Ibeyi Lyrics book

Lisa-Kaindé Diaz It felt like it was the perfect bridge between our last album and this new one. It also is telling you exactly what is going to happen through the album, because it’s a patchwork of moments that felt like healing to us. In the song, I said, ‘A church in open air,’ but I also say, ‘Yuri’s cards and the stars.’ And basically, Yuri is a friend of mine that read tarot to me a few days before we started the recording, and I asked her, ‘What are we supposed to be making?’ And she said, ‘A church in open air.’ She said it’s a church made of nothing—four pieces of wood, but it’s in open air and everybody meets there, and everybody heals, you included.

The funny thing is, I said to Naomi, ‘Yuri just told me that we’re supposed to be making a church in open air.’ And she said, ‘Girl, a church in open air? OK, but where we can twerk?’ So, this is exactly what we are making—this is us in a nutshell.

Matter and spirit Our prophet The open sea is calling me Strange island The mountain Moon in retrograde Oh, we'll be like sangoma We'll be like sangoma Eh, somo' milagrosas Curándoles el alma Oh, we'll be like sangoma We'll be like sangoma Eh, somo' milagrosas Curándoles el alma Curándoles el alma

Maya speaks the truth Yuri's cards And the stars Born to radiate A church in open air, in the wild This is where we collide You asked, "How do we heal?"

And while you cry Prayers rush out of our mouths

We'll be like sangoma Mm, we'll be like sangoma

Oh, we'll be like sangoma We'll be like sangoma Eh, somo' milagrosas Curándoles el alma Oh, we'll be like sangoma We'll be like sangoma Eh, somo' milagrosas Curándoles el alma Curándoles el alma

Expand Unknown lands

We'll be like sangoma Mmm, we'll be like sangoma

Lisa-Kaindé Diaz ‘O Inle’ is a song for Inle, who is the god of health and of healing.

The idea was with ‘Sangoma,’ where we say, ‘Somo milagrosas/ curándoles el alma,’ which means we’re made of miracles, and we cured their souls—sangomas are healers from South Africa.

And so, we would pick you up and take you to the top of a mountain, and then with ‘O Inle,’ we’d be showering you with light and healing and asking Inle to heal all of us. And then, we are ready for ‘Made of Gold’ and for everything that comes after, which is Ibeyi 2.0.

O Inle kere Leri osha unkwele O Inle kere awa mio Alado kerere

O Inle kere Leri osha unkwele O Inle kere awa mio Alado kerere

‘Made Of Gold’ is about connecting to our ancestors’ knowledge, to the truths of the past and the power of the ancient. The line is not broken, nor is it lost. Protected by these spells, our third album will see us conveying our reconnection to that power and channelling that magic into our new music.

Naomi Diaz We started doing it in Dorset because we were recording the album in London and in Dorset in two different houses.

‘Made of Gold’ was the first song we made all together.

At one point, we were doing other songs and it was a week or two weeks later. And then, Richard [Russell] went to grab a coffee, and he bumped into Pa [Salieu]’s manager, and two days later he was there. It was really magical — he’s a special human being.

On le— On, on, le, le, fait, fait On le fait ?

Make sure they hear us, feel it We are the anger and the hunger Make sure they hear us, feel it Alright, one more time Make sure they hear us (Hear us) Feel it (Feel it)W We are the anger and the hunger (Hunger) Make sure they hear us (Hear us) Feel it (Feel it) We are the anger and the hunger Holy water Crying at the altar Ignite your desire Freedom from the mire, mire (¡Dale!)

Fire Burning at the altar Rewriting sacred scriptures So we could be together, together My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold (Meet me at the altar) Prayer Kneeling at the altar Gathering our power Heat is getting higher, higher I have dreams My forefather told me, "Complete mission now" They ain't really broke us They can never break our story now My soul shows them passion Your history walks through

them golden lines Your blood carries diamonds When they thought they cleared that spirit away We are the reincarnation My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold You know that it's good, you know that it's good for you You know that it's good, you know that it's good for you Make sure they hear us, feel it You know that it's good, you know that it's good for you We are the anger and the hunger You know that it's good, you know that it's good for you Make sure they hear us, feel it You know that it's good, you know that it's good for you We are the anger and the hunger My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold My spell made of gold, gold, gold (Meet me at the altar) (¡Dale!)

Oh, you with a spine Who would work your mouth against this magic of mine It has been handed down in an unbroken line The sky encloses the stars I enclose magic I enclose magic

Lisa-Kaindé Diaz ‘Sister 2 Sister’ came out of a want to celebrate our sisterhood and our twinhood, which is crazy because we had made two albums prior and never really talked about being twins, which is the reason why we’re making music together. It became our little anthem. Also, it was a way to reference our past work because we referenced ‘River’ in this song, and we also say, ‘Here’s how you say Ibeyi.’ It felt like a way for us to say, ‘There’s been 10 years of us making this—you should know our name now.’ It was a way to flex and be proud of what we had done.

