Last post (probably) of the year! 《泡沫》 was a mega hit off G.E.M.’s 2012 album Xposed. The album features both Mandopop and Cantopop songs. I was initially torn between featuring this song and 《光年之外》, but I ultimately chose 《泡沫》 because it’s my favorite of the two. This song is so packed with feeling that I think you really don’t need to speak a word of Mandarin to understand the emotions the lyrics convey. When I first started listening to Mandopop, G.E.M. was one of the first artists I listened to, and I still enjoy her music to this day. So a Learning Chinese with Lyrics post featuring her is long overdue!

邓紫棋 (G.E.M.) - 泡沫

阳光下的泡沫 是彩色的
就像被骗的我 是幸福的
追究什么对错 你的谎言 基于你还爱我

彩色 cǎisè - color / multi-colored 
追究 zhuījiū - to investigate / to look into (Taiwan pr. zhuījiù)
基于 jīyú - because of / on the basis of / in view of / on account of

美丽的泡沫 虽然一刹花火
你所有承诺 虽然都太脆弱
但爱像泡沫 如果能够看破 有什么难过

一刹 yíchà - instant / split second / a moment
花火 huāhuǒ - firework

早该知道泡沫 一触就破
就像已伤的心不胜折磨
也不是谁的错 谎言再多 基于你还爱我

不胜 búshèng - cannot bear or stand / be unequal to / very / extremely (Taiwan pr. bùshēng)

美丽的泡沫 虽然一刹花火
你所有承诺 虽然都太脆弱
爱本是泡沫 如果能够看破 有什么难过

再美的花朵 盛开过就凋落
再亮眼的星 一闪过就坠落
爱本是泡沫 如果能够看破 有什么难过

凋落 diāoluò - to wither (and drop off) / to wilt / to pass away
亮眼 liàngyǎn - conspicuous / showy

为什么难过 有什么难过 为什么难过

全都是泡沫 只一刹的花火
你所有承诺 全部都太脆弱
而你的轮廓 怪我没有看破 才如此难过

轮廓 lúnkuò - an outline / silhouette

相爱的把握 要如何再搜索
相拥着寂寞 难道就不寂寞
爱本是泡沫 怪我没有看破 才如此难过

在雨下的泡沫 一触就破
当初炽热的心 早已沉没
说什么你爱我 如果骗我 我宁愿你沉默

炽热 chìrè - red-hot / glowing / blazing / (fig.) passionate
沉没 chénmò - to sink

See you in 2022!

I remembering seeing this music video pop up in my recommendations on YouTube back in middle school. It was everywhere, but I don’t think I ever clicked on it! A song called “Rainie Love” just didn’t appeal to me. Finally this year after seeing Rainie Yang on 乘风破浪的姐姐2 and seeing Li Ronghao (her husband) on 青春有你3, I thought I should listen to this iconic song. I was pleasantly surprised—the song isn’t groundbreaking or anything, but it has more umph to it than a plain piano ballad. Seems like it would be fun for a karaoke night too.

杨丞琳 (Rainie Yang) - 雨爱

窗外的天气 就像是你多变的表情
下雨了 雨陪我哭泣
看不清 我也不想看清

多变 duōbiàn - fickle / frequently-changing

离开你 我安静的抽离
不忍揭晓的剧情
我的泪流在心里 学会放弃

抽离 chōulí - to remove / to step back from involvement / to disengage
不忍 bùrěn - cannot bear to / disturbed
揭晓 jiēxiǎo - to announce publicly / to publish / to make known / to disclose
剧情 jùqíng - storyline / plot / drama (genre)

听雨的声音 一滴滴清晰
你的呼吸像雨滴渗入我的爱里
真希望雨能下不停
让想念继续 让爱变透明
我爱上给我勇气的 Rainie Love

清晰 qīngxī - clear / distinct
渗入 shènrù - to permeate

窗外的雨滴 一滴滴累积
屋内的湿气像储存爱你的记忆
真希望雨能下不停
雨爱的秘密 能一直延续
我相信我将会看到彩虹的美丽

累积 lěijī - to accumulate
湿气 shīqì - moisture / humidity
储存 chǔcún | chúcún - stockpile / to store / to stockpile / storage

