Verrätst comes from the verb verraten, which can mean both "to betray" and "to reveal" or "to give away a secret." It's an intriguing word because of its dual meaning.
In the context of the song, the singer is talking to "Das Leben" (Life itself) and says, "So oft gesucht nach deinem Sinn, doch du verrätst ihn lieber nicht" (So often searched for your meaning, but you'd rather not reveal it). Here, it implies that Life keeps its secrets, choosing not to betray or give away its true purpose, adding a layer of mystery and depth to the lyrics.
"Das Leben (Du Warst Schon Immer So)" is LEA talking directly to life itself, treating it like a complicated relative rather than an abstract idea. She opens with "Aus dem Nichts bist du entstanden" (Out of nothing you appeared), then spends the verses listing exactly what that relationship has cost her: losing her grandfather too soon, "Hast Opa viel zu früh verlassen" (You left grandpa way too early), in the same breath as holding her daughter Lou for the first time, and a first love she admits she cursed life for losing, "Da hab' ich dich so sehr verflucht" (I cursed you so much for it).
The chorus never resolves any of that into a lesson. It just repeats two lines back to back: "Dein Herz riesengroß" (Your heart is huge) and "Du warst schon immer so" (You've always been like that). Life doesn't get forgiven here, it gets recognized: whatever it is, it never did anything by halves.
LEA (born Lea-Marie Becker) is a German singer-songwriter from Kassel, known for her warm, piano-driven pop and her honest, diary-like lyrics. She grew up in a musical home, started playing piano at six, and was writing her own songs by the age of eleven, before studying music in Hannover and playing the city's bars at night.
Her breakthrough came in 2016, when she toured as a backing singer for Mark Forster and released her debut album Vakuum. She has since become one of Germany's most-streamed pop artists, and Zu Dir, co-written with Mark Forster and released on her 2019 album Zwischen den Zeilen, is one of her best-loved songs. LEA has been based in Berlin since 2018.