Penas translates to 'sorrows' or 'worries'. It's a more poetic and emotional word for troubles than the more common problemas.
In this uplifting song, Selena sings the powerful line, "Tira tus penas al aire," which literally means "Throw your sorrows to the wind!" This beautiful phrase captures the song's core message of letting go of negativity and embracing a life full of music and joy.
This song is a powerful declaration against negativity. Selena is tired of hearing about bad things, singing, "No quiero saber de más problemas ya" (I don't want to know about more problems anymore). She's not just talking about small troubles; she even says she doesn't want to hear about a "guerra mundial" (world war). Instead, she invites everyone who is young at heart to a place filled with music, fun, and harmony, where people know how to enjoy themselves night and day.
At its core, this is a song about choosing joy and living life to the fullest. Selena reminds us, "Qué linda es la vida" (How beautiful life is) and encourages us to "Vive hasta lo máximo" (Live to the fullest). She believes that positive change is possible if we focus on love, suggesting, "Si nos queremos todos el mundo va a cambiar" (If we all love each other, the world will change). It's a direct invitation to leave sadness behind and celebrate: "Ya no estés triste / Ven conmigo a cantar" (Don't be sad anymore / Come with me to sing).
Selena Quintanilla-PĂ©rez grew up in Lake Jackson, Texas, fronting her family's band, Selena y Los Dinos, with her brother A.B. writing the songs and playing bass and her sister Suzette on drums. She was raised speaking English, and her father drilled the Spanish lyrics into her phonetically, line by line, years before she was fluent in the language she sold millions of records in.
Tejano was a men's business when she took it over: she won the Tejano Music Award for Female Vocalist of the Year nine years running from 1987, and Selena Live! took the 1994 Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album. "Como la Flor", from 1992's Entre a Mi Mundo, is the song attached to her name more than any other, and Amor Prohibido (1994) put four singles at number one on Billboard's Hot Latin Songs chart, among them "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" and "No Me Queda Más". She was shot and killed in Corpus Christi on March 31, 1995, aged 23, by the former president of her fan club. Dreaming of You, the English-language crossover album she had been recording, was released that August and entered the Billboard 200 at number one.