In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Ladies up in here tonight
No fighting
We got the refugees up in here (no fighting)
No fighting
Shakira, Shakira
I never really knew that she could dance like this (hey)
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You make a woman go mad
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body (uno, dos, tres, cuatro)
I'm on tonight
You know my hips don't lie (no fighting)
And I'm starting to feel it's right
All the attraction, the tension
Don't you see, baby, this is perfection?
Hey, girl, I can see your body moving
And it's driving me crazy
And I didn't have the slightest idea
Until I saw you dancing (yeah)
And when you walk up on the dance floor
Nobody cannot ignore the way you move your body, girl (just move)
And everything so unexpected, the way you right and left it
So you can keep on shaking it (let's go)
I never really knew that she could dance like this
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You make a woman go mad
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body (no fighting)
I'm on tonight
You know my hips don't lie (no fighting)
And I'm starting to feel you, boy
Come on, let's go, real slow
Don't you see, baby, así es perfecto?
Babe, I know I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel it's right
All the attraction, the tension
Don't you see, baby, this is perfection? (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, boy, I can see your body moving
Half animal, half man
I don't, don't really know what I'm doing
But you seem to have a plan
My will and self-restraint
Have come to fail now, fail now
See, I'm doing what I can, but I can't so you know
That's a bit too hard to explain (uno, dos, tres, cuatro)
Baila en la calle de noche (yeah)
Baila en la calle de día (let's go)
Baila en la calle de noche
Baila en la calle de día
I never really knew that she could dance like this
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You know you got me hypnotized
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body
Señorita, feel the conga
Let me see you move like you come from Colombia
(Yeah, oh)
Yeah (ladies sí) (yeah yeah)
(Hey, yeah)
¡Mira en Barranquilla se baila así, say it! (yeah)
En Barranquilla se baila así (yeah)
Hey, brra
Yeah, she's so sexy, every man's fantasy
A refugee like me back with the Fugees from a third world country
I go back like when 'Pac carried crates for Humpty Humpty
We leave the whole club dizzy
Why the CIA wanna watch us?
Colombians and Haitians
I ain't guilty, it's a musical transaction
Bo bop so bop, no more do we snatch ropes
Refugees run the seas 'cause we own our own boats (no fighting)
I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel you, boy
Come on, let's go, real slow
Baby, like this is perfecto (no fighting)
Oh, you know I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel it's right
The attraction, the tension
Baby, like this is perfection
No fighting
No fighting
No fighting
We got the refugees up in here (no fighting)
No fighting
Shakira, Shakira
I never really knew that she could dance like this (hey)
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You make a woman go mad
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body (uno, dos, tres, cuatro)
I'm on tonight
You know my hips don't lie (no fighting)
And I'm starting to feel it's right
All the attraction, the tension
Don't you see, baby, this is perfection?
Hey, girl, I can see your body moving
And it's driving me crazy
And I didn't have the slightest idea
Until I saw you dancing (yeah)
And when you walk up on the dance floor
Nobody cannot ignore the way you move your body, girl (just move)
And everything so unexpected, the way you right and left it
So you can keep on shaking it (let's go)
I never really knew that she could dance like this
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You make a woman go mad
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body (no fighting)
I'm on tonight
You know my hips don't lie (no fighting)
And I'm starting to feel you, boy
Come on, let's go, real slow
Don't you see, baby, así es perfecto?
Babe, I know I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel it's right
All the attraction, the tension
Don't you see, baby, this is perfection? (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, boy, I can see your body moving
Half animal, half man
I don't, don't really know what I'm doing
But you seem to have a plan
My will and self-restraint
Have come to fail now, fail now
See, I'm doing what I can, but I can't so you know
That's a bit too hard to explain (uno, dos, tres, cuatro)
Baila en la calle de noche (yeah)
Baila en la calle de día (let's go)
Baila en la calle de noche
Baila en la calle de día
I never really knew that she could dance like this
She make a man wanna speak Spanish
¿Cómo se llama? (Sí), bonita (sí)
Mi casa, su casa (Shakira, Shakira)
Oh, baby, when you talk like that
You know you got me hypnotized
So be wise (sí) and keep on (sí)
Reading the signs of my body
Señorita, feel the conga
Let me see you move like you come from Colombia
(Yeah, oh)
Yeah (ladies sí) (yeah yeah)
(Hey, yeah)
¡Mira en Barranquilla se baila así, say it! (yeah)
En Barranquilla se baila así (yeah)
Hey, brra
Yeah, she's so sexy, every man's fantasy
A refugee like me back with the Fugees from a third world country
I go back like when 'Pac carried crates for Humpty Humpty
We leave the whole club dizzy
Why the CIA wanna watch us?
