Selena Gomez Fans Convinced Spanish-Language ‘De Una Vez’ Is About Justin Bieber

A broken heart in any language is still a broken heart. But is Selena Gomez still as broken up about Justin Bieber as many of her fans want to believe?

Even releasing a song completely in Spanish wasn’t enough to throw them off the scent that she is still not over their lost love and is still writing sad love songs about their relationship. Gomez and Bieber were in an on-again/off-again relationship from 2011 to 2018. Bieber is now married to Hailey Baldwin.

“De Una Vez,” which translates to “At Once” in English, is a song about getting over a difficult relationship, which could certainly apply to Gomez and Bieber’s tumultuous time together. Bieber has since admitted — without getting into specifics or even mentioning her name — that he was not always a great boyfriend.

“It doesn’t hurt like before, no / The wound of your love healed,” reads the translation of a couple of the lines from the song. At another point, she says, “I know that my time by your side cut my wings / But now this chest is bulletproof.”

Eve the music video’s imagery seemed to represent her casting away the old parts of her life that might remind her of that pain — including burning photos — in order to strengthen her heart to be ready to start over and move forward.

In the verse, she says that she’s “cured” of her lost love, and that they didn’t know how to value her anyway. This is the stuff of so many broken love songs, but because Gomez spent so many years involved with Bieber, it’s easy to understand why her fans might be convinced.

As if confirming there was more to come (in Spanish, not necessarily about Justin) after “Du Una Vez,” Gomez also tweeted out, “This is the beginning of something I’ve wanted to explore for so long. I hope you love it as much as I do.”

Hilariously, Gomez went for an epic callback to tease an upcoming “Spanish record,” by reaching a full decade into her own archives.

Reacting to a tweet from 2011 that said she couldn’t wait for fans to hear it, Gomez replied — ten years later! — “I think it will be worth the wait.”

“You know what’s funny, is I actually think I sing better in Spanish. That was something I discovered,” Gomez told Zane Lowe of Apple Music on Thursday.

“It was a lot of work, and look, you cannot mispronounce anything. It is something that needed to be precise, and needed to be respected by the audience I’m going to release this for.”

“Of course I want everyone to enjoy the music, but I am targeting my fan base,” she continued. “I’m targeting my heritage, and I couldn’t be more excited.”

She couldn’t have chosen a better time over the past decade to do so, as Spanish-language music has been enjoying a renaissance of growth and appreciation in the United States, with Latin artists dominating the charts, airwaves and award shows.

“You’re starting to listen to half-English, half-Spanish on the radio more than ever,” said Gomez (who released a similar hybrid in 2018 called “Taki Taki”). “It’s a really exciting time. And I think that I just hope that people understand how much I put my heart into this, and how amazing I feel about it.”

You can check out the English translation of “De Una Vez,” as provided by Genius, below, to see if you think it’s all about Justin Bieber:

[Intro]
It doesn’t hurt like before, no
The wound of your love healed

[Chorus]
Once and for all, ah-ah-ah
I’m stronger alone, ah-ah-ah (I’m stronger alone)
It’s just that I do not regret the past
I know that time by your side cut my wings
But now this chest is bulletproof

[Verse]
I don’t have you, I have myself
It’s not for you to think that this is for you, nah
I left so that you don’t forget
That a death like you is revived
When the last sea dries up
Is when I will think of returning
You have understood what I feel
You are gone, how good is the time
I’m cured of you, I told you already
I don’t feel you here anymore, I don’t feel you anymore
You never knew, you didn’t know how to value me, and (Oh)

[Chorus]
Once and for all (Once and for all), ah-ah-ah
I’m stronger alone, ah-ah-ah
It’s just that I do not regret the past
I know that the time by your side cut my wings (Ah-ah)
But now this chest is bulletproof

[Outro]
Oh
Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah
This chest is bulletproof
Uh-uh-uh-uh
Alone, ah-ah, ah
Now this chest is bulletproof

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