Maria Rita began to sing professionally aged 24, even though she began to sing since she was 14. Her first CD, 'Maria Rita', launched her career, with the first cut on her first album, "A Festa (The Party)", written by Milton Nascimento, a Brazilian singer-songwriter. The CD was platinum and was a hit worldwide. After that album she became an international star. Her mother's career as a renowned singer had a major influence in Maria Rita's life as a singer; She was always conscious of being the single daughter of a great singer. Despite having her mother's vocal DNA, Maria Rita developed her own jazzy vocal style, influenced by singers, like among others, Ella Fitzgerald. She won the 2004 Latin Grammy Award for Best New Artist in the General Area. Her debut album, 'Maria Rita', won the Best MPB (Popular Brasilian Music) Album award of that year. Rita is pronounced "HEE-taaa".
Vida De Bailarina
Maria Rita Lyrics
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Da vida da bailarina
Há de ver cheio de horror
Que no fundo do seu peito
Abriga um sonho desfeito
Ou a desgraça de um amor
Os que compram o desejo
Pagando amor a varejo
Que ela é forçada a enganar
Não vivendo pra dançar
Mas dançando pra viver
These lyrics, from Maria Rita's song Vida De Bailarina, speak to the harsh realities faced by many dancers in the entertainment industry. The metaphorical "curtain" that is lifted refers to the public facade of the glamorous life of a dancer, while the true story behind the curtain is one of shattered dreams and the exploitation of young women. The dancer's chest, where we often hold our deepest desires and emotions, harbors disappointment and broken dreams. The line "ou a desgraça de um amor" speaks to the all-too-common situation of dancers falling in love with men who exploit them for their bodies, leaving them with nothing but heartache.
The second stanza speaks to the societal forces that perpetuate this cycle of exploitation. Those who pay for the dancers' services, the customers, unknowingly contribute to the dancers' plight, as they go about their lives, unaware of the reality of the lives of the dancers. The dancer's livelihood relies on her ability to deceive her customers, to make them believe that she is living the dream of dancing for a living. The final line, "Mas dançando pra viver" encapsulates the paradox of the life of a dancer. They dance not for the love of dance, but to make a living, to survive.
Line by Line Meaning
Quem descerrar a cortina
Whoever opens the curtain
Da vida da bailarina
Of the life of the ballerina
Há de ver cheio de horror
Will see with great horror
Que no fundo do seu peito
That deep in her heart
Abriga um sonho desfeito
Lies a shattered dream
Ou a desgraça de um amor
Or the misfortune of a love
Os que compram o desejo
Those who buy desire
Pagando amor a varejo
Paying love retail
Vão falando sem saber
Talk without knowing
Que ela é forçada a enganar
That she is forced to deceive
Não vivendo pra dançar
Not living to dance
Mas dançando pra viver
But dancing to survive
Contributed by Nolan L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.