Sing the Numa Numa! Lyrics and Translation

The Numa Numa part of O-zone’s 2002 hit Dragostea din tei is probably the most popular lines of any song, even now, after 8 years have passed. Thanks to viral video maker Gary Brolsma, this song has not only sustained its popularity, but also spread worldwide. Rekindling its fame, in 2004, Dragostea din tei is now better known around the world as the numa numa song.

Lots of adaptations, parodies, and revivals of the song were recorded in different countries, making the numa numa song a phenomenon, You can see a lot of people worldwide that do the numa numa dance. The song may be ridiculously popular, but only those who speak Romanian, or at least have an idea on how it’s spoken know what the lyrics really mean. What is the song saying? Let’s find out:

The title Dragostea din tei is Romanian for “Love of the linden tree,” where linden trees are mostly associated with Romanian poet Mihai Eminescu’s poems. The song is basically about a man’s unrequited love for a woman. Here are the lyrics of the song, followed by the translation:

Lyrics:

*Ma-ia-hii

Ma-ia-huu

Ma-ia-hoo

Ma-ia-haha

(4x)

I

Alo, Salut, sunt eu, un haiduc,

Si te rog, iubirea mea, primeste fericirea.

Alo, alo, sunt eu Picasso,

Ti-am dat beep, si sunt voinic,

Dar sa stii nu-ti cer nimic.

**Vrei sa pleci dar nu ma, nu ma iei,
Nu ma, nu ma iei, nu ma, nu ma, nu ma iei.
Chipul tau si dragostea din tei,
Mi-amintesc de ochii tai.

II

Te sun, sa-ti spun, ce simt acum,
Alo, iubirea mea, sunt eu, fericirea.
Alo, alo, sunt iarasi eu, Picasso,
Ti-am dat beep, si sunt voinic,
Dar sa stii nu-ti cer nimic.

(Repeat **, Repeat *, Repeat **)

Translation:

(* is just vocalization, no meaning to the words)

I

Hello [on a cellphone], greetings, it’s me, an outlaw,
I ask you, my love, to accept happiness.
Hello, hello, it’s me, Picasso,
I sent you a beep, and I’m brave,
But you should know that I’m not asking for anything from you.

** You want to leave but you don’t want don’t want to take me, don’t want don’t want to take me, don’t want don’t want don’t want to take me.
Your face and the love from the linden trees,
And I remember your eyes.

II

I call you, to tell you what I feel right now,
Hello, my love, it’s me, your happiness.
Hello, hello, it’s me again, Picasso,
I sent you a beep and I’m brave ,
But you should know that I’m not asking for anything from you.

Whatever Happened to the Numa Numa Guy?

Around 700 million people across the world watched the Numa Numa guy. Since 2004, he’s been lip-syncing and dancing to the tune of Dragostea din tei by the O-zone, and can be viewed in various video streaming sites around the world wide web. With the funny dance moves, hilarious facial expressions, and the catchy tune of the numa numa song, who wouldn’t be caught laughing at the sight of the numa numa guy and his antics?

Enter Gary Brolsma, born in Saddle Brook, New Jersey, also known as the numa numa guy. 6 years ago, he was just your average 18-year old, always pulling out the extra effort to make his friends laugh. He’s quite fond of making mini documentaries about irrelevant things, little flash video clips meant to entertain those watching it, and goofing around. In short, he’s quite the fun-loving guy. In November of that same year (2004), he made the numanuma video we all know and love. A week after it was made, he submitted the video to newgrounds.com, thus igniting the craze we know now as the numanuma.

Revisiting newgrounds.com after 2 years (September 2006), he was surprised to see that there were over 13 million hits to his original numa numa video, and his fame didn’t stop there. He appeared in a lot of magazines, radio programs, newspapers, and TV shows, and was voted the number 1 Internet icon by 40 Greatest Internet Superstars airing in VH1. The phenomenon did not only gave Brolsman international fame, but it also put the numa numa song, or the Dragostea din tei, in the international charts.

Brolsma did not stop after the first numa numa craze. Collaborating with Dan Balan, the writer of Dragostea din tei, they made a sequel video to the original numa numa craze, entitled “New Numa.” With Brolsma’s comic antics, and Balan’s new song, that he wrote specifically for the making of the video, it had over 14 million hits in youtube alone.

Aside from making goofy videos, Brolsma plays in a band. He is currently the vocals and the keyboardist of “The Nowadays” band, along with some of his closest friends. They currently unsigned, and only have one recorded song, entitled “Motionless.” The rest of the band also appeared in the New Numa video.

From a thing out of boredom, to something really sensational: it only goes to show that people around the world may share the same humor. In a way, Brolsma showed us that.