Orishas is a group that combines new hip-hop rhymes with classic cuban beat… Read Full Bio ↴Orishas is a group that combines new hip-hop rhymes with classic cuban beats. Their albums include "A lo Cubano", "Emigrante", "El Kilo", "Antidiotico" & "Cosita Buena".

It's been quite a journey since Orishas released their first album 'A Lo Cubano' in Spain in May 1999. Lauded by the press throughout Europe ever since it came out, the group launched into a marathon tour that started in summer 1999. From clubs to festivals, the European tour stretched out to just over two years with evening performances of their music catalogue at the Olympia, the Ancienne Belgique and the Royal Festival Hall in England. They were to play at the most prestigious festivals in Europe like the Lowlands (Holland), where they topped the bill along with groups like Deftones and Cypress Hill, and the Roskilde (Denmark), where they brewed up a storm alongside groups as disparate as Tool and Wyclef Jean. Orishas also performed in the year 2000 at festivals like the Paleo Nyon Festival, the La Rochelle Francofolies and Pop Kom.

The group gradually acquired international standing, and after conquering Europe they went on to win over the United States in November 2000, with the American press unanimous in its acclaim: articles and reviews in Time, Rolling Stone, The Source, Vibe ,... Little by little they became an essential live band, capable of sharing the stage with artists as diverse as Compay Segundo, Orquestra Aragon, Iggy Pop, Cypress Hill, Macy Gray and Marcus Miller. Orishas paid their dues on the road and left Europe to take part in various jazz festivals in Canada and South Africa, dropping in on Brazil and Mexico. Orishas left no doubt that their musical fusion, unique in its genre, enables them to break the frontiers of style and to be equally at home in front of a latino, hip hop, pop or rock audience.

December saw their triumphal return to Cuba, where they had occupied the top slots of the radio charts for months and where they gave two concerts that brought together tens of thousands of young Cubans. They had come full circle, because after touring the world Orishas' dream finally came true: playing in front of their families and the people of Cuba.

Collaborations came thick and fast, with Roldan Gonzalez appearing on various French rap albums (Kerry James) or international rap albums (Dari, Da Weasel / Portugal).

After more than 200 concerts worldwide, the group decided to get back to song writing in August 2001. It was only to be expected that they would start working together again with the French producer and composer Niko Noki, (Passi, Bisso Na Bisso), who along with Roldan Gonzalez had been responsible for the tracks on the first album. He in turn engaged the services of a young composer of the future, DJ Mig-One, who had two albums with his group Starflam under his belt. They strung several studio sessions together between Belgium and Paris to knock up no fewer than twenty tracks. In November 2001 the group was ready at last to go back into the studio proper to record the successor to A Lo Cubano. They opted for the EMI studio in Paris, where the cream of Cuban musicians gathered at the group's behest to immortalise the songs of the Emigrante album. The group had matured and learned a great deal from touring the world, the subjects are more profound and given a more international treatment. Having had their eyes opened by the big world has had a visible impact on their writing. As on the first album, Miko Niko is in charge of musical production and most of the tracks, DJ Mig One has penned 3 compositions that underpin the plurality of their influences. The album was mixed at the Polygone studio in Toulouse under the auspices of Mario Rodriguez (Notorious B.I.G., Public Enemy, Mobb Deep, Fonky Family, 113...). Once again the alchemy is perfect. The new album sees the return of two very talented artists and long-standing friends of the group: Passi on La Vida Passa and Yuri Buenaventura on 300 Kg de Rap.

The new album has a pan-European release on April 22, 2002 and is being promoted in a tour that takes in more than ten countries before being presented on the stages of the major European festivals this summer.

Maní
Orishas Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

¿Donde esta el mani?
me mantuvieron despierto interrogando hasta la madrugá
¿Donde esta el mani?
Yo no se nada guardia, la policia está encarná
(x2)

¿y dicen que, que, que?
La cosa se le puso mala

cuando su mujer en un programa
con lujos y detalles dio pistas de la trama.
Menudo panorama ese
Ella contaba que en bolsa de basura desviaba y sacaba el dinero
al mismo tiempo especulaba la fama
La policia scuxhandolo se hechó a por ella
metió mano en las calles de Marbella, ay pobre de ella.
Sus terrenos se revendían, se recalificaban, se traficaban y de la paella no te daban.
Pero tu no lo podías ver, el tipo que partía y repartía el pastel,
Solo para concejales, ministros y una puta de burdel.

Donde está el maní?
Me mantuvieron despierto interrogando hasta la madrugá
Donde está el maní?
Yo no se nada guardia, la policía está encarná
(x2)

Quien se ha comido el pastel? El ministro, el alcalde o el piloto del jet?
Venga, para que aprendas lo que se enseña en la escuela de las calles de Marbella.
Que el chisme hasta la fiscalía llega.
Bueno, vamos a ver ¿Cuántos cuadros Picasso tenía usted en su poder antes de ayer?
Dos? Tres? Diecisiete? junto treinta y tres, pues tremendo morro tiene usted!
Ahora mismo yo diluyo su caso y el veredicto lo acabo de instruir
Y por eso lo mandaré a cumplir por haber cometido un descaro.

