by Ian Barter and Doug Schadt.
Born in London, of Spanish-Bulgarian origin, Mafalda is a singer-songwriter with diverse roots and life experiences. Mafalda defines her music as her “most vulnerable self, an honest reflection of what I see in the world my generation lives in. In November 2020 she released her first song in spanish “Decir Adiós”. Following her successful Spanish-language debut, Mafalda is beginning the year by releasing her second single in Spanish "Así Lo Hago Yo". Written by Mafalda in Los Angeles in collaboration with Carola Rosas and Dani Sobrino, the song was produced by Oscar Free (from the U.S.) and Tunvao (from Andalusia in Spain), with the executive production of Alizzz.
La Colmena
Mafalda Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Working through the rules aaaah
En la pared se lee una pintada
Si quieres ser feliz no cuesta nada
Ocho horas al día siete días a la semana
No vendo mi fuerza de trabajo
Soy clase media aspirando a lo más alto
Competitividad en la clase aaah
Competitividad desde que naces
Luchando por éxito rotundo
Me convertí en absurdo...
Aún me pregunto cuándo comencé a perder
El contacto con la realidad me hizo envejecer
El individualismo me obligó a querer
Una vida de envidias, posesiones y poder
Producir para existir aaah
My number 54-46
Toc, toc. Llaman a la puerta y son tus sueños
Hoy tengo turno doble
Mañana les atiendo
Ocho horas al día siete días a la semana
Diez años viviendo en el barrio
No conozco a nadie, voy de casa al trabajo
Viviendo de lujo en el nuevo mundo
Produciendo al ritmo que marca el consumo
Si no trabajo, no como, no pago
Quiero reconocimiento, sentirme integrado
Me olvidé de las metas que no aportan beneficios
No da tiempo para eso, el trabajo es mi vicio
Aaaah...
Aún me pregunto cuándo comencé a perder
El contacto con la realidad me hizo envejecer
El individualismo me obligó a querer
Una vida de envidias, posesiones y poder
Soy solo una cifra, cifra más.
Soy solo una cifra, cifra más.
Soy solo una cifra, cifra más.
Un engranaje en la colmena
Soy solo una cifra, cifra más.
Un engranaje en la colmena.
WORK!
WORK!
WORK!
LA COLMENA
Mafalda's song, La Colmena, is a powerful critique of the capitalist system and the social norms that come with it. The lyrics describe the struggles of the working class, trapped in a cycle of working to live and living to work. The opening line, "Trabajar para vivir," or "Working to live," sets the tone for the rest of the song, as the singer sings of being a slave to their job and feeling disconnected from the world around them. They have become consumed with the need for success and possessions, losing touch with their own values and sense of self in the process. The line, "Competitividad desde que naces," or "Competitiveness since birth," emphasizes the idea that capitalism encourages us to view each other as rival competitors, rather than fellow human beings.
The lyrics also touch on the concept of alienation, both from oneself and from others. The singer describes feeling isolated, even in their own community, and being unable to pursue their own dreams and goals outside of the demands of their job. The repeated line, "Soy solo una cifra, cifra más," or "I'm just a number, one more number," highlights the idea that workers are reduced to mere cogs in the machine of capitalism, valued primarily for their labor output rather than their humanity.
Overall, La Colmena is a powerful indictment of the capitalist system and the social norms that come with it. Mafalda's lyrics invite listeners to question the values and priorities of a society that prioritizes profit over people, and to imagine alternative ways of organizing society that prioritize collective wellbeing and human connection over individual success at all costs.
Line by Line Meaning
Trabajar para vivir aaah
Living through work aaaah
En la pared se lee una pintada
On the wall there's a graffiti
Si quieres ser feliz no cuesta nada
If you want to be happy it costs nothing
Ocho horas al día siete días a la semana
Eight hours a day, seven days a week
No vendo mi fuerza de trabajo
I don't sell my strength
Soy un esclavo me he tragado su relato
I'm a slave who swallowed their story
Soy clase media aspirando a lo más alto
I'm middle class aspiring to the top
Competitividad en la clase aaah
Competitiveness within the class aaaah
Competitividad desde que naces
Competitiveness since you're born
Luchando por éxito rotundo
Fighting for total success
Me convertí en absurdo...
I became absurd...
Aún me pregunto cuándo comencé a perder
I still wonder when I started to lose
El contacto con la realidad me hizo envejecer
Contact with reality made me age
El individualismo me obligó a querer
Individualism forced me to want
Una vida de envidias, posesiones y poder
A life of envy, possessions and power
Producir para existir aaah
Producing to exist aaaah
My number 54-46
My number 54-46
Toc, toc. Llaman a la puerta y son tus sueños
Knock, knock. Your dreams are at the door
Hoy tengo turno doble
Today I have a double shift
Mañana les atiendo
Tomorrow I'll attend them
Diez años viviendo en el barrio
Ten years living in the neighborhood
No conozco a nadie, voy de casa al trabajo
I don't know anyone, I go from home to work
Viviendo de lujo en el nuevo mundo
Living in luxury in the new world
Produciendo al ritmo que marca el consumo
Producing at the rate set by consumption
Si no trabajo, no como, no pago
If I don't work, I don't eat, I don't pay
Quiero reconocimiento, sentirme integrado
I want recognition, to feel integrated
Me olvidé de las metas que no aportan beneficios
I forgot about goals that don't bring benefits
No da tiempo para eso, el trabajo es mi vicio
There's no time for that, work is my addiction
Soy solo una cifra, cifra más.
I'm just a number, another number.
Un engranaje en la colmena
A cog in the hive
WORK!
WORK!
LA COLMENA
THE HIVE
Writer(s): vera carrión salas, alberto lópez blat, marcos de la torre cervera, mario fernández de castro, antoni josep laguna damián, antonio ramón vime fabregat, bárbara lópez de mota gil, ferrán verdú pons, mireia muñoz ruibano
Contributed by Samantha P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@alejandrogarciamartin323
Fue lo primero que escuche nada mas llegar al viña rock, no pude empezar con mejor pie y tan buen sabor de boca, ojala sigais asi
@theendisnight1287
que temazo por dios, y el final magnifico
@cesargonzalezcruz9707
Crei no lo habian notado, la Intro de London Calling, amen de este que buen tema
@irenegimenez3241
Me abrió los ojos...
@lacharli
Este tema es una puta fantasía. He llorado y todo un poquito.
@farrun1
Me quiito el sombrero! Xapo por el trabajazo!! Sois muy pontentxs!!!
@Leonqueescribe
¡Las amo! Demasiado brutal <3
@lui1525
Gran canción!!!
@adnsaurus
LONDON CALLINGGGG
@alexnicollmontoya2186
¡Muy buena!