Despite being started nearly 100 years ago by brothers Walt and Roy Disney, Alt Disney Animation Studios remains a film powerhouse. Starting in the mid-1900s, they began to produce a series of “princess films,” and that trend continues to this day with a strong focus on female heroes. And the 2021 animation movie Encanto continues that trend.
If you’re wondering about the meaning of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ song lyrics, this is the movie that it comes from. This is an ensemble song that features most of the main cast members in a Latin-music-inspired gossip number, just like you might find in a Broadway musical.
So, let’s look into the musical and the song that became a #1 hit.
The Story of Encanto
If you want to understand what they’re talking about in the song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” you need to step back and understand the musical animation film it comes from.
This movie was released in 2021 and was a big success. For some people, that was very surprising. That’s because the film was specifically about Colombia’s culture, people, and history. Topics the average global citizen doesn’t know much about.
But it still became a hit…
The title Encanto refers to a magical place, some location that has been imbued with magical forces and also a good deal of secrecy. The “Encanto” in the film is a high mountain valley that serves as a refuge for people fleeing war in Colombia. It is here that the Madrigal family escapes at the beginning of the story.
Alma (voiced by María Cecilia Botero) and Pedro Madrigal’s village is beset by conflict just as Alma gives birth to triplets, Julieta, Pepa, and Bruno (voiced by Angie Cepeda, Carolina Gaitán, and John Leguizamo, respectively). Pedro is killed, but Alma’s special candle protects her and her children and allows them to escape to the Encanto. It also creates a magical house named Casita.
The story jumps to show the family 50 years later. Alma is a grandmother, and her children have families of their own. The magic candle has helped to protect their house and the surrounding village this whole time. And it also gives each Madrigal family member a unique magical gift or talent.
All except for Mirabel, the protagonist of the story…
Mirabel (voiced by Stephanie Beatriz) is, therefore, considered to be something of an outcast or the black sheep of the family. But there’s another black sheep here, too, and that’s Bruno. His magic power is to foresee and prophesize the future. And, like so many fortune tellers, his gift bothered and frightened the other family members, and they drove him away from Casita.
Or so they believed…
Mirabel lives in the shadow of her two sisters, the super-strong Luisa (Jessica Darrow) and the perfect green-thumbed Isabela (Diane Guerro). As well as her parents, aunt and uncle, and cousins who can speak to animals, shape-shift, hear everything, heal with food, control the weather, and more.
However, she notices something that no one in the family does…
Casita is cracking, and the family’s magic is fading. While the rest of the family chooses to ignore her warnings, Mirabel investigates by herself to try to find the source of the problem, and she finds a shattered magic prophesy tablet. When she puts it back together, she sees an image and the house, and of herself as the possible source of the problem. She also finds Bruno.
I’m not going to spoil the end for you, especially not for your kids. But this is Disney, so you can rest assured that things work out in the end, even if it’s not in the way you might expect.
Now that you have the movie’s plot behind you, it’s going to be a lot easier to understand the meaning of the lyrics to “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”.
The Meaning of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ Song Lyrics
The song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” may have popped up in an animated cartoon for kids, but it touches on deeper, darker themes in society as well. Disney has been making things work on several levels for years now.
The very first layer of meaning for “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” is the surface meaning. The chorus says the family doesn’t talk about Bruno, no, no, no! and that’s exactly what they mean.
This is a gossip song, where the cast of the movie tells Mirabel different little tidbits of information about her uncle and lets her piece the story together herself. So, no one tells her the whole story, and that’s what they mean when they say they don’t talk about Bruno.
Except they do talk about him…
By saying how and why, they don’t talk about him, of course. So, that’s the next layer of meaning. In revealing the different reasons why they don’t talk about Bruno, they end up telling Mirbel an awful lot about him.
For example…
She hears first from her aunt Pepa and uncle Felix (voiced by Mauro Castillo) about how Bruno ruined their wedding day. It was a beautiful day, but Bruno foretold that it would rain. When he told weather-controlling Pepa, this got in her head and made her nervously create a hurricane.
