Pearls
Sade Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

There is a woman in Somalia
Scraping for pearls on the roadside
There's a force stronger than nature
Keeps her will alive

This is how she's dying
She's dying to survive
Don't know what she's made of
I would like to be that brave

She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives a life she didn't choose
And it hurts like brand new shoes

Hurts like brand new shoes

There is a woman in Somalia
The sun gives her no mercy
The same sky we lay under
Burns her to the bone

Long as afternoon shadows
It's gonna take her to get home
Each grain carefully wrapped up
Pearls for her little girl

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives in a world she didn't choose




And it hurts like brand new shoes
Hurts like brand new shoes

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Sade's song "Pearls" tell the story of a woman living in Somalia who is scraping for pearls on the roadside in order to survive. Despite the harsh circumstances she faces each day, there is a deep inner strength that keeps her will to live alive. The song acknowledges the difficult and painful reality of her life, and the resilience and bravery it takes to endure such circumstances. The repetition of the phrase "hurts like brand new shoes" emphasizes the ongoing pain she experiences, even as she takes each step in the direction of survival.


The lyrics also draw attention to the destructive impact of poverty and lack of opportunity on individuals and communities, and the ways in which those outside of these circumstances are often unaware of the struggles faced by those who are directly impacted. Through her powerful vocals and emotive delivery, Sade invites listeners to empathize with the woman's plight and to recognize the complexity of her situation.


Overall, "Pearls" is a poignant and thought-provoking work of art that offers a sobering reflection on the realities of life for many marginalized people around the world.


Line by Line Meaning

There is a woman in Somalia
A woman from Somalia is being described


Scraping for pearls on the roadside
This woman is digging for pearls on the side of the road


There's a force stronger than nature
She has an inner strength that overpowers the natural difficulties of her surroundings


Keeps her will alive
This strength is what keeps her motivated and moving forward


This is how she's dying
Her daily struggles is what's slowly causing her demise


She's dying to survive
She's barely holding on to survive amidst all the hardships


Don't know what she's made of
It's amazing to see how much strength this woman has even though she may not know where it comes from


I would like to be that brave
The singer admires this woman's courage and hopes to be like her one day


She cries to the heaven above
The woman prays to a higher power for strength and guidance


There is a stone in my heart
The artist is emotionally affected by the woman's struggles


She lives a life she didn't choose
The singer acknowledges that this woman's life was not something she wanted or had control over


And it hurts like brand new shoes
The pain of her struggles is strongly felt by her


Hurts like brand new shoes
The pain is immediate and affects her greatly


The sun gives her no mercy
The hot, brutal sun makes her situation even more difficult


The same sky we lay under
The sky that the singer and listener lay under is the same one that is causing this woman so much pain


Burns her to the bone
The sun is so intense that is causing her actual physical harm


Long as afternoon shadows
Her day of work is so long that it lasts until the late afternoon


It's gonna take her to get home
Her commute back home is long and arduous


Each grain carefully wrapped up
Each pearl that she finds is treasured and preserved with great care


Pearls for her little girl
The woman is collecting these pearls to provide for her daughter


Hallelujah
An expression of praise or joy, it's not clear how this line specifically relates to the meaning of the song


Hallelujah
An expression of praise or joy, it's not clear how this line specifically relates to the meaning of the song




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Helen Adu, Andrew Hale

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@carlosaroliveira5

Pearls
There is a woman in Somalia
Scraping for pearls on the roadside
There's a force stronger than nature
Keeps her will alive

This is how she's dying
She's dying to survive
Don't know what she's made of
I would like to be that brave

She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives a life she didn't choose
And it hurts like brand-new shoes

Hurts like brand-new shoes

There is a woman in Somalia
The sun gives her no mercy
The same sky we lay under
Burns her to the bone

Long as afternoon shadows
It's gonna take her to get home
Each grain carefully wrapped up
Pearls for her little girl

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives in a world she didn't choose
And it hurts like brand-new shoes
Hurts like brand-new shoes

Composers: Helen Adu / Andrew Hale



@lslmadi

​@@patriciaalva1156If you were to die today, are you a 100% sure you will go to heaven?

