Food is a part of Kelis’ calling.
The singer’s highest-charting single, “Milkshake,” took its name from a sweet, frothy drink and sprinkled it with euphemisms that people are still trying to unwrap. Knowing the singer’s varying passions makes her decision to become a chef, eventually settle on a California farm and sell her own lifestyle products, while still hitting the studio, makes all of the sense in the world. So here we are, enraptured by her triumphant return to what made us fall in love with her, supping the newness. Behold, “Midnight Snacks.”
“I mean, obviously I do,” she says in a press release, talking about her inclination to mention food in her music. “It isn’t intentional, but the idea is just that food is a very carnal thing. Everyone can relate to it. It’s very human, it’s sensual, it’s something that you crave. And it’s sexy.” Her 2003 album was titled ‘Tasty,’ while her 2014 project was ‘Food.’ Sugar Honey Iced Tea, anyone?
Make no mistake, her love for food isn’t a rebrand but rather an exploration of self. “I didn’t pivot, guys,” the singer said during a video posted to Instagram. “I just expanded, there’s a difference, right?…I have a song coming very soon, which means that an album is also coming pretty soon.”
Tha FaNaTix-produced song is a scrumptious little morsel, with bubbling bass and precise drums backing her warm alto voice. “I heard the beat, thought it was dope, and the first thing that came to mind was ‘Midnight Snacks,” the press release also reads. “The FaNaTix were like, what are you talking about? And I was like, it makes you feel like a midnight snack! And that was it…It’s funny to me, but I like the fact that you can take sex and food, and you can put these two things together, and they’re totally interchangeable. I love that.”
In the video, she dons short, flamingo pink faux locs, capes and crystals as she croons about a late night love. Her style and beauty methods still routinely find themselves inspiring people of all kinds. Her music does the same. She serves up magic, we eat it up every time.
Watch “Midnight Snacks” below.