Donde está el maní?
Me mantuvieron despierto interrogando hasta la madrugá
Donde está el maní?
Yo no se nada guardia, la policía está encarná
(x2)

Ahora si que estás de moda aunque solo sea por que vas para el parque.
Se te fue la rosca, apretaste mucho. No hay más ná, a pagar que es tarde.
Nada ni nadie te puede salvar. Locón, tú lo sabes te van a cobrar.
Yo no se si lo sabias, se llama glotonería.
La hora del juicio final te llegó, lo dice la prensa no lo digo yo.
Se acabó la buena vida, dime donde está el maní.

Donde está el maní?
Me mantuvieron despierto interrogando hasta la madrugá
Donde está el maní?

Yo no se nada guardia, la policía está encarná
(x2)

Overall Meaning

The Orishas song "Maní" is a commentary on corruption, greed, and the abuse of power in the city of Marbella, Spain. The lyrics focus on the police interrogating someone about the whereabouts of the "maní," or money, which has gone missing due to corrupt dealings. The verses describe how the city officials, including ministers and council members, have used their positions of power to illegally profit from the city's wealth. This is exemplified by a woman who has been caught diverting money into a garbage bag and speculating on the fame earned from her illegal activities.

The song also touches on the consequences of this corruption, as the officials involved are eventually caught and punished. The chorus repeats the question of "where is the maní?" as the police continue to interrogate the subject. Ultimately, the song serves as a cautionary tale about the price of greed and corruption and how it can ultimately lead to one's downfall.

Line by Line Meaning

¿Donde esta el mani?
Where is the money?

me mantuvieron despierto interrogando hasta la madrugá
They kept me up all night interrogating me

Yo no se nada guardia, la policia está encarná
I don't know anything, officer, the police are corrupt

¿y dicen que, que, que?
And what do they say?

La cosa se le puso mala
Things got bad for him/her

cuando su mujer en un programa
When his/her wife was on a TV show

con lujos y detalles dio pistas de la trama.
She gave lavish details that revealed the scheme

Menudo panorama ese
What a situation

Ella contaba que en bolsa de basura desviaba y sacaba el dinero
She told how she diverted the money in the trash bag

al mismo tiempo especulaba la fama
At the same time, she speculated on fame

La policia scuxhandolo se hechó a por ella
The police listened and went after her

metió mano en las calles de Marbella, ay pobre de ella.
They took action on the streets of Marbella, oh poor her

Sus terrenos se revendían, se recalificaban, se traficaban y de la paella no te daban.
Her properties were resold, reclassified, and trafficked, and they even took her paella

Pero tu no lo podías ver, el tipo que partía y repartía el pastel,
But you couldn't see it, the guy who sliced and shared the cake

Solo para concejales, ministros y una puta de burdel.
Only for councilors, ministers, and a brothel hoe

Quien se ha comido el pastel? El ministro, el alcalde o el piloto del jet?
Who ate the cake? The minister, the mayor, or the jet pilot?

Venga, para que aprendas lo que se enseña en la escuela de las calles de Marbella.
Come on, so you can learn what they teach in the school of Marbella's streets

Que el chisme hasta la fiscalía llega.
That the gossip reaches the prosecutor's office

Bueno, vamos a ver ¿Cuántos cuadros Picasso tenía usted en su poder antes de ayer?
Well, let's see, how many Picasso paintings did you have in your possession the day before yesterday?

Dos? Tres? Diecisiete? junto treinta y tres, pues tremendo morro tiene usted!
Two? Three? Seventeen? plus thirty-three, you've got some nerve!

Ahora mismo yo diluyo su caso y el veredicto lo acabo de instruir
Right now, I'll dissolve your case and instruct the verdict

Y por eso lo mandaré a cumplir por haber cometido un descaro.
And that's why I'll send you to serve for committing a scandal

Ahora si que estás de moda aunque solo sea por que vas para el parque.
Now you're trendy, even if it's just because you're headed to the park

Se te fue la rosca, apretaste mucho. No hay más ná, a pagar que es tarde.
You lost your grip, you pressed too hard. There's nothing else, pay up, it's late

Nada ni nadie te puede salvar. Locón, tú lo sabes te van a cobrar.
Nothing and no one can save you. You know they'll charge you, crazy one

Yo no se si lo sabias, se llama glotonería.
I don't know if you knew, it's called gluttony

La hora del juicio final te llegó, lo dice la prensa no lo digo yo.
The hour of the final judgment has come for you, the press says it, not me

Se acabó la buena vida, dime donde está el maní.
The good life is over, tell me where the money is

Writer(s): Yotuel Romero Manzanares, Hiram Riveri Medina, Roldan Gonzalez Rivero Copyright: Universal Music Publishing

Contributed by Nathan D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS