Pirata literally means “pirate,” someone who sails the seas in search of treasure.
In the lyric "ese tesoro tiene pirata," J Balvin playfully calls himself the pirate who has already claimed the “treasure” (his lover’s heart). It’s a vivid, adventurous word that instantly sparks curiosity and paints a cinematic image, making it a memorable hook for Spanish learners.
Colombian superstar J Balvin brings pure late-night obsession to life in "Rojo". The song revolves around a connection so synced up that both people crave each other at the exact same moment: "Me decido por ti, te decides por mí / A la misma hora" ("I choose you, you choose me / At the same time"). It is 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning, and neither person cares about bad timing or past arguments. He admits "estas no son horas de llamar" ("this is no time to call"), but desire wins anyway. Even when they fight or drift apart, the physical pull snaps them right back together the second the clock strikes late.
Balvin also tosses in some classic Latin American street phrasing to ward off rivals. He warns that other suitors "se caen de la mata" ("fall right off the vine / are fooling themselves") when they try to win her over with cash (plata). He drops a delightfully cheesy line to shut them down: "ese tesoro tiene pirata" ("that treasure already has a pirate"). He knows what they have is exclusive, secret, and strong enough that he will risk it all, declaring "Yo doy la vida por ti" ("I'd give my life for you").
J Balvin grew up in Medellín playing guitar in a teenage rock band with Nirvana and Metallica on repeat, and spent part of his teens in Oklahoma and New York picking up English. Born José Álvaro Osorio Balvín in 1985, he had been releasing music in Colombia for about a decade before anyone outside it paid attention.
"6 AM" with Farruko changed that in 2014, and "Ay Vamos" and "Ginza" followed: "Ginza" held number one on Billboard's Hot Latin Songs chart for 22 weeks, a record at the time. He kept singing in Spanish anyway, and "Mi Gente" reached number three on the Hot 100 once Beyoncé joined the remix, before "I Like It" with Cardi B and Bad Bunny went to number one in 2018. His albums run La Familia, Energía, Vibras, Colores (every track named after a color, and a Latin Grammy for best urban album), José and Rayo, plus Oasis, a joint record with Bad Bunny. In August 2019 he became the first Latino artist to headline Lollapalooza in Chicago.