this post was submitted on 17 Jun 2025
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For me i’d say vocaloid when i was younger. No clue about now, maybe some russian songs like igorek.

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[–] stinerman@midwest.social 25 points 14 hours ago

I've been a fan of Rammstein for many years. I know the gist of what each song means and know a few words of German. But I can't translate word for word.

[–] slippyferret@lemmy.blahaj.zone 24 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (1 children)

Dragostea Din Tei by O-Zone, though I think I heard it on NicoNico Douga before it became known as the NumaNuma Song.

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[–] phanto@lemmy.ca 22 points 14 hours ago (4 children)

Prisencolinensinainciusol! That song rocks.

[–] clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works 6 points 13 hours ago
[–] cutebc24@piefed.social 5 points 14 hours ago (1 children)
[–] Widdershins@lemmy.world 8 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Does it count if nobody knows the words?

[–] cutebc24@piefed.social 4 points 13 hours ago

Of course!!

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[–] kescusay@lemmy.world 14 points 14 hours ago

Kind of a weird one, but the beginning theme to the original Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex has stuck with me.

The song is called "Inner Universe," but the lyrics are Russian.

https://youtu.be/dP4t_GGl3Es

[–] darthelmet@lemmy.world 11 points 13 hours ago

Most anime OP's I like I have no idea what they're saying and that's probably for the best.

[–] TheFermentalist@lemm.ee 11 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Wolf Totem by the Hu. In fact, their entire discography. The heavier stuff is great at the gym

[–] SARGE@startrek.website 5 points 12 hours ago

My first introduction to them was Yuve Yuve Yu, also a banger.

I got a little hyper fixated on throat singing one week and they popped into my feed. Bike rides and road trips have never been the same.

[–] susi7802@sopuli.xyz 8 points 14 hours ago

Ironically, most pop is in English, whereas most pop listeners are not English speakers.

[–] sm1dger@lemmy.world 8 points 10 hours ago (2 children)

Leek spin https://youtu.be/GCO62VNm67k

Which is actually the Finnish song "Ievan polkka" and not just scatting/jibberish as I always naively used to think

[–] qantravon@startrek.website 6 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

Except, it is mostly scat/jibberish! Just in Finnish! Most of the song is nonsense lyrics.

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[–] matte@feddit.nu 6 points 13 hours ago

Einstürzende Neubauten: Nagorny Karabach https://youtu.be/hd-6WweqD0Y

(With subtitles in English)

[–] dream_weasel@sh.itjust.works 6 points 5 hours ago

Mayeeaheeeeee mayeeeaaahhooooo mayeeeeaaaa ha ha!

[–] MissyBee@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 points 11 hours ago

Polish cow song. The melody itself is from another song, "How long - Lipps, inc" apparently. But both songs do well with that beat.

[–] Merlin@lemmy.zip 5 points 13 hours ago

I don’t speak French and the soundtrack of the game Clair obscur expedition 33 is all in French and I can’t stop listening to it. So I have no idea about the lyrics but it sounds so pleasant to the ears.

[–] karasu_sue@pf.korako.me 4 points 14 hours ago

I’ve played a lot of Korean games since way back, and there are plenty of songs I like — even though I have no idea what they’re saying.

I still play games like DJMAX and EZ2ON, and I just enjoy the vibe without understanding the lyrics.

A bunch of songs from various Hololive JP talent :)

[–] clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works 4 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Tons of songs from the Eurovision song contest. I was rocking out to this one from Estonia today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htPAhtVgKsI

[–] Telcontar@lemmy.today 6 points 13 hours ago (2 children)

I still have Sweden's song stuck in my head

[–] nailbar@sopuli.xyz 3 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

And just from reading that, It's now playing in my head too

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[–] geekwithsoul@lemm.ee 4 points 14 hours ago
[–] felixwhynot@lemmy.world 4 points 13 hours ago

Mundian to Bach Ke by Punjabi MC (and famously remixed with Jay Z)

[–] MudMan@fedia.io 4 points 12 hours ago

You can't hear it from there, but I am screaming in non-native English speaker.

Or, to put it another way, every single song you know released before 1995.

[–] benni@lemmy.world 3 points 10 hours ago (2 children)

There's this Norwegian metal band called Kvelertak and I absolutely love their sound, but have no idea what the lyrics are about as I don't speak the language.

