Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s reggaeton-pop hit now has a Mandarin version for 2018. Fonsi teamed up with Singaporean pop star JJ Lin for a Spanish-Mandarin makeover titled “緩緩” (huan huan), which means “slowly.”
The Grammys may have snubbed the biggest song of 2017, but “Despacito” lives on.
Fonsi sings part of the chorus in Mandarin while Lin sings part of it Spanish. “It’s especially difficult to sing in foreign languages given the different vowels and inflections, but they both nailed their parts in very short order”, Tat Tong, a songwriter for the Mandarin remix told Billboard.
The Mandarin version has so far attracted more than 19,000 comments on Netease Music, a popular Chinese music-streaming platform, and the majority of the reviews are positive. “Finally I can sing the entire song rather than only singing the word ‘despacito,’ one user said. “I’m so brainwashed. I’m shaking my legs to it in the middle of the night”, another commented.
Here is a translation of the Mandarin lyrics via Billboard:
Your smile flashes at my 2-o-clock
While my eyelashes edit your every move
The rhythm in the air is like a solo performance
Let me accompany you
In my heart there are no seasons
As the heat of summer burns your face red
Your crystalline eyes are as clear as a romance novel
Passed to me to break the seal
Slowly, slow down your movements
Freeze frame, on your outline
Replay, savoring our every interactionCHORUS:
Despacito
Warmly controlling the perfect temperature
Holding breath but our scents still mingle
Even if you’re not by my side you’ll still remember meDespacito
Your hazy gaze calls for me every minute, every second
Scent of roses swims into my heart
I must succeed in breaking into your mazeCHANT:
Music vibrates
Floor vibrates
Heart vibrates
Veins vibrate
Our atmosphere is unique
(The love I give is unique)
(The kiss I give is unique)
I wanna give you the sky, turn with you,
Dream with you, pamper you
Create a private universe that’s just yours
