Itken jos mua huvittaa by Maustetytöt - English lyrics translation

I'll cry if I want to

Video: Maustetytöt: Itken jos mua huvittaa

Finnish lyrics Via liner notes.	English lyrics Translated by AI (Transcribe.com, Google Translate, ChatGPT) with a lot of (non-Finnish-speaking) human second-guessing and research. Good corrections and changes from lilli m on phrasing of if I feel sad, armor made of wine, princess dress pricing, and looking for a new friend.
Juon ja salaa katselen pöytiin vieraisiin. Toiset tytöt kai menossa naamiaisiin. Niil on luodinestävät meikkivoiteet. Ripsivärit turhaa kestää kyyneleet	I drink and secretly watch the tables of strangers. Those other girls must be going to a masquerade. They have bulletproof foundations. Mascaras withstand tears pointlessly
kun niiden punatut suut ovat hymyä silkkaa. Kun ne nauraa, mä luulen ne minua pilkkaa. Ne ei tiedä kun ne nakkaa niskaa, että mulla on viinistä tehty haarniska.	when their painted mouths are nothing but smiles. When they laugh, I think they're mocking me. They don't know, as they toss their heads, that I wear armor made of wine.
Aivan hyvin voi hymyillä, vaikkei hyvin voikaan, mutta nää on mun juhlat ja mä itken jos mua huvittaa. Pyyhin kyyneleet sitten kun sen aika koittaa, koska tää on mun ilta ja mä näytän jos mua surettaa.	You can smile just fine even if things really aren't, but this is my party and I'll cry if I want to. I’ll wipe my tears when the time comes, because this is my night and I’ll show if I feel sad.
Toiset tytöt on jo tanssilattialla. Mulla koskaan ei oo siihen tarpeeksi alla. Yksin tiskillä tuopista korjailen viljaa. Soitan joutsenlaulun ja kuuntelen hiljaa.	The other girls are already on the dance floor. I never have enough in me for that. Alone at the bar, I’m harvesting grain from a pint. I play the swan song and listen quietly.
Tulee prinsessamekoille neliöhintaa kun ne tuskin peittävät edes pintaa. Mul on villapaita ja kylmä sen alla. Tunteet lojuvat jossakin telakalla.	There will be quite a price per square meter for princess dresses when they barely even cover any surface at all. I’m wearing a wool sweater and I’m still cold underneath it. My emotions are lying around somewhere in dry dock.
Aivan hyvin voi hymyillä, vaikkei hyvin voikaan, mutta nää on mun juhlat ja mä itken jos mua huvittaa. Pyyhin kyyneleet sitten kun sen aika koittaa, koska tää on mun ilta ja mä näytän jos mua surettaa.	You can smile just fine even if things really aren't, but this is my party and I'll cry if I want to. I’ll wipe my tears when the time comes, because this is my night and I’ll show if I feel sad.
Jos on pakko tulla puhumaan, niin tarjoa edes jotain juotavaa. Ei sikareita eikä samppanjaa, vaan talon viiniä ja tupakkaa. Kun en jaksa muuten esittää, että etsin uutta ystävää.	If you have to come talk to me, at least offer something to drink. No cigars or champagne, just house wine and cigarettes. Because otherwise I can't be bothered to pretend I'm looking for a new friend.
Aivan hyvin voi hymyillä, vaikkei hyvin voikaan, mutta nää on mun juhlat ja mä itken jos mua huvittaa. Pyyhin kyyneleet sitten kun sen aika koittaa, koska tää on mun ilta ja mä näytän jos mua surettaa.	You can smile just fine even if things really aren't, but this is my party and I'll cry if I want to. I’ll wipe my tears when the time comes, because this is my night and I’ll show if I feel sad.
Aivan hyvin voi hymyillä, vaikkei hyvin voikaan.	You can smile just fine, even if you’re not doing well.
Itken jos mua huvittaa. Pyyhin kyyneleet sitten kun sen aika koittaa.	I’ll cry if I want to. I’ll wipe the tears when the time comes.
Ja itken jos mua huvittaa.	And I’ll cry if I want to.

Notes

“I drink and secretly watch the tables of strangers”

Apparent reference to the hit Dingo song Levoton Tuhkimo, or Restless Cinderella, which begins, “You drink and you watch the tables of strangers.” Noted by emwee 609 in a comment on YouTube and by Ilkka Valpasvuo in his album review on Kulttuuritoimitus.

“You can smile just fine even if things really aren’t”

The Finnish original line plays with the verb “voida,” which can mean “to be able to” or “to feel,” and as well with the adverb “hyvin,” which roughly means “well:” “Aivan hyvin voi hymyillä, vaikkei hyvin voikaan,” whose literal meaning is closer to “you can smile perfectly well even when you’re not feeling well.”

“this is my party and I’ll cry if I want to”

An apparently accidental reference to the 1963 song ”It's My Party.” Maustetyttö Kaisa Karjalainen was quoted in the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, March 13, 2026, saying she did not originally know the origin of the phrase:

The album title means “I cry if I want” and is unknowingly borrowed from Lesley Gore’s old sixties hit.
“I had received a sticker from one of our fans with the text ‘It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to’ in Finnish. At the time, I didn’t know the song, but just thought it sounded like a good title,” says Kaisa.

“I play the swan song”

As noted by lilli m, this is a possible reference to Joutsenlaulu, or Swan Song, a 1984 single by the band Yö about a lonely widow and the pain of life. Joutsenlaulu has become a treasured Finnish rock classic.

Can also be read as “a swan song” rather than a specific reference. The original has no article.

“quite a price per square meter”

The literal meaning is closer to “price per square meter,” this reads “neliöhintaa,” or “square pricing”, as sufficiently close to “melkoinen neliöhinta,” or “quite a square pricing,” to be rendered this way. This helps the translation fit the context of the song. Insights from lilli m.

“I’ll cry if I want to”

Or, “I’ll cry if I feel like it.”

There are nuances to this line (and song and album title) that get lost in translation, as lilli m explains. The Finnish word “huvitaa” can mean not only “to want” but to amuse, entertain, or please.

“I’ll cry if I’m amused” is not an accurate translation. But these meanings add a note of cheekiness beyond “want.” An example from lilli m: “Teen vain sitä mikä minua huvittaa” -> “I only do what pleases me.”

Arguably, these undertones of pleasure and amusement help explain the album cover. As explained in a prior note, this line has roots in a sticker, which has roots in an American song, but clearly the meaning of this last part of it (“if I want to”) changed after a lyric became a meme and traveled across a lot of time and space to become a song in Finland in 2026.

Corrections

Corrections or other notes welcomed at ryantate@ryantate.com!

Ryan Tate