冷冷的空气 很窒息我无法呼吸
一万颗 雨滴的距离
很彻底 让爱消失无息

窒息 zhìxī | zhìxí - to choke / to stifle / to suffocate
无息 wúxī | wúxí - uninterrupted / continuous / without a sound

离开你 我安静的抽离
不忍揭晓的剧情
我的泪流在心里 学会放弃

听雨的声音 一滴滴清晰
你的呼吸像雨滴渗入我的爱里
真希望雨能下不停
让想念继续 让爱变透明
我爱上给我勇气的 Rainie Love

窗外的雨滴 一滴滴累积
屋内的湿气像储存爱你的记忆
真希望雨能下不停
雨爱的秘密 能一直延续
我相信我将会看到彩虹的美丽

屋内的湿气像储存爱你的记忆
真希望雨能下不停
雨爱的秘密 能一直延续
我相信我将会看到彩虹的美丽

Eason Chan is an iconic Hong Kong singer with many Cantopop and Mandopop albums. I first heard this song on Youth With You 3 when it was covered in the first performance round. Honestly I didn’t think their cover was that good…but I could tell instantly that I would like the original version of the song. I guess that says a lot about the quality of this song! It’s a rock song that starts somber and slow but then quickly builds. Sadly this song isn’t on US Spotify (there are covers though, as well as another great Eason Chan song with a title that has a similar vibe 《陪你度过漫长岁月》). Really the only flaw is that it’s a short song at only a bit over 3 minutes, so I’m always left wishing it were longer!

陈奕迅 (Eason Chan) - 让我留在你身边

我从来不说话
因为我害怕 没有人回答
我从来不挣扎
因为我知道 这世界太大

挣扎 zhēngzhá - to struggle

太多时间浪费 太多事要面对 太多已无所谓
太多难辨真伪太多纷扰是非在你身边是谁

辨 biàn - to distinguish / to recognize
真伪 zhēnwěi - true or bogus / authenticity
纷扰 fēnrǎo - turmoil / unrest / disturbance
是非 shìfēi - right and wrong / quarrel

最渺小的我 有大大的梦
时间向前走 一定只有路口没有尽头
纷纷扰扰这个世界 所有的了解
只要 让我留在你身边

渺小 miǎoxiǎo - minute / tiny / negligible / insignificant

最渺小的我 有大大的梦
我愿意安静的活在每个有你的角落
如果生活还有什么 会让你难过
别怕 让我留在你身边 都陪你度过

度过 dùguò - to pass / to spend (time) / to survive / to get through

最渺小的我 最卑微的梦
我发现这世界没有那么那么的不同
现实如果对你不公别计较太多
走吧暴风雨后的彩虹

卑微 bēiwēi - lowly / humble
不公 bùgōng - unjust / unfair
计较 jìjiào - to bother about / to haggle / to bicker / to argue / plan / stratagem
暴风雨 bàofēngyǔ - rainstorm / storm / tempest

也许会落空也许会普通
也许这庸庸碌碌的黑白世界你不懂
生命中所有的路口 绝不是尽头
别怕 让我留在你身边 都陪你度过

落空 luòkōng - to fail / to fall through / to come to nothing
庸庸碌碌 yōngyōnglùlù - ordinary / mediocre

Learning Chinese with Lyrics: 李荣浩 - 戒烟

I’ve decided that at least for a couple months I’ll increasing my Learning Chinese with Lyrics posts to twice a month. I know they aren’t usually as popular, but I have a backlog of songs/lyrics to share!

As I mentioned in my recent Mandopop recs post, I’ve been listening to Li Ronghao lately. This song in particular has been stuck in my head a lot. I find the lyrics to be very moving and poignant. A sense of loss truly comes through. And thankfully, the lyrics are also relatively simple, so it’s easy to learn them. This song is nearly 5 minutes long, but it doesn’t feel too long or dragged out to me at all. To my knowledge, this song isn’t Li Ronghao’s biggest hit (that honor seems to go to 年少有为), but it’s still pretty popular. And my favorite by him right now.

