Karliene - Cleopatra

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Cleopatra
Written by Karliene Reynolds 2022

-- | LYRICS |--

Symbol and a secret
Ancient Queen of Egypt
Once revered like Isis
Reduced to a temptress

Gone are tales of her mind
Coiled in gold serpentine
Sands of time have entombed
All she was is assumed

A phoenix of her day
Dominion in her veins
A wise and knowing sage
The strength to hold her reign
Beyond her beauty
In his story
Beyond her beauty
Tell me her story

Last of all the pharaohs
Queen so known and unknown
Egypt’s Queen at eighteen
Many tongues she could speak

Stabilized her kingdom
Beloved by her people
Defined by her lovers
Not success and power

A phoenix of her day
Dominion in her veins
A wise and knowing sage
The strength to hold her reign
Beyond her beauty
In his story
Beyond her beauty
Tell me her story

Defined by her lovers
Not her sway and power
In the politics of Rome
Gifted philosopher
Mother and warrior
Led a fleet in naval war
Withered to her sex life
Snaring men with her eyes
Watch her power disappear
Queen of guts and glory
Lost in a male story
Of his fantasy and fear

A phoenix of her day
Dominion in her veins
A wise and knowing sage
The strength to hold her reign
Beyond her beauty
In his story
Beyond her beauty
Tell me her story

[DragonTamerRi]

It’s like the women find you to represent their truth in song. There are theories that Cleopatra’s beauty was actually fairly average but her wit and powers of communication and charisma were boiled down to “they paid attention because she was hot” instead of her commanding the attention with her message and her self assurance. She wasn’t powerful because she was hot, she was hot because she was powerful. Your song captures how his story has so thoroughly wronged her and I love it. You are brilliant song writer and musician and I want to thank you so much for sharing that gift with us.

[Rain-cswp]

i love that karliene did this for cleopatra and also elizabeth bathory. i knew cleopatra was actually not too revered for her beauty, but that she spoke many languages and was likely the most well educated person on the planet at that time with all the subjects she studied as well as access to amazing tutors and scholars. the romans, however, wanted to demonize her and reduce her to nothing but a beautiful temptress, and this image of her they projected still stands to this day.

i’ve never really seen anyone stand up for elizabeth bathory though. actually, i read the same thing about her so consistently that i figured what they said about her bathing in virgin blood had to be true. but karliene’s song “bathory” forced me to reconsider that. only after listening to it did i find a romanian scholar that believed she was falsely accused. we have to be careful what we believe about female figures in history, because so much of it is overwhelmingly written by men.

thank you karliene for giving these historical women some credit and justice. i love the message they send as well as your voice!

[miracleofsound]

Fantastic! The Arabic/Byzantine scale suits you so well & as Sharm mentioned, the 5/4 fits beautifully with the mood

[sharmsong]

Love this! The 5/4 time signature lends itself so beautifully to the Eygptian style! Bet this was really fun to create 🧡🤎

[kmrose]

Some men couldn't stand a powerful woman in her own right like Cleopatra. Sadly, it's still true today. Thank you for another beautiful reminder.

[reinealicis]

All your songs sound like movie soundtracks but I can truly invision an opening to a movie. Rolling over the sands and showing the people and pyramids

[eliselestrange-lannister]

“All she was is assumed” so true!! So many historians and men of her time minimized her. I love it when you write girl power, Karliene!! It’s probably one of my favorite things about the music you make- you portray women as independent entities, despite history’s portrayal. Thank you for creating this masterpiece!!❤❤

[luthientinuviel]

I've always been fascinated by Cleopatra, her life was so interesting and varied! To have a song for her written by one of my favorite artists is such a treat.

[misspieces]

Love it! I like that you always manage to surprise the audience in the topic of your music! I especially love your music on different women of power throughout history and even in fiction! This song reminds of your works on Elizabeth and Boudica from earlier. It also reminds a bit of your song on Cersei. This is definitely an epic!

[pamdawkins]

This is so good! I did a report on Cleopatra in in grade six, and was surprised to find out that the thing she's most famous for (her beauty) wasn't actually that big of a deal, especially compared to her massive list of awesome accomplishments. I think the first thing that jumped out at me was that she was the first ruler in her dynasty to speak Egyptian. Thanks for creating something that focuses on her as she actually was.

[SeniPrime]

This is great! Karliene never fails to deliver. Wonder if someone will one day make a song about her, just as she has done for Cleopatra.

[Artemismoondancer]

My 5 year old LOVES your Boudica song. She will totally adore this one and then quiz me about Cleopatra's story as she did about Boudica's. Thank you for giving my daughter a love for ancient history.

[gregwarner]

The winners write the history. Many men are terrified at the concept of women in leadership. I have always wondered how much of Cleopatra's was male propaganda. The more I know of her the greater my respect.

[psychic.reptiles]

Love it! There aren't enough songs about Cleopatra. I personally would like a song on Bastet. You are a great singer.

[oliviachernutan]

from what I've seen of Karliene's songs, I could see her doing a song of Grace O'Malley, sometimes called the pirate queen of Ireland.

[InvadableHarmony]

Karliene, this is divinely majestic. You never fail to capture the essence of a character through your songs. Simply bewitching, as always.

[theetruetolkienpatriot]

I like that Cleopatra was Greek Macedonian and she was descended from Alexander and pretty much in breeding

[Штирлиц-зи]

Well, if study history based on real facts, and not on the TV series "Rome", the Cleopatra looks like a victim of circumstances. On the other hand, her life made much more sense than the life of any current politician.
Thank you for the music and song. Really liked it!

[RoxaneGenot]

I'm always blown away by what you create, especially when you try something new. This is just so good, the melody, the rhythm, everything. You just get it right every time, in every possible style, and it's always so freaking addictive. You're so inspiring <3

[neocounttarrant]

Such a beautiful song! I love the way you write about the women of history, how you always focus on the human behind the mythology. And, as always, it sounds simply fantastic <3