Here’s the translation of Occidentali’s karma, the song winner of the 67th Festival di Sanremo, written and performed by Francesco Gabbani.
Occidentali’s karma – lyrics
Essere o dover essere
Il dubbio amletico
Contemporaneo come l’uomo del neolitico.
Nella tua gabbia 2×3 mettiti comodo.
Intellettuali nei caffè
Internettologi
Soci onorari al gruppo dei selfisti anonimi.
L’intelligenza è démodé
Risposte facili
Dilemmi inutili.
AAA cercasi (cerca sì)
Storie dal gran finale
Sperasi (spera sì)
Comunque vada panta rei
And singing in the rain.
Lezioni di Nirvana
C’è il Buddha in fila indiana
Per tutti un’ora d’aria,
Di gloria.
La folla grida un mantra
L’evoluzione inciampa
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma.
Occidentali’s Karma
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma.
Piovono gocce di Chanel
Su corpi asettici
Mettiti in salvo dall’odore dei tuoi simili.
Tutti tuttologi col web
Coca dei popoli
Oppio dei poveri.
AAA cercasi (cerca sì)
Umanità virtuale
Sex appeal (sex appeal)
Comunque vada panta rei
And singing in the rain.
Lezioni di Nirvana
C’è il Buddha in fila indiana
Per tutti un’ora d’aria,
Di gloria.
La folla grida un mantra
L’evoluzione inciampa
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma.
Occidentali’s Karma
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma.
Quando la vita si distrae cadono gli uomini.
Occidentali’s Karma.
Occidentali’s Karma
La scimmia si rialza.
Namasté
Alé!
Lezioni di Nirvana
C’è il Buddha in fila indiana
Per tutti un’ora d’aria,
Di gloria.
La folla grida un mantra
L’evoluzione inciampa
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma.
Occidentali’s Karma
La scimmia nuda balla
Occidentali’s Karma
Ohm…
Occidental’s karma – Translation
Be or have to be
The Hamletic doubt
Contemporary as the Neolithic man.
Make yourself confortable in your 2×3 cage.
Intellectuals in cafès
Internettologists
Honorary member of the anonymous selfier.
Intelligence is démodé
Easy answers
Useless dilemmas.
AAA* wanted (search yes**)
Stories with a grand final
Hoped (hope yes***)
Anyway it goes, panta rei
And singing in the rain.
Nirvana class
Buddha is in single file
Yard time for everybody
Of glory.
The crowd is yelling a mantra
Evolution stumbles
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
Occidental’s karma.
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
It rains Chanel drops
On aseptic bodies
Save yourself from the smell of your similars
Everybody’s all-knowing with the Internet
Coke of the people
Oppium of poors.
AAA* wanted (search yes**)
Virtual humanity
Sex appeal (sex appeal)
Anyway it goes, panta rei
And singing in the rain.
Nirvana class
Buddha is in single file
Yard time for everybody
Of glory.
The crowd is yelling a mantra
Evolution stumbles
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
Occidental’s karma.
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
When life gets distracted
Mankind falls.
Occidental’s karma.
Occidental’s karma
The monkey stands up again.
Namasté
Alé!
Nirvana class
Buddha is in single file
Yard time for everybody
Of glory.
The crowd is yelling a mantra
Evolution stumbles
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
The naked monkey dances
Occidental’s karma.
Ohm…..
Notes
*AAA: not sure if it is used everywhere… But here announcements on newspapers, to find something (for example a partner), start with a triple “A”.
**It’s a word game: cerasi (=wanted) can be decomposed into cerca and si, where cerca means search and si can be translated in for. But in the text is “cerca sì” and not “cerca si”: sì is yes… So the cercasi is become a yell as search yes! – Note in the note –> cercarsi must be translated as wanted as “help wanted”, despite the literal translation.
***The same thing: sperasi is like “we are hoping for” and it’s decomposed into spera ( = you hope) and si, transformed into sì = yes.
Other info
This song is the winner of the 2017 edition of Sanremo, the most important and popular musical contest in Italy.
Francesco Gabbani won the 2016 edition in the Young category with the song Amen; this year he took part in the Big contest.
The second place has gone to Fiorella Mannoia, with Che sia benedetta; the third to Ermal Meta, author of Vietato morire.
The meaning of Occidentali’s karma
There’s a clear reference to the English language: in Italian the English possessive doesn’t exist; the “Occidentali‘s” is a joke of that part of Italian culture which wants to be English and American. In fact, in Italy we use a lot of American words and also our t-shirt and the adds on TV are made in English!
Here’s the video of the prizegiving!
Italian Lifestyle 