| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
| Olha lá o nego Olha o nego sinhá Mas que nego danado Olha o nego sinhá Esse nego é valente Olha o nego sinhá Mas me pega esse nego Olha o nego sinhá Derruba no chão Olha o nego sinhá Esse nego é valente Olha o nego sinhá Esse nego é o cão Olha o nego sinhá Mas castiga esse nego Olha o nego sinhá Conforme a razão Olha o nego sinhá Ele é capoeira Olha o nego sinhá | Look there, the black man Look at the black man, sinhá But what a clever black man Look at the black man, sinhá This black man is tough Look at the black man, sinhá But get me this black man Look at the black man, sinhá Knock him to the floor Look at the black man, sinhá This black man is tough Look at the black man, sinhá This black guy is the dog Look at the black man, sinhá But punish this black guy Look at the black man, sinhá Depending on the reason Look at the black man, sinhá He is capoeira Look at the black man, sinhá |
Note: To say someone ‘is the dog’, in Portuguese, is an expression for someone who can be hard to deal with, either because they are aggressive, agitated, or clever. In this case, it’s probably referring to the skills of the black man playing capoeira, as in, he plays hard and skilfully, it’s difficult to best him.