李荣浩 - 戒烟

已经为了变的更好 去掉锋芒
一不小心成了你的 倾诉对象
电话约在从前约会的地方
要陪你唱歌吃饭我结账
保持优良习惯

锋芒 fēngmáng - tip (of pencil, spear etc) / sharp point / cutting edge / spearhead / vanguard
倾诉 qīngsù - to say everything (that is on one’s mind)
结账 jiézhàng - to pay the bill / to settle accounts *also written 结帐
优良 yōuliáng - fine / good / first-rate

你说最近过的还算 幸福美满
喝了几杯唱了几段 你却哭了
想去安慰却不知什么立场
听你说话看你哭湿头发
我得到了惩罚

立场 lìchǎng - position / standpoint
惩罚 chéngfá - penalty / punishment / to punish

戒了烟我不习惯 没有你我怎么办
三年零一个礼拜 才学会怎么忍耐
你给过我的伤害 是没有一句责怪
戒了烟 染上悲伤 我也不想

忍耐 rěnnài - to endure / to bear with / to exercise patience / to restrain oneself / patience / endurance
戒烟 jièyān - to give up smoking
染上 rǎnshàng - to catch (a disease) / to get (a bad habit)

你说最近过的还算 幸福美满
喝了几杯唱了几段 你却哭了
想去安慰却不知什么立场
听你说话看你哭湿头发
我得到了惩罚

戒了烟我不习惯 没有你我怎么办
三年零一个礼拜 才学会怎么忍耐
你给过我的伤害 是没有一句责怪
戒了烟 染上悲伤 我也不想
我也不想
谁也不想

戒了烟我不习惯 没有你我怎么办
三年零一个礼拜 才学会怎么忍耐
你给过我的伤害 是没有一句责怪
戒了烟 染上悲伤 我也不想

This is a simple yet lovely song by Super Girl and Sisters Who Make Waves alum Bibi Zhou (who is also one of my favorite singers). This song came out in 2018 and became one of her biggest hits, thus earning its spot in my iconic/popular Mandopop songs series. I’ll admit, I didn’t really notice this song at first just because nothing about it stood out to me. But it grew on me over time. The lyrics are also relatively simple and repetitive, so it’s easy to sing along. Sadly, this song isn’t on US Spotify. The lyric video below has an impressive 19 million views though!

周笔畅 (Bibi Zhou) - 最美的期待

我有一个梦 像雨后彩虹
用所有泪水换来笑容
还有一种爱穿越了人海
拾起那颗迷失的尘埃
你的呼吸 越靠越近 将我抱紧

彩虹 cǎihóng - rainbow
穿越 chuānyuè - to pass through / to traverse / to cross
拾 shí - to pick up / to collate or arrange

我睁开双眼 想你在身边
无所谓永远还是瞬间
静闭上了眼 你却又浮现
带我远离寂寞的边缘
忘了是非没有伤悲无怨无悔

浮现 fúxiàn - to appear before one’s eyes / to come into view / to float into appearance / to come back (of images from the past) / to emerge / it emerges / it occurs (to me that..)
远离 yuǎnlí - to be far from / to keep away from
边缘 biānyuán - edge / fringe / verge / brink / periphery / marginal / borderline
是非 shìfēi - right and wrong / quarrel
无怨无悔 wúyuànwúhuǐ - no complaints / to have no regrets

我拥抱着爱 当从梦中醒来
你执着地等待 却不曾离开
舍不得分开 在每一次醒来
不用再徘徊你就是我最美的期待

执着 zhízhuó - to be strongly attached to / to be dedicated / to cling to
徘徊 páihuái - to dither / to hesitate / to pace back and forth / to hover around / to linger

我睁开双眼 想你在身边
无所谓永远还是瞬间
静闭上了眼 你却又浮现
带我远离寂寞的边缘
忘了是非 没有伤悲 无怨无悔

我拥抱着爱 当从梦中醒来
你执着的等待 却不曾离开
舍不得分开 在每一次醒来
不用再徘徊 你就是我最美的期待

我拥抱着爱 当从梦中醒来
你执着地等待 却不曾离开
舍不得分开 在每一次醒来
不用再徘徊 你就是我最美的期待

As you may or may not know, my new musical obsession is Yoga Lin. This is probably his biggest hit. Oddly, the English title is Fairy Tale, even though 说谎 doesn’t mean fairy tale. I guess I see the connection between lies and a fairy tale though. I personally find this song a bit more difficult to understand than the previous few songs that I’ve shared (I think due to more complex sentence structure). I would describe this song as a pretty typical Mandopop ballad hit, but I found that I really enjoy it even though it doesn’t really stand out in a definitive way. I think it’s because the lyrics hint at a complex and interesting story behind the song.

