Maria Luiza de Arruda Botelho Pereira de Magalhães (São Paulo, August 29, 1… Read Full Bio ↴Maria Luiza de Arruda Botelho Pereira de Magalhães (São Paulo, August 29, 1992) is a Brazilian singer, songwriter and musician. Mallu first came to notice through her MySpace page and became known for both her own songs and those of renowned artists. She found herself gracing the covers of major newspapers such as Folha de S. Paulo, O Estado de S. Paulo and Jornal do Brasil, and was featured in Rolling Stone, Istoé, Época among others. In just two years of her career, she became the subject of countless blogs, packed shows, attracted critical attention, and had more than 4 million hits on her MySpace page. In 2008 she released her first eponymous album and in 2009 she released her second album, also self-titled.

Unknown until 2007, Mallu has quickly managed to cause a major commotion in the Brazilian music scene. She has recorded a version of Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues.

Versinho de Número Um
Mallu Magalhães Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Fiz esse versinho
Pra dizer
Por mais que vasta
A rima for
Não cabe ao verso o meu amor

Diz nesse versinho
Que o viver

Por mim
Não importa o como for
Já que será o nosso amor

Me ajuda a fugir
Me tira daqui
Viver nesse mundo é bobagem

Ôôô. Tchicumbera bumbá
Diacumbera bumbá
Que eu vou-ou
Huuuuum

Diacumbera-bumba
Cumbera-bumba
Eu vou-ou

Esse versinho
Pra dizer
Por mais que vasta

A rima for
Não cabe ao verso o meu amor

Overall Meaning

The song "Versinho de Número Um" by Mallu Magalhães talks about a love that cannot be contained within words or a simple poem. The first verse talks about how the author wrote this little verse to explain that, despite the many ways she could try to describe her love, it simply cannot fit into a poem or a rhyme. The second verse emphasizes that, even though life may be uncertain and unpredictable, it does not matter as long as they have their love. The repeated phrase "Me ajuda a fugir, me tira daqui" (Help me escape, take me away from here) adds to this idea of wanting to get away from the world and all its hardships.

The chorus is interesting because it is in a language that seems to be invented by the singer (or perhaps a regional dialect of Brazilian Portuguese). It consists of nonsensical words like "Tchicumbera bumbá, Diacumbera bumbá" and a repeated phrase that seems to signify moving forward with determination: "Eu vou-ou".

Overall, the song seems to convey a sense of youthful idealism and a desire to escape into a world of love and happiness, free from the struggles of real life.

Line by Line Meaning

Fiz esse versinho
I wrote this little verse

Pra dizer
To say

Por mais que vasta
No matter how vast

A rima for
The rhyme may be

Não cabe ao verso o meu amor
My love cannot be contained in a verse

Diz nesse versinho
Say in this little verse

Que o viver
That living

Por mim
For me

Não importa o como for
No matter how it is

Já que será o nosso amor
Because it will be our love

Me ajuda a fugir
Help me escape