O Tempo Não Pára is Cazuza’s fiery anthem of resistance, self-assertion, and social critique. Singing from the perspective of an artist who feels both powerful and wounded, he compares his words to a “machine gun full of sorrows,” blasting at hypocrisy all around him. The lyrics paint a portrait of someone running in the opposite direction of the crowd, with no medals or sweet rewards, yet refusing to be labeled defeated. Cazuza reminds us that time rolls on without mercy, so the dice of life are still in motion and the game is far from over.
In the second half, the song widens its scope, exposing the decay beneath society’s shiny surface. “Your pool is full of rats” and “your ideas don’t match the facts” become rallying cries against corruption, prejudice, and the commercialization of Brazil’s identity. Cazuza sees history repeating itself like “a museum of great novelties,” warning that if nothing changes, the future will mimic the past. Despite the cynicism, his voice brims with defiance: surviving day after day “without a scratch,” he challenges us to question authority, confront injustice, and live intensely while the clock refuses to stop.