If no, here is what the bible says,
(1) Romans 3:23 KJV [23] For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.
Q1. Do you know what Sin is?


Sin is anything bad that we have done.

Q2. Have you sinned before?

 Yes or No?

(2) Revelation 21:8 KJV [8] But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

Because we have sinned, and God does not allow Sin into Heaven, the punishment is burning hell. 

What is the way to reconcile our peace and relationship with God?

Q3. Do you know the Story of Jesus?

(3) Romans 5:8 KJV [8] But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus = God who lived up in Heaven, but he came down on earth and became a man like us, he lived for 33.5 years without committing any sin. Then there were certain people who were jealous and therefore framed him on phony charges, and crucified him. Then he was buried and resurrected on the third day; Now he lives in HEAVEN. 

Q4. Do you know why Jesus went through all this bloody mess for us?

A4. As mentioned, our sin is the reason why we can’t go to heaven, and the only thing that can wash away our sin is the Blood of Jesus.

(4) Romans 5:9 KJV [9] Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

According to the bible, the only way for us to reconcile with God is through Christ Jesus’s blood, and not through any works that we do or merits we accumulate, such as water baptism, attending church, or any good thing that we do. The following  verses clearly support this.

(5) Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV [8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: [9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
 (6) 2 Corinthians 7:10 KJV [10] For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

In order to get saved, repentance of one’s sin is needed to get saved, we need to be sorry, and repent, with conviction, that we are a wretched sinner.

(7) Romans 10:9 KJV [9] That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

If you truly do  believe in everything you have heard in the gospel,  ,I  strongly suggest you to make a proclamation to GOD! You can say it to God in less than 15 seconds !Repeat after this simple prayer, to make sure you  truly get saved. Remember repeating this prayer doesn't save you, it's you telling God you BELIEVE THE GOSPEL. Ok, here is the prayer :

‘Dear GOD,
I know I am a sinner, as I repent, I put my faith, that Jesus is GOD, and that he died, buried and resurrected, so that his blood, can wash away my Sins. I put my faith in that alone to save me, not my good works. In Jesus’s holy name, I pray. Amen!

 Congratulations ! Now you are a child of God. Download /Buy a KJV bible (I highly suggest getting a hard copy bible , as one day, it will be illegal to buy, own or even have an online version of the bible) and search for youtube channel like REAL Bible Believers , Spencer Smith to help you grow , study dispensationalism to understand the bible ( How do we reconcile the verses in the New Testament that tell us that we need works to show our faith, and another that tells us that nothing that can take our salvation away? That's why we need to study biblical dispensationalism to rightly divide the word of God.( study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth, 2 Timothy 2:15) (I recommend the dispensationalism video from Genesis to Revelations by Dr. Gene Kim, https://youtu.be/GI4CteEFxOk) , Jesus in Genesis (https://youtu.be/RmnUkNT55gU)
join a bible  believing church. God bless you brother/ sister ☺. See you in heaven one day!



All comments from YouTube:

@simonealexascott

That "Hallelujah" gives me chills everytime.

@rhonfo43

simonealexa that Halleuiah is the highest praise to God.

@Jsimm100

Me Too

@christiana8962

simonealexa the same...)

@fulusikhipha2246

I cry , everytime

@marestin

The most important "Hallelujah" of this century

62 More Replies...

@zakariaabdi588

I’m Somali this song reminds me of my grandmother. She was a strong woman who managed to bring all her kids overseas by working in dangerous war torn country. She even raised the children of her husbands second wife that he did not tell her about as her own after their mother ran off on them because my grandfather refused to leave my grandmother for her. She would pray to god. Always puts others before her own comfort.

@KranjarxJenas

I’m Somali too and I feel deeply connected to this song and my mother Allah Yerhamu

@J3SUSOnMC

her vocals are so smooth and soft yet so powerful, simply unmatched

@yvonnehaggins4449

Yeeees!!!

More Comments

More Versions