Kenny Fame’s “Feels Better” begins with a spoken word part before it goes into the music/vocal section. Co-produced by Fame and Oscar Melendez, the song is an upbeat, dancehall tune. Fame sings it like a rapper, even though it’s far more tropical, musically-speaking.
Lyrically, “Feels Better” expresses a simple message: This person feels better when the other is nearby. Although such nearness increases good feelings, Fame also feels like this other one is drifting away. One suspects this is an emotional drifting away, however. If it were a physical separation, of course, Fame would not be “feeling” like the other person is moving away. He would notice that person was no longer in is presence. Perhaps this is how we feel when we’re talking to someone else, but we can obviously tell they’re not really paying attention or truly listening. The person Fame is singing about has their heart someplace else, that’s for sure.
Listen to the single here:
With that said, though, Fame’s affection doesn’t appear to be all that deep. While he’s concerned about this drifter drifting, he’s obsessed with the other’s sexy smile and sexy walk. So, does he feel better because emotional closeness directly feeds his sexual urges? If so, this is not so much romantic, as it is a physical issue.
Fame also sings about fearing a separation. Why does he feel this way? Is he afraid of what such a parting will do to him, or what this partner will do away from him? It’s difficult to know for sure. However, if this other person has such a sexy walk and talk, he may be afraid this other one will take these attractive assets elsewhere. Maybe he needs to keep her nearby, so someone else won’t get to partake of her juicy fruits. Perhaps Fame is being fueled by simple jealousy.
The track has a relatively bare bones arrangement. There is a steady beat, with accordion-like keyboard fills. At 2:57, this is also short piece of music. Oddly enough, the spoken word part finds Fame talking about how “blessed” he is to have this other person. A blessing is a spiritual term, even though Fame is obviously singing about a sexual partner. Then again, good sex is a blessing, if not exactly in the
church sense.
The track doesn’t include any instrumental solos. Instead, Fame gives us a “la, la, la” wordless kind of part about midway through. It’s as close to a solo as the song gets. The song fades out with repeated echoes.
Once again, this is a simple, straight forward song. You won’t scratch your head attempting to figure it out. Instead, you’ll know right from the beginning what Kenny Fame is getting at. He’s found someone he wants to be close to – always. And isn’t that the goal for most of us? We want someone we can be close to 24/7. Human attraction is mighty strong, and Fame is readily aware of this truth. He doesn’t exactly feel bad without her. He’s not singing the blues, for instance. However, he feels a whole lot better when he's in her presence. We never do find out what made Fame feel distant from this lover. The first step to solving any problem, though, is to admit it and say it out loud. And that’s exactly what Kenny Fame is doing with “Feels Better.”
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-Dan MacIntosh