Next, Mirabel’s cousin Dolores (voiced by Adassa) tells her in whispers how she can always hear Bruno moving and sneaking around, making him seem like a criminal or a monster. Her younger brother Camilo (voiced by Rhenzy Feliz) jumps in to illustrate how scary and evil Bruno is, talking about him being huge and covered in rats. She then learns about his negative prophesies that came true for several villagers.
However, Isabela tells something seemingly positive. She explains how Bruno said she would one day be powerful and live the life of her dreams. The song ends with Mirabel putting together the magic tablet and then lamenting that she did once she sees the image on it.
With all that said…
A third interpreted meaning of “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” is the way “different” people are treated in some families. Bruno is portrayed as meddling, annoying, and even scary in the song. And in the movie, he is cast out of the family. However, Dolores drops a big hint that his prophecies simply upset the family, and they couldn’t deal with them.
Either way, this can be interpreted as a sort of shaming or discrimination against people who are different or “cognitively divergent.” The family readily admits that they prefer not to talk about Bruno rather than deal with him.
The Music Behind “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”
The music for “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” is what made it a hit. After all, the lyrics are odd and specific to the musical. They’re not about love or getting down on the dance floor – they’re about someone’s creepy uncle. But the music is so good that it supersedes the lyrics and puts them in the back seat.
Like the ensemble cast’s lyrics…
The music changes for each part of the song. With Pepa and Felix, we get a strong cha-cha-cha rhythm, and a Cuban piano montuno sound for the song. When Dolores sings her part, the music changes to have more of an R&B quality. Camilo’s part is spookier and even grotesque.
The villagers’ part is much like the beginning…
But then, Isabela’s part stands out in contrast. The beat drops out, and we get sugary Electro-Pop with light strings and her sweet voice over the top. Then a dance beat drops in to finish off this section.
The last part of the song is a swirling medley of all six main vocalists singing over the top of one another. It’s kind of messy and kind of fun at the same time as you try but fail to follow any one thread through the verse.
All told, this song is very Latin-inspired with Salsa and Guajira roots. But it also wraps in Electronic, Dance, and R&B elements to create something modern and wonderful.
The Videos for “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”
There’s no unique music video for this song. Instead, Disney released the section of the movie, plus the intro and outro scenes that surround it, as an animated video.
Of course, it’s cut straight from the film, so all the characters are shown, and the magical elements, as well. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, the trailer is pretty effective. It already has 535 million views on YouTube, and more coming every day.
There’s also an official lyrics video for the song released by Disney. It simply shows the lyrics in huge font timed to the singing. This video has an extra 52 million views, for a total of almost 600 million. Sure, these are mostly kids obsessively re-listening to the song, but still, many are unique views.
“We Don’t Talk about Bruno” Legacy
This song has legs. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 in February 2022 and stayed there for five weeks, a Disney record. Furthermore, it went to #1 in the Billboard Global 200, Ireland, and the UK Singles charts. It’s sold 4x platinum in the US, 2x platinum in Canada, and platinum in the UK, Australia, and Mexico.
That’s massive, especially considering this is a song from a children’s animated movie. On top of all that popularity, it was nominated for a Brit Award and won Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 2023 Grammys.
Want More Great Songs Children Will Enjoy?
If so, check out our thoughts on the Best Kids Dance Songs, Funny Songs to Sing with Kids, Easy Piano Songs for Kids, Piano Pop Songs Kids, Teens & Adults Will Love, and the Best Audition Songs for Kids of All Ages for more kid-friendly song selections.
Meaning Of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ Song Lyrics Summarized
The song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Disney’s 2021 movie Encanto was a huge hit. This catchy song crosses musical boundaries to combine Guajira, Salsa, Pop, R&B, and Electronic Music into a modern music phenomenon. It’s fun, catchy, and is perfect for singing along with.
The song is all about a family’s refusal to accept and acknowledge their black sheep, Bruno. He’s different and, for some members, off-putting. So, the family is happier forgetting about him instead of trying to accept him. But how do things work out in the end? You’ll have to watch Encanto to find out.
Until next time, enjoy the music.