Our love is underwater I’ve cried all over you Slow down, now we’ve grown Let’s start new Our love lost in the forest Burning inside of you Slow down, now we’ve grown Let’s start new Sister, I had to tell you Sister, hold me close Swear you won’t let go Bounded by our love I had to tell you Sister, you’re too close Sister, let me go Us despite it all, ayy Dancing in front of the mirror Singing along with Shakira Washing our souls in the river Washing our souls in the river Bitch plan the future every day “Twins are the same” is a cliché Here’s how you say it: Ibeyi Here’s how you say: Ibeyi Sister, sister Sister, sister Sister, sister

My words are sometimes painful I’m sorry I’ve hurt you Slow down, now we’ve grown It’s all new Sister, I had to tell you Sister, hold me close Swear you won’t let go Bounded by our love I had to tell you Sister, you’re too close Sister, let me go Us despite it all, ayy Dancing in front of the mirror Singing along with Shakira Washing our souls in the river Washing our souls in the river Bitch plan the future every day “Twins are the same” is a cliché Here’s how you say it: Ibeyi Here’s how you say: Ibeyi Here’s how you say: Ibeyi Sister, sister Sister, sister Sister, sister Sister, sister Sister, sister Sister, sister

Lisa-Kaindé Diaz ‘Creature (Perfect)’ came from the pandemic and realizing that I had been trying to be perfect for so many people for so long and failing miserably at it, and that I was not happy. By trying to be perfect and morphing myself into what I thought every person in front of me wanted, I hadn’t discovered who I was fully. And so, it was my song to stop that and to embrace that I’m just a creature and embrace that. I can’t pursue this perfection because it was making me incredibly unhappy.

Feathers and blue scales Eyes evoking rain When I lay down in the calm of the deep blue sea I let the waves wash over me (Let the waves wash over me) Yo soy espuma Y soy ceniza Y le siembro el corazón a la Tierra I don't have to be perfect Don't have to be perfect I finally see I'm just a creature Don't have to be perfect No, I am not perfect I finally see who I'm supposed to be Thunder out of pain Stars in movement When I realize in the dark,

watching them dance They follow my fingertips (Follow my fingertips) Yo soy espuma Y soy ceniza Y le siembro el corazón a la Tierra With my bad poems My soft belly Escaping who I'm supposed to be My childhood prayers Death watching over me Accepting who I'm supposed to be I don't have to be perfect Don't have to be perfect I finally see I'm just a creature Don't have to be perfect No, I am not perfect I finally see who I'm supposed to be

Naomi Diaz ‘Tears Are Our Medicine’ is a way of saying find your way to release what you want to do. For some people, it’s tears—but just find your way to release everything that is happening to your body. During COVID, I think a lot of people finally did it, but I think if they had done it earlier, it would have been less painful. And so, it’s a way of saying let it go. It’s not a weakness, it’s a strength.

Matter and spirit Our prophet The open sea is calling me Strange island The mountain Moon in retrograde Oh, we’ll be like sangoma We’ll be like sangoma Eh, somo’ milagrosas Curándoles el alma Oh, we’ll be like sangoma We’ll be like sangoma Eh, somo’ milagrosas Curándoles el alma Curándoles el alma We’ll be like sangoma Mm, we’ll be like sangoma Expand Unknown lands Maya speaks the truth

Yuri’s cards And the stars Born to radiate A church in open air, in the wild This is where we collide You asked, “How do we heal?”

And while you cry Prayers rush out of our mouths Oh, we’ll be like sangoma We’ll be like sangoma Eh, somo’ milagrosas Curándoles el alma Oh, we’ll be like sangoma We’ll be like sangoma Eh, somo’ milagrosas Curándoles el alma Curándoles el alma We’ll be like sangoma Mmm, we’ll be like sangoma

Naomi Diaz It was meant to be a song, and then we made this interlude, which I love. It’s really genuine, and Pa is doing all the ad-libs. It was just having fun. […] We didn’t see [what it meant to be twins]. Richard, he was looking at something with his daughter, and it was saying the sister thing, the twin thing is like a foreign country. I said it [on the interlude], but we don’t recall the TV show.

Yeah, just energies, yeah?

