Marcel Khalifé (Arabic: مرسيل خليفة) was born in 1950 in Amchit, Mount-Leba… Read Full Bio ↴Marcel Khalifé (Arabic: مرسيل خليفة) was born in 1950 in Amchit, Mount-Lebanon. He studied the oud (the Arabic lute) at the Beirut National conservatory. His music works around the classical Arabic oud but also includes jazz piano and many other influences. His playing techniques expand far outside those of classical oud playing, however, and he is attributed for having greatly expanded the horizons of this traditional Arabic instrument.

RISE
Marcel Khalife Lyrics

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وصاعدا نحو التئام الحلم

... تنكمش المقاعد تحت أشجاري و ظلّك

يختفي المتسلّقون على جراحك كالذباب الموسميّ

ويختفي المتفرجون على جراحك

! فاذكريني قبل أن أنسى يديّ

وللفراشات اجتهادي

والصخور رسائلي في الأرض

لا طروادة بيتي

ولا مسّادة وقتي

وأصعد من جفاف الخبز و الماء المصادر

من حصان ضاع في درب المطار

ومن هواء البحر أصعد

من شظايا أدمنت جسدي

وأصعد من عيون القادمين إلى غروب السهل

أصعد من صناديق الخضار

و قوّة الأشياء أصعد

أنتمي لسمائي الأولى و للفقراء في كل الأزقّة

: ينشدون

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Marcel Khalife's song "Rise" convey a message of resilience and hope. The song speaks about rising above one's struggles and pains towards a better future, towards the realization of a dream. The first verse talks about how the seats under the trees, and the shadows disappear as the dream of overcoming obstacles gradually takes over the mind. The climbers who were once pests on the wounds, and the onlookers who watched helplessly, also disappear. The singer urges his loved one to remember him before he forgets himself, and to witness his hard work like the butterflies and the messages on the rocks.

The second verse contains a series of metaphors that depict the hardships the singer had to endure to reach his destination. He rose from the dryness of bread and water sources, from a lost horse on an airport runway, from the sea breeze, from the fragments that addicted his body, from the eyes of those approaching the sunset in the plain, from the vegetable boxes, and from the power of things. The chorus "Rise and rise again, towards the realization of the dream" reiterates the message of persistence, hope, and the belief that the impossible can be achieved.

Overall, "Rise" is a beautiful and inspiring song that calls for perseverance and faith in oneself. It encourages listeners to never give up on their dreams and to keep working hard until they achieve their goals.

Line by Line Meaning

وصاعدا نحو التئام الحلم
Moving upwards towards the fulfillment of a dream

... تنكمش المقاعد تحت أشجاري و ظلّك
The seats under my trees and shadows shrink

يختفي المتسلّقون على جراحك كالذباب الموسميّ
The climbers disappear on your wounds like seasonal flies

ويختفي المتفرجون على جراحك
The spectators on your wounds vanish

! فاذكريني قبل أن أنسى يديّ
Remember me before I forget my hand

وللفراشات اجتهادي
My perseverance is for the butterflies

والصخور رسائلي في الأرض
My messages are on the rocks in the ground

لا طروادة بيتي
My home is not Troy

ولا مسّادة وقتي
My time is not idle

وأصعد من جفاف الخبز و الماء المصادر
I rise above the dryness of bread and the scarce water sources

من حصان ضاع في درب المطار
From a horse lost on the airport route I rise