Rita helped to incorporate the rock revolution into the creative explosion of tropicalismo, formed the most celebrated Brazilian rock band in the world, Os Mutantes, and created solo songs with enormous popular appeal without losing her freedom and irreverence.
Former member of the group Os Mutantes (1966 — 1972) and leader of the band Tutti Frutti (1973 — 1978), Lee participated in important revolutions in the world of music and society, such as the Tropicália movement during the Brazilian dictatorship, which led her to be the artist with the most censored songs in Brazil during that period. Her songs, usually watered with an acid irony or with a claim for female independence and sexual topics, became ubiquitous in the charts. The album, Fruto Proibido (1975), released together with the band Tutti Frutti, is commonly seen as a fundamental milestone in the history of Brazilian rock, considered by some as her masterpiece.
In 1976, Lee began a romantic relationship with guitarist Roberto de Carvalho and since then he has been the partner on most of her songs and accompanied her in all her live performances. They had three children, including Beto Lee, also a guitarist, who accompanies his parents in concerts. With a career that has reached 50 years, Rita Lee has gone from the musical innovation of the late 1960s and 1970s to the highly successful romantic ballads of the 1980s. In October 2008, Rolling Stone magazine promoted the List of the 100 Greatest Artists in Brazilian Music, where Rita Lee ranks 15th.
In 2001, Rita Lee won the Latin Grammy for Best Portuguese Language Rock Album with "3001". She would receive five more nominations for the award and in 2022, she was awarded the Musical Excellence award for her body of work. In 2012, she announced that she would retire from performing live due to physical frailty. "I retire from shows, but never from music," she wrote on Twitter.
She was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2021 and had been undergoing treatment for the disease. She passed away in her hometown of São Paulo at the age of 75 on May 8, 2023.
Arrombou a Festa Nº 2
Rita Lee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
O que foi que aconteceu
Com a música popular
Brasileira
Quando a gente fala mal
A turma toda cai de pau
Dizendo que esse papo é
Na onda discothéque de
América do Sul
Lenilda é miss Lene,
Zuleide é Lady Zu
Pra defender o samba
Contrataram Alcione
É boa de pistom mas bota
A boca no trambone
No meio disso tudo a
Fafá vem dá um jeito
Além de muita voz, ela
Também tem muito peito
E a música parece
Brincadeira de garoto
Pois quando ligo o rádio
Até Cauby Peixoto
O Sidney Magal rebola mais
Que o Matogrosso
Cigano de araque, fabricado
Até o pescoço
E o Chico na piscina grita
Logo pro garçom
Afaste esse cálice e me traz
Moet Chandon
Com tanto brasileiro por aí
Metido a bamba
Sucesso no estrangeiro
Ainda é Carmem Miranda
E a Rita Lee parece que
Não vai sair mais dessa
Pois pra fazer sucesso
Arrombou de novo a festa!
Ziri, ziriguidum
Skindô, skindô lelê
Sai da frente que eu quero
É comer
A música popular brasileira
Lady Laura
A música popular
Parabéns pra a você
Parabéns para a música
Popular
A música popular
Ah, eu te amo
Ah, eu te amo meu amor
Ai, Sandra Madalena
Ah, ah, ah, ah
O meu sangue ferve pela
Música popular
Oh, fricote, eu fiz xixi
Fricote eu fiz xixi
Na Música Popular
Brasileira
Corre que lá vem os
tubarões
Com o dinheiro em mãos, querem
Comprar nossas canções
E a gente vai ficando
Com essa sensação
De que a música é só mais
Um produto de exportação.
Rita Lee's song Arrombou a Festa Nº 2 criticizes the state of Brazilian popular music at the time, citing the influence of disco and American music on Brazilian culture. The lyrics lament the loss of authenticity and tradition in Brazilian music as artists like Alcione and Cauby Peixoto are forced to adapt to the disco trend, and crossovers like Sidney Magal and Rita Lee herself achieve success by catering more to international audiences than the local Brazilian audience. The lyrics also express a sense of frustration with artists who are more interested in fame and money than in preserving the integrity of Brazilian music.