That sister thing That twin thing It's like a foreign country It's like a foreign country

between two people Two people Je vous ai attendues Vous êtes là Vous êtes là Le plus beau des cadeaux de la vie

Twins are spirits of a higher rank Here to honour a lineage and convey a message from the Heavens They share the mother's womb Treat them with complete equity As they are duplicate forms of the same spirit Ibeyis are the ultimate harmony

Don't be shy, stand off and talk Don't be afraid, stand off and then talk Come on, feel that spirit, stand off— Don't get me carried away, I told you, I told you Dangerous (Come on, free the spirit) Free up the spirits Free the spirits

Lisa-Kaindé Diaz We knew we wanted to create something with Jorja that would be different from what we’ve done previously that would allow us to connect with the true meaning of the song. […] “Lavender and Red Roses” is a song about the feeling we all experience when we love someone troubled. It could be a partner, a sibling, a parent, a friend.

We wanted to talk about the pain of witnessing a loved one hurting, repeating patterns and getting lost. And how it triggers in us the desire to reach them, hold them tight and wash their troubles away with lavender and red roses. But the truth is you can’t save them, if they pull you into their darkness, you will have to protect yourself, and allow them to find their own strength and light, their own way.

Don't say I never warned you Don't Don't say I never warned you Don't Late at night, devil's eyes Inner life and inner lies Is it fate? Is it late?

It's hard to look at you with so much pain We connect with open hearts, baby But you still walk towards the dark lately I've welcomed you with open arms, baby But you still walk towards the dark lately Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses You still walk towards the dark

You reveal, your scars heal Analysing how you feel Your mistakes, run away Can't you hear me? Is this promise real?

We connect with open hearts, baby But you still walk towards the dark lately I've welcomed you with open arms, baby But you still walk towards the dark lately Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses, yeah Lavender and red roses But you still walk towards the dark Lavender and red roses, yeah (The dark) Lavender and red roses, yeah (The dark) Lavender and red roses

Naomi Diaz BERWYN is on this track. He listened to it, and he did his verse really fast. For him, listening to this song made him think of George Floyd, and it’s beautiful. I think the thing is, with this song, you can think about everything. It could be for women. It could be for minorities.

It’s a song for the oppressed. It could be something small or something really big, but I think this song is just empowering.

We're comin' and we're not comin' to play Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Jealous cowards try to control, yeah They distort what we can say (Oh-oh-oh-oh) Try and stop what we can do, yeah When they can't do it themselves (Oh-oh-oh-oh) Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Rise above Don't worry, you're alive, put your lighters up They wanna tell us how to think and how to laugh And how to cry and how to move Listen, give me a second, let me find a fuck (Oh-oh-oh-oh) Poor George Floyd died on the floor and everyone saw So now I sip Don P because I can afford it

If they decide tonight that they all wanted to fight Then I'm the first guy that's standin' in line for the war, war Society's arms of control, yeah They think they're smart, well, think again (Oh-oh-oh-oh) They laugh at us behind our backs Find satisfaction in what they lack, yeah (Oh-oh-oh-oh) Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above We are tired of We are tired of the abuse We are tired Try to stop us, it's no use We are tired We are tired of the abuse We are tired Try to stop us, it's no use Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above Rise above Rise above Rise above We're gonna rise above

Naomi Diaz We’re saying the names of our family members that are gone, friends of the family that are gone, some artists in it that have changed or that have impacted us in some way. We could have put way more artists, but we were not going to do a 20-minute song. It’s a cover of a song that our dad [Angá Diaz] made called ‘Rezos,’ but he was saying his own names, the names of the artists that he loved, musicians that he loved. In between each name, there’s a voice saying ‘ibae,’ and that’s his voice. We knew for a long time that we wanted to do our own version of it. And I think it’s beautiful because it’s just thinking about people we love.

Guiro (Ibae, ibae) Miguel Aurelio Diaz (Ibae) Angá Diaz (Ibae) Yanira Diaz (Ibae) Maria Luisa Diaz (Ibae) Raymond Levy (Ibae) Lucie Levy (Ibae) Monique Fallières (Ibae) Elsida Amaya (Ibae) Remi Kolpa Kopul (Ibae) Roy Hargrove (Ibae) Cachaíto (Ibae) Gil (Ibae) Vera Zana (Ibae) Phylis Whitaker (Ibae) Prince (Ibae) (Ibae) Miguel Aurelio Diaz (Ibae) Angá Diaz (Ibae) Yanira Diaz (Ibae) Maria Luisa Diaz (Ibae) Raymond Levy (Ibae) Lucie Levy (Ibae) Monique Fallières (Ibae) Elsida Amaya (Ibae) Remi Kolpa Kopul (Ibae) Roy Hargrove (Ibae) Cachaíto (Ibae) Gil (Ibae) Camille Poret (Ibae) Vera Zana (Ibae) Phylis Whitaker (Ibae) Prince (Ibae) Guiro