Telepatía Lyrics in English by Kali Uchis
Maquinando is the present participle of the verb maquinar, which means 'to plot' or 'to scheme'. The word comes from máquina (machine), evoking the image of gears turning in someone's mind as they cleverly devise a plan.
In the song, Kali Uchis sings "Me imagino lo que ya estás maquinando" (I imagine what you're already plotting), playfully suggesting she knows the romantic and mischievous thoughts her lover is having from afar. It's a cool, expressive word that perfectly fits the song's telepathic theme.
Ever missed someone so much that your brain tries to bridge the physical gap on its own? That is the exact mood Colombian-American singer Kali Uchis rides in "Telepatía." Stuck in bed staring at a full moon ("La luna está llena, mi cama vacía" [The moon is full, my bed is empty]), she leans into a dreamy fantasy of long-distance intimacy. Even though miles separate the lovers, she claims they connect across the distance without physical touch ("A kilómetros estamos conectando / Y me prendes aunque no me estés tocando" [Miles away we are connecting / And you turn me on even though you aren't touching me]).
Kali drifts between English and Spanish to describe reading her partner's thoughts like an open book. She hears their thoughts like a tune and claims they stay on the line just to listen to her sleep ("You stay on the phone just to hear me breathe / On repeat"). She boldly boasts about how wild things would get in person: "Si te tuviera de frente, la mente te la volaría" (If I had you in front of me, I would blow your mind). In Spanish, "volar la mente" works just like the English idiom "to blow someone's mind," promising an experience so intense it overwhelms you. It is a smooth, slightly cheeky track about letting your imagination do the heavy lifting when a flight is the only thing keeping you apart.
