Cuando Sea Grande Lyrics in English El Cuarteto de Nos

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Cuando Sea Grande by El Cuarteto de Nos from Spanish to English.

Verse 1

I don't want to complain from ear to ear

To check if the one who surpasses me walks away

To deny the reflection I leave in my mirror

Or harbor the grudge between my eyebrows

I don't want to keep so many secrets

Or stand facing off in a grotesque tableau

Like the Montagues and the Capulets

I don't want, at your age, to turn obsolete

Or lose my vigor, or say without rigor

That every past time was always better

Or get home upset and annoyed

I don't want to be tired of wearing myself

Chorus 1

And even if this truth might hurt

I have to say it without pleasing anyone

But if I offend, I ask forgiveness

When I grow up, I don't want to be like you

Verse 2

I don't want to commit your same mistakes

Or believe that everyone is a con man

I don't want to live by your same values

Or have every day be the same as the previous ones

I don't want to be unable to control my anger

Or carry that sadness in my eyes

Wet and red, worn and loose

I don't want to resign myself to being my own scraps

Or vehemently throw the blame on others

For what is my concern and responsibility

Or get the urge to try some stupid sh*t

That I couldn't do when I was twenty-three

Chorus 2

And even if this truth might hurt

I have to say it without pleasing anyone

But if I offend, I ask forgiveness

When I grow up I don't want to be like you

Verse 3

I don't want anything to bring me pleasure anymore

Or that when pain touches me, it evokes yesterday

Or look at old photos and start to cry

Or hear someone's name and begin to tremble

I don't want to lead that torn-up life

With suspicions of fraud and the shattered illusion

Or spit curses while thinking I'm Apollo

Or be bothered by being alone on a date

And though this lends itself to misinterpretation

I don't want them to think that it's just to criticize

And I hope it's just a declaration

Because even I don't know if I want anyone to want to be like me

Chorus 3

And even if this truth might hurt

I have to say it without pleasing anyone

But if I offend, I ask forgiveness

When I grow up

And even if this truth might hurt

I have to say it without pleasing anyone

But if I offend, I ask forgiveness

When I grow up

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Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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SONG MEANING

"Cuando Sea Grande" is a tongue-in-cheek manifesto in which the singer fires off a long list of “I don’t want…” statements. Each verse is a playful yet brutally honest inventory of attitudes he refuses to inherit: resentment, nostalgia for “better times,” chronic anger, blame-shifting, and that tired sadness you can see in watery, red eyes. By repeating the line “Cuando sea grande no quiero ser como vos,” he draws a clear line between who he is now and the jaded adult he fears becoming, turning the song into a humorous self-help checklist set to an infectious beat.

Beneath the sarcasm lies a sincere hope: the desire to keep curiosity fresh, accept responsibility, and stay emotionally alive rather than calcify into a walking complaint. The final twist arrives when he wonders if anyone should even want to be like him, revealing that we’re all unfinished projects. The result is an energetic, relatable reminder that growing up isn’t about age—it’s about the mindset we choose every day.

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El Cuarteto de Nos Cuando Sea Grande Lyrics