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[–] toomanypancakes@lemmy.world 3 points 14 hours ago

I really enjoy Pourquoi by Eths, but I have no idea what's being said

[–] jacksilver@lemmy.world 3 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

The band Creepy Nuts is a Japanese rap(?) group that did the Dandadan opening, but I also really like their opening for Mashle - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLW35YMzELE

[–] CrazyLikeGollum@lemmy.world 3 points 11 hours ago

I think they also did the opening and closing for Call of the Night, but of which are also great.

[–] Rentlar@lemmy.ca 3 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

Many songs if I like enough I figure out some of the words when looking for the title. Otherwise I remember them then forget them for a while. A couple famous examples I like:

Dschinghis Khan - Moskau, it's a bop, i know the melody but lyrics I only know parts of.

O-Zone - Dragostea Din Tea - this one of course I know front to back but I don't know what a single word means.

[–] thenose@lemmy.world 3 points 11 hours ago

I basically love city pop cus it has great groove, rhythm and usually the few English words in the lyrics reassuring me that it’s usually about love or a metaphor of it.

https://youtu.be/zafm7q7lbl8

[–] cerement@slrpnk.net 3 points 14 hours ago

historical example: Sukiyaki by Kyu Sakamoto – released in Japan in 1961 under “Ue o Muite Arukō” – released in US in 1963 under “Sukiyaki” because that was about the only Japanese word Americans knew …

[–] buycurious@lemmy.world 2 points 14 hours ago
[–] tuckerm@feddit.online 2 points 12 hours ago

Oye Como Va - Santana

I know enough Spanish to understand the lyrics now, but loved that song before I knew what it was saying.

[–] BagOfHeavyStones@piefed.social 2 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago)

Sometimes you get helpful subtitles such as Benny Lava. (Indian.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdyC1BrQd6g

A jetpack operation?

Also Yatta (Chinese)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZJIpTIPnRs

[–] FancyPantsFIRE@lemmy.world 2 points 14 hours ago
[–] ThunderChunk@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 13 hours ago

J'en parlerai au diable • Johnny Hallyday

A lot of classical music

[–] flabbergast@lemmy.world 2 points 13 hours ago (6 children)
[–] smeg@infosec.pub 2 points 13 hours ago

flying duck by cherryfilter. I know only enough Korean to pick out a few words here and there, but have never bothered to look it up.

[–] stevedice@sh.itjust.works 2 points 13 hours ago

That Russian song that sounds like Joy Division on MDMA. I'm told the lyrics are very depressing but it's absolute fucking fire.

[–] oyfrog@lemmy.world 2 points 13 hours ago

All of Francoise Hardy's album Soleil. Absolutely lovely singing voice.

[–] shundi82@sh.itjust.works 2 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

A lot of songs come to mind, actually.

But if I had to pick just one, it would be MC Solaar's Carpe Diem.

My French is shaky at best, so back when I stumbled upon MC Solaar (maybe it was via Bearshare), I could barely understand the gist of what was said - and even with a much better understanding, many of the "retro" references in this song specifically would have made no sense to me.

But it evoked a weird sense of nostalgia in me - a longing for a time/things, that I had no connection to (so I shouldn't even feel any nostalgia):

https://youtube.com/watch?v=6-YCancrrBI

PS: If I had to pick something more popular, it would be Plastic Love by Mariya Takeuchi (got recommended by YouTube back when it made its first comeback wave in 2011, I think).

[–] Crankenstein@lemmy.world 2 points 12 hours ago

If I like a song, I make a deliberate effort to learn the lyrics and what they mean. People wrote those lyrics for a reason.

Or do you just want to dance?

[–] billbasher@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

Locutorio - Sara Socas (España)

[–] noughtnaut@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

That's a solid "The entire Caramba" album.

You might've heard (of) Habba Habba Zoot Zoot; well, they made an entire album of "plausible sounding" songs in German, Japanese, Finish, American, Russian, etc. It's really quite hilarious.

Here's a Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/artist/57BijyLUDfabkaaSwZsxsS

[–] neidu3@sh.itjust.works 2 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

Brutal 6 - Todo en mis Manos.

Olivia Lufkin - Stars Shining Out.

Anna Tsuchya - Kuroi Namida

[–] Gutek8134@lemmy.world 2 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago)

Songs from Negura Bunget, First Fragment, and newer stuff from Vildhjarta

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