Tout va bien... or is it?
Everything is fine
Hi all,
Thank you for joining me for today’s song, “Everything is Fine”, by Orelsan. If you’d like to hear the song before you read the background, I’ve included a YouTube video below the article.
Below, you’ll find my interpretation of the lyrics (written in italics). Comments and questions are welcome. For Japanese students, vocabulary words in bold are provided in Japanese below. TOEFL (PBT) 450+, Eiken 2, CEFR B1. Download a free worksheet for this song here.
(380 words)
Orelsan is a French rapper and songwriter. This song is a single from his 2017 album Le fête est fini (The Party’s Over) that sold over a million copies in France.
This is a dark song that criticizes people who make excuses for the problems in society. They look away from the problems or make light of them (say they aren’t that serious) or make up some pleasant story to explain the situation.
Sleep / Sleep
In the first verse, the singer says that people who live on the streets or under statues in the park, for example, really like it there.
If the man sleeps outside, it's because he likes the noise of cars / If he has fun playing dead, it's because he plays with statues
.
And if, one day, he disappeared, it’s ‘cause he became a millionaire / He's probably on an island with a palm tree stuck in his beer.
In other words, don’t worry about it
Everything is fine, everything is fine / Kid, everything is fine, everything is fine
Everything is fine, kid, everything is fine / Everything is fine, everything is fine
In the second verse, the singer says that if you hear a woman screaming, it’s because she has trouble hearing, not because she is being abused.
If the neighbor screams loud, it’s ‘cause she didn’t hear correctly / If she has blue (bruises) on her body, she played in the paint
.
And if, one day, she disappeared, it's ‘cause she went on honeymoon / While waiting for rainy days, she puts on her sunglasses
The third verse says that soldiers look forward to being shot because it’s good for them.
If men shoot each other, it’s ‘cause there are vaccines inside bullets / And, if buildings explode, it's to make stars
.
And if, one day, they disappeared, it's ‘cause they had so much fun
They went far away to do a round dance, all in battle fatigues, hand in hand
At the end of the song, the child says something that is probably the most sane thing in the entire song: You mustn’t believe everything written.
Sleep / Sleep
.
Do we look away? Do we make excuses for social justice issues that happen in our society? Or do we take action on them in whatever way each of us can?
Questions:
Where or when have you heard someone make light of a serious social issue?
What did you learn from this song?
Vocabulary
make light of (something) (実際は大事なのに) Aを軽く扱う, 軽視する
battle fatigues 軍装
sane 正気の
