Learn French with a clip from Aya Nakamura. This clip is 5 seconds long and has 19 words. Challenge your listening with our transcription quiz.
Learn French with a song snippet! This clip is from Aya Nakamura’s “40%”. We do not own the rights to this song, nor do we pretend to own them. Listen to this sample and transcribe what you hear. Find the full song here.
The above audio sample and transcription is from Aya Nakamura’s “40%”. Songwriters: Aya Danioko 40% lyrics © Warner Chappell Music France, Soc Sony ATV Allegro Music Publishing France, Blue Sky Publishing, Perspective Productions, Label 67, Universal Music Publishing Group. We do not own the content, we are using it for educational purposes. Listen to the entire song here.
I’ve changed the deal
I was listening to this clip, trying to find the words she was saying, and just scratching my head. I went to her music video with the subtitles in French on and realized her subtitles there are different from the lyric finder subtitles I was using.
This just goes to show that my friend was right, even French people seem to struggle to understand just what she’s saying.
Now, some learners might balk at this and say, well then there’s just no reason to even try. I say, not so fast! That’s even more reason to try and work through it.
For reference, the lyrics I’m using are from her youtube, as this is her official music video uploaded by her team, I expect these lyrics to be the most accurate for our purposes here.
This is not easy stuff. In this clip, I can barely hear “j’vais le” and it sounds nothing like that, the lyrics she’s provided.
I am not trying to sound like Aya, but it’s fun to try to piece together what she’s saying, and then struggle through what she means.
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I struggle with hearing individual words in English songs, in my native tongue. It takes a couple listens to really get it..
The snippet in English
Find a translation of this snippet here, how much of this did you hear?
Bébé pour toi y’a tout, pour toi y’a tout
J’ai changé la donne j’vais le dominer yeah
Baby for you there’s everything, for you there’s everything
I’ve changed the deal, gonna dominate him yeah
The above text from Aya Nakamura’s Youtube channel. Source. Songwriters: Aya Danioko 40% lyrics © Warner Chappell Music France, Soc Sony ATV Allegro Music Publishing France, Blue Sky Publishing, Perspective Productions, Label 67, Universal Music Publishing Group
What does “j’ai changé la donne” mean?
“J’ai changé la donne” is a French phrase that can be translated to “I changed the game” or “I changed the rules” in English.
It is used to express that the speaker has brought a significant change or alteration to a situation, or that they have changed the way things are done. The phrase implies that the speaker has taken a decisive action that has affected the outcome of a situation, and the phrase often implies that the change was for the better.
The word “donne” can be translated as “game” or “rules” in English, and it refers to the current state of the situation or the way things are done.
For example:
- “J’ai décidé de changer de travail, j’ai changé la donne de ma vie professionnelle” which means “I decided to change jobs, I changed the game in my professional life”
- “Il a proposé une idée innovante, il a changé la donne pour notre entreprise” which means “He proposed an innovative idea, he changed the rules for our company.”
It is used to express that the speaker has brought a significant change or alteration to a situation, or that they have changed the way things are done.
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y’a
changé la donne
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