Rosalía’s new track, “Sexo, Violencia y Llantas,” is a profound exploration of the conflict between earthly existence and spiritual transcendence. The song’s central meaning questions if it is possible to live fully in the real, messy, physical world while also achieving a state of divine grace. It’s a prayerful longing to love both the “mundo” (world) and “Dios” (God), suggesting one must first experience the raw, unfiltered side of life before one can truly understand the divine.
As the opening track for her new album LUX, the song immediately establishes the central theme of the entire record. LUX, which means “light” in Latin, is set up by this song as a journey through darkness to find that light. The track is not about rejecting one world for the other; it’s about the painful, beautiful struggle of trying to hold both at the same time. Rosalía is asking a question that resonates through her entire body of work: how can we be both human and holy?
The Two Worlds: Earth vs. Heaven
The song opens with a powerful wish, a longing to find a way to live “between the two.” This sets up the song’s core duality. These two “worlds” are explicitly defined. The first is the “mundo,” the physical, tangible world. The second is “Dios,” representing the spiritual, the sacred, and the eternal. Rosalía frames this not as a simple choice, but as a desire to inhabit both spaces.
What makes this conflict so compelling is the order she proposes. The song suggests a need to “first love the world” and “then love God.” This is a critical theological statement. It rejects the idea of asceticism, or denying the world to find God. Instead, it argues that the path to the divine requires a deep, passionate engagement with life itself, in all its messy glory.
This theme is central to Rosalía’s artistry. She constantly blends the sacred (flamenco’s deep, spiritual “cante jondo,” religious iconography) with the profane (reggaeton, street culture, and modern materialism). “Sexo, Violencia y Llantas” is perhaps her most direct statement on this personal philosophy. She is arguing that holiness isn’t found by escaping the world, but by finding the divine within it.
Defining ‘El Primero’: The Raw Material of Life
The “first” world is given a blunt, visceral definition that begins with the song’s title: “Sexo, Violencia y Llantas.” This is the world of the body, of conflict, and of the modern street. “Sex” represents physical desire, creation, and human connection. “Violence” speaks to the inherent conflict, pain, and struggle of existence. “Llantas,” or “tires,” evokes urban life, speed, industrial sounds, and the relentless motion of modern culture, a direct link to her Motomami persona.
The song deepens this definition with even darker imagery. It speaks of “blood sports,” which could be a literal reference to traditions like bullfighting or a metaphor for the competitive, brutal nature of human society. It also describes “coins in throats,” a powerful image suggesting greed, materialism, and the way money can silence or choke a person. This is the world at its most raw and unforgiving.
This “first” world is life without a filter. It is the world of asphalt, industry, and base desires. For Rosalía, this world is not something to be ashamed of; it is the starting point. It is the clay from which spiritual understanding is molded. She embraces this gritty reality as a necessary prerequisite for any genuine spiritual journey.
Defining ‘El Segundo’: The World of Grace
In stark contrast, the “second” world is painted with imagery of pure divinity. This is the realm of “God.” It is described with “destellos, palomas y santas,” which translates to “sparkles, doves, and saints.” This is classic religious iconography, representing divine light, peace (the dove, a symbol of the Holy Spirit), and spiritual purity (the saints).
This world is not just about symbols; it is about the outcome of a spiritual life. The song describes it as holding “la gracia y el fruto,” or “grace and the fruit.” Grace is the unearned, divine gift of salvation. The “fruit” represents the reward, the spiritual harvest, the purpose of the struggle. This is the world of transcendence, peace, and ultimate meaning.
However, this heavenly world is not entirely separate. The song concludes its description with a final, ominous image: “el peso de la balanza,” or “the weight of the balance.” This refers to the scales of judgment. This line powerfully connects the two worlds. It implies that one’s actions in the “first” world of sex and violence are ultimately weighed and judged to determine entry into the “second” world of grace.
The Impossible Wish: Merging Two Realities
The song’s second verse expresses the deepest, most impossible desire: to break down the barrier between these two realms. It’s not enough to just visit both; Rosalía’s speaker wishes to move freely between them. The desire is to come from the earth, enter heaven, and then return to the earth, bringing the holy back to the mundane.
This idea of a cycle—Earth to Heaven and back to Earth—is crucial. The goal isn’t to escape life but to infuse it with divinity. The speaker longs for a reality “that between the earth, the earth and heaven / There was never any ground.” This “ground” is the barrier, the separation between the human and the divine, the sacred and the profane. The song is a prayer to dissolve this barrier entirely.
This section captures the ultimate spiritual tension. We are creatures of the “mundo,” but we long for “Dios.” Rosalía is channeling the voice of a modern mystic, one who sees holiness in the high-speed chase as much as in the quiet cathedral. She wants the “destellos” (sparkles) to be visible on the “llantas” (tires).
Conclusion: The Weight of the Balance
“Sexo, Violencia y Llantas” concludes by repeating its central thesis: the longing to “first love the world and then love God.” The song is a brilliant thesis statement for the LUX album. It defines the central problem that the rest of the album will likely spend its time trying to solve. How do you live a life of “sex and violence” and still find “grace”?
The song does not offer an easy answer. The presence of the “balanza” (the balance) confirms that this is a dangerous game. The choices made in the physical world have eternal consequences. This tension—between loving the world fully and knowing you are being judged for that love—is the heart of the track. It’s a song about the agony and ecstasy of being human, caught between the gutter and the stars, and trying to build a bridge between the two.