Colombians and Haitians
I ain't guilty, it's a musical transaction
Bo bop so bop, no more do we snatch ropes
Refugees run the seas 'cause we own our own boats (no fighting)
I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel you, boy
Come on, let's go, real slow
Baby, like this is perfecto (no fighting)
Oh, you know I'm on tonight, my hips don't lie
And I'm starting to feel it's right
The attraction, the tension
Baby, like this is perfection
No fighting
No fighting
Lyrics submitted by xox_pandie_xox, edited by mamadiano
Hips Don't Lie Lyrics as written by Wyclef Jean Shakira Mebarak
Lyrics © LANFRANCO MUSIC, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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it's about lust, about how he's watching her dance and how she's moving her hips and letting her body do the talking for her. which is appearently positive.
i heard this song earlier today, and i really love it.
In a world rife with corruption, it is comforting to know that Shakira's hips are a reliable source of truth.
according to loop-to-loop: "Anyone that doesn't like her are assholes and bitches. Your just mad becuz u cant speak spanish and spanish is one of the awesomest languages in the whole world." Well, I speak spanish and I still don't like Shakira...
You're all perverts!
The phrase 'hips don't lie' is an inside joke with Shakira and her band. (See Shakira's 2005 Ellen interview).
When Shakira is working on a song and she isn't feeling it, she tells her band, 'we have to keep working because my hips aren't moving, my hips don't lie'
So this song is about Shakira feeling getting into a song while dancing. She is flirting with a fellow dancer and he is flirting back with her.
There are also tons of references to the Carnival of Barranquilla which reinforces the dancing motif.
It's a fun flirty song that makes a few political jibes, how Colombia and Haiti have become infamous.
Oh, this is a great song. I'm glad Shakira has a song with someone black. This song I think is just about a guy that watches Shakira dance and he is interested in seeing what she can do all night and it makes him want to speak spanish...lol Anyway, Shakira is awesome. Anyone that doesn't like her are assholes and bitches. Your just mad becuz u cant speak spanish and spanish is one of the awesomest languages in the whole world.
loop-to-loop, I liked your review until you started talking about Spanish being awesome. This is a good dance track and deserves more reviews. Not Shakira's deepest lyrics, but still good. I liked the lyrics "I ain't guilty, it's a musical transaction." Most people probably don't realize the cultural diversity to the song.
no one wants to say anything about the lines about refugees and owning boats? i think there's more, including a subtle attack at the immediate suspicion aroused when people of varying ethnic backgrounds are seen interacting in public places. "relax, we're just collaborating." "relax, we know where we come from and get the CIA off our backs." i know it's not the main point of the song, and I haven't see Havana Nights but surely someone who reads this has more than an eighth-grade ability to wonder about stuff like this?
ha alphachimera your post is amusing. this is because i am an eighth-grader and i was just thinking the same thing, which is sort of weird. anyway, i kept looking for results on google for the meanings of "hips dont lie" for reasons as to why those lyrics are in the song. basically you stole the words out of my mouth and i couldn't agree more with your reasoning of a subliminal attack on american government policy investigating new immigrants like some sort of diseased cattle. sometimes, america really does suck...
ummm i dont quite think 'my house is your house' fits into the song....i think its more like he sees her dancing and its where should we go 'my house? or your house?'
Yeah, I consulted my Mexican friend about the lyircs, llioop is right. I also agree with alphachimera, although the main theme of the song is dancing, I believe its is also about cultural tensions. I love the part when they both say "why the CIA wanna watch us?" I think it sounds really good.
shakira has got sick dance moves. i can dance like her( if only...)