One interesting fact about Arrombou a Festa Nº 2 is that it was originally released on Rita Lee's 1979 album, Rita Lee, and later became a hit single in Brazil. The song's title is a play on words, combining the Portuguese word "arrombou" (meaning "breaking into" or "smashing") with "festa," meaning "party" or "celebration." The song was banned by Brazil's military government for its perceived subversive lyrics, which criticized the state of Brazilian popular music and the government's cultural policies.
Another interesting fact about the song is that it was reportedly inspired by a real-life incident in which Rita Lee attended a party and heard someone playing American disco music, leading her to criticize the state of Brazilian popular music. The song's lyrics were controversial at the time of its release, as Brazilian society was undergoing significant political and social changes following the military dictatorship, and many felt that the song was too critical of Brazilian culture.
Despite the controversy surrounding the song, Arrombou a Festa Nº 2 is now considered a classic of Brazilian music, and has been covered by a number of artists in a variety of styles. The song's lyrics are still relevant today, as Brazil's music industry continues to struggle with issues of authenticity and commercialization.
Chords (as played in the original recording):
Verse: Em7 - D - Cadd9 - D
Chorus: G - A7 - D - Cadd9 - D - G - A7 - D.
Line by Line Meaning
Ai, ai meu Deus
Oh my God, what has happened to the Brazilian popular music?
O que foi que aconteceu
What has happened to it?
Com a música popular
With popular music
Brasileira
In Brazil?
Quando a gente fala mal
When we speak badly of it?
A turma toda cai de pau
Everyone starts criticizing it
Dizendo que esse papo é
Saying that this discussion is just
Besteira
Nonsense
Na onda discothéque de
With the discotheque wave from
América do Sul
South America
Lenilda é miss Lene,
Lenilda is Miss Lene,
Zuleide é Lady Zu
Zuleide is Lady Zu
Pra defender o samba
To defend samba
Contrataram Alcione
They hired Alcione
É boa de pistom mas bota
She's good with the piston, but
A boca no trambone
She puts her mouth on the trombone
No meio disso tudo a
In the middle of all this,
Fafá vem dá um jeito
Fafá comes to fix everything
Além de muita voz, ela
Besides having a great voice, she
Também tem muito peito
Also has a lot of courage
E a música parece
And the music seems like
Brincadeira de garoto
Child's play
Pois quando ligo o rádio
Because when I turn on the radio,
Até Cauby Peixoto
Even Cauby Peixoto
O Sidney Magal rebola mais
Sidney Magal shakes more than
Que o Matogrosso
Matogrosso
Cigano de araque, fabricado
Fake gypsy, manufactured
Até o pescoço
Up to the neck
E o Chico na piscina grita
And Chico screams by the pool
Logo pro garçom
Calling quickly to the waiter
Afaste esse cálice e me traz
Take away that chalice and bring me
Moet Chandon
Moet Chandon
Com tanto brasileiro por aí
With so many Brazilians around
Metido a bamba
Feeling like a samba expert
Sucesso no estrangeiro
Successful abroad
Ainda é Carmem Miranda
Carmen Miranda is still the one
E a Rita Lee parece que
And Rita Lee seems like
Não vai sair mais dessa
She won't get out of this anymore
Pois pra fazer sucesso
Because to be successful
Arrombou de novo a festa!
She broke the party once again!
Ziri, ziriguidum
Ziri, ziriguidum
Skindô, skindô lelê
Skindô, skindô lelê
Sai da frente que eu quero
Get out of my way, I want to
É comer
Eat
A música popular brasileira
The Brazilian popular music
Lady Laura
Lady Laura
A música popular
The popular music
Parabéns pra a você
Congratulations to you
Parabéns para a música
Congratulations to the music
Popular
Popular
Ah, eu te amo
Oh, I love you
Ah, eu te amo meu amor
Oh, I love you, my love
Ai, Sandra Madalena
Oh, Sandra Madalena
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Ah, ah, ah, ah
O meu sangue ferve pela
My blood boils for
Música popular
Popular music
Oh, fricote,
Oh, fricote,
eu fiz xixi
I peed
Fricote eu fiz xixi
Fricote, I peed
Na Música Popular Brasileira
In the Brazilian Popular Music
Corre que lá vem os
Run, here come the
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind