These songs have achieved double victory
Most anglophone artists write lyrics in English, but this is not exclusively the case for all music artists. Many do, in fact, experiment with other languages, which often works well and helps their songs become massive hits!
In this gallery, we list some of the greatest tunes from anglophone artists who incorporated lyrics in foreign languages. Click through and get to know them.
David Byrne sings the iconic Anglo-French lyrics "Psycho Killer, Qu'est-ce que c'est?" in their 1977 hit 'Psycho Killer.'
Released in 2003, the song ends with the band singing German lyrics: “Ich heiße Superphantastisch!” which means “My name is super-fantastic!” in English.
The Fab Four add a touch of French to this tune, singing "Michelle, ma belle / Sont les mots qui vont tres bien ensemble." The Beatle have other songs with foreign languages, including 'Across the Universe' with the Sanskrit mantra "Jai guru deva," which roughly means "glory to the divine teacher."
Beck's 1994 hit song 'Loser' is known for its Spanish line in the chorus: "Soy un perdedor / I'm a loser baby, so why don't you kill me?"
U2 have dabbled with foreign languages in a number of songs. Their 2004 tune 'Vertigo' opens with Bono counting off in Spanish "Uno, dos, tres, catorce!" U2's 'Zooropa' is also a good example, but this one has lyrics in German.
This English punk anthem is known for its backing vocals in Spanish. Front man Joe Strummer explains how it happened: "We needed a translator so Eddie Garcia, the tape operator, called his mother in Brooklyn Heights and read her the lyrics over the phone and she translated them. But Eddie and his mum are Ecuadorian, so it's Ecuadorian Spanish that me and Joe Ely are singing on the backing vocals."
Madonna's 1986 hit 'La Isla Bonita' has a Spanish title, but the lyrics are mostly in English. Madonna does sing some parts in Spanish, namely the line "Te dijo: "te amo."
Lady Gaga kickstarts the song with the opening line "I don't speak German but I can if you like," and then proceeds to speak in German. Gaga switches back to English later in the song.
This tune, found on Blur’s ‘Parklife’ album, features Laetitia Sadler from the band Stereolab sharing vocals with Damon Albarn. ‘To the End’ mixes English with French.
The English band makes use of Sansrkit to take the song to another level. The line reads "Tattva, acintya bheda abheda Tattva."
'Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que sera, sera)' was featured in Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 movie 'The Man Who Knew Too Much,' famously mixing French and English lyrics.
This Quincy Jones tune from 1981 mixes a bit of Japanese and Spanish. The title is taken from the 1976 Japanese film 'In the Realm of the Senses.' "Ai" is Japanese for "love," whereas the Spanish "corrida" may mean a run or bullfight, or have a sexual connotation.
Stings sings most of this 1981 tune in French. English isn't heard until much later in the song.
This 1980 song features Kate Bush singing backing vocals. We can listen to her singing the French lyrics "Jeux sans frontières."
This Jay-Z track includes a sample from a Portuguese song by Quarteto 1111 titled 'Todo O Mundo e Ninguém.'
While the hip hop group doesn't quite rap in Martian, their song samples A-LM (Audio-Lingual Materials) French 7 Practice Record Set.
This 1978 song mixes English and French lyrics. One verse goes: "Denis, Denis, avec tes yeux si bleus / Denis, Denis, Quand j'ai peche' pour deux / Denis, Denis, Pour un baiser d'eternite' / Denis, Denis, Je suis folle de toi / Denis, Denis, Embrasse moi ce soir / Denis, Denis, Pour un baiser d'eternite."
Chic's hottest funk-disco hit has some French in the lyrics, namely "Le freak, c'est chic."
'Crackity Jones' actually mixes both English and Spanish in the same sentence, like "I'm movin' out of this hospedaje."
One of the Swedish group's greatest hits blends lyrics in both English and French. One line goes: "La question c'est voulez-vous."
The 2015 song by the Canadian artist Grimes mixes English and French in the chorus. It goes: "Je comprends, je l'ai dit, c'est la vie / Oh Montréal, I pull apart, I don't mind / Running every red-light, you were right / Oh Montréal don't break my heart / I think I love you."
'Hold You Now' samples a Melanesia song by the Choir of All Saints from Honiara, Solomon Islands, called 'God Yu Tekem Laef Blong Mi.'
In 'Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes' Paul Simon has a choir singing in Xhosa, a South African language.
David Bowie released 'It’s No Game' in 1981. It features a narration in Japanese by actress Michi Hirota.
This song by Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin has a lot of Spanish lyrics mixed with English lines.
This song from 1969 has Stevie Wonder singing about his cherie amour, or his darling, in English.
Bryan Ferry sings in French and Latin in this 1973 song. "It sounded very European to me," he said in an interview.
BTS sings 'Dream Glow' in both Korean and English.
Sources: (RadioX) (Humanizing The Vacuum)
See also: Looking at the dark side of K-pop
Anglophone songs with foreign language lyrics
From Spanish to Japanese, and everything in between
MUSIC Lyrics
Most anglophone artists write lyrics in English, but this is not exclusively the case for all music artists. Many do, in fact, experiment with other languages, which often works well and helps their songs become massive hits!
In this gallery, we list some of the greatest tunes from anglophone artists who incorporated lyrics in foreign languages. Click through and get to know them.