Rivers
I've seen rivers
Ancient rivers
I’ve known rivers:
Aye aye eh eh Siwale misole oh x2
Nyaka cha esarui mokondo obase aitake odoki o monyako
Cow way no get tail na God dey drive am fly.
Bulu bo Simi dimè miso Bana basu
I bona bato BA senga madoi ma ngoso Africa
There's a star that shine upon Ethiopia
Let the nation's bask in all her brilliance eh eh

Oh Africa Wana WA Isange
de djemo o burisewa o morongo eh
Oh Africa Benga ya Bosangi
Bana babè BA kesere o wa edubé eya eh

Rivers
I've seen rivers
Ancient rivers
I've known rivers
Aye aye eh eh Siwale misole oh x2
Nyaka cha esarui mokondo obase aitake odoki o monyako
Cow way no get tail na God dey drive am fly.

I’ve known rivers ancient as the world
I've seen rivers older than the flow of human blood in human veins.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it. Weeehh

Wee Africa Bana bato mother of all
Munyenge o buri o bonga mama eh
Fembe eh fembe eh fembe na Nyama
Nde bato BA senga madoi ma Bana mab3 eh
Dialect translation
The night hasn't blinded the eyes of the children of Africa
Let humanity hear the sound of Africa's voice
There's a star...

Oh Africa, child of Isange
Let peace bring you forth to light
Oh Africa, jewel of glory
Your children affer you their singular praise.

Deeper meaning
This was inspired by the poem The Negro speaks of River by Langstong Hughes written in 1920.
"The Negro Speaks of River" traces black history from the beginning of human civilization to the present, encompassing both triumphs (like the construction of the Egyptian pyramids) and horrors (like American slavery). The poem argues that the black "soul" has incorporated all of this historical experience, and in the process has become "deep." The poem thus suggests that black cultural identity is continuous, that it stretches across the violence and displacement of slavery to connect with the past—and that black people have made vital, yet often neglected contributions to human civilization.