林宥嘉 (Yoga Lin) - 说谎

是有过几个不错对象 说起来并不寂寞孤单
可能我浪荡 让人家不安 才会结果都阵亡

浪荡 làngdàng - to loiter / to hang around / dissolute / licentious
阵亡 zhènwáng - to die in battle

我没有什么阴影魔障
你千万不要放在心上
我又不脆弱 何况那算什么伤
反正爱情不就都这样

阴影 yīnyǐng - shadow
魔障 mózhàng - Buddhist demon of temptation / obstacle set up by a demon / twists & turns / trials
放在心上 fàngzàixīnshàng - to care about / to take seriously / to take to heart

我没有说谎 我何必说谎
你懂我的 我对你从来就不会假装
我哪有说谎 请别以为你有多难忘
笑是真的不是我逞强

逞强 chěngqiáng - to show off / to try to be brave

我好久没来这间餐厅
没想到已经换了装潢
角落那窗口 闻得到玫瑰花香
被你一说是有些印象

装潢 zhuānghuáng - to mount (a picture) / to dress / to adorn / decoration / packaging

我没有说谎 我何必说谎
你知道的 我缺点之一就是很健忘
我哪有说谎 是很感谢今晚的相伴
但我竟然有些不习惯

健忘 jiànwàng - forgetful
相伴 xiāngbàn - to accompany sbdy / to accompany each other

我没有说谎 我何必说谎
爱一个人 没爱到难道就会怎么样
别说我说谎 人生已经如此的艰难
有些事情就不要拆穿

拆穿 chāichuān - to expose / to unmask / to see through

我没有说谎 是爱情说谎
它带你来 骗我说 渴望的有可能有希望
我没有说谎 祝你做个幸福的新娘
我的心事请你就遗忘

新娘 xīnniáng - bride

Jess Lee is nicknamed 铁肺女王 (iron lung queen), and this song perfectly demonstrates why. She hasn’t been in the industry as long as Tanya Chua and Stefanie Sun (the last two artists I’ve featured in this series), but I’ve found some real gems on her 4 albums. This song is her most popular and not too difficult in terms of vocabulary content. Probably the most difficult part of the song is that there are some long pauses between words that can make the lines hard to parse. The song is quite sad lyrically, but it stands out most as being dramatic and powerful. It’s not like your typical sad love song in that way. And the title is very fitting, because I really feel the torment and suffering from Jess Lee’s performance.

李佳薇 (Jess Lee) - 煎熬

早知道　你只是飞鸟
拥抱后　手中只剩下　羽毛
当初你又何必浪费
那么多咖啡和玫瑰　来打扰

飞鸟 fēiniǎo - bird
羽毛 yǔmáo - feather / plumage / plume

我想要　安静的思考
天平上　让爱恨不再　动摇
一想你就平衡不了
我关灯还是关不掉　这风暴

天平 tiānpíng - scales (to weigh things)
动摇 dòngyáo - to sway / to waver / to rock / to rattle / to destabilize / to pose a challenge to
风暴 fēngbào - storm / violent commotion / fig. crisis (e.g. revolution, uprising, financial crisis etc)

心一跳　爱就开始煎熬
每一分　每一秒
火在烧　烧成灰有多好
叫思念　不要吵
我相信我已经快要
快要把你忘掉
跟寂寞　再和好

和好 héhǎo - to become reconciled / on good terms with each other

得不到　也不要乞讨
怎么做　不需要别人　转告
在陷得太深的海底
我也只剩下我自己　能依靠

乞讨 qǐtǎo - to beg / to go begging
转告 zhuǎngào - to pass on / to communicate / to transmit
陷 xiàn - pitfall / trap / to get stuck / to sink / to cave in / to frame (false charge) / to capture (a city in battle) / to fall (to the enemy) / defect
海底 hǎidǐ - seabed / seafloor / bottom of the ocean

心一跳　爱就开始煎熬
每一分　每一秒
火在烧　烧成灰有多好
叫思念　不要吵
我相信我已经快要
快要把你忘掉
跟寂寞　再和好

我相信我已经快要
是真的我快要
快要可以微笑
去面对　下一个　拥抱