Kelis (born Kelis Rogers on August 21, 1979), is known simply by her first … Read Full Bio ↴Kelis (born Kelis Rogers on August 21, 1979), is known simply by her first name Kelis (pronounced Kuh-lees). Her name is an amalgamation of her parents' first names, her black father Kenneth and Chinese-Puerto Rican mother Eveliss. Growing up in Middle Class Harlem, New York Kelis' childhood was not a deprived one. But she was not without problems, after her parents realised they could not cope with her unruly behavior (Kelis shaved all her hair off at age 13, soon afterwards dyeing the regrowth the colors of the rainbow), Kelis moved out of the family home, continuing her private education.

After a short spell working as a model, 5'10" Kelis began appearing on songs by Neptunes produced rappers such as 'Got Your Money' by the late rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard. Soon afterwards, she released her debut album, Kaleidoscope in 1999 of which the first single was 'Caught Out There,' a song based on the time she caught her boyfriend cheating on her, and she beat him. The video feautures Kelis leading a pack of angry women down the street screaming 'I hate you so much right now!'. The album was released in USA, Europe and Asia, but did not find much audience in the USA. Not a great success, it only sold 249,000 copies to date.

After finding her largest audience in Europe, Kelis released her second album titled Wanderland (2001) in Europe only, which like her first album did not fare well. It only sold 80,000 copies and was entirely produced by The Neptunes (Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo) again, similarly to her debut. Only one single was released 'Young Fresh N New'.

In 2003 Kelis finally found fame in her country with the single 'Milkshake,' which was a massive success in Europe, Asia and USA, and she began dating rapper Nas (born Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones). The single was from the album 'Tasty' which did not feature the Neptunes as heavily as her previous albums. Singles included the popular Dallas Austin produced 'Trick Me' and 'Millionaire', a collaboration with OutKast's Andre 3000. 'In Public's duet with Nas was the fourth single from the album, becoming a top twenty hit in the U.K. without a video.

In 2006, Kelis presented a new album to her fans, entitled Kelis Was Here, which was originally to be called 'The Puppeteer' which was released on 22 August but was due Fall 2005. No Neptunes tracks appeared on this album, but Kelis used other producers such as Max Martin, Will.I.Am (Black Eyed Peas) and Raphael Saadiq. Singles are the huge 'Bossy', 'Blindfold Me', and 'Lil Star'. Kelis wrote more of the material on this album than she did for Tasty, and carries off the sci-fi, electronica sounds so often considered Neptunes material without them. This is most evident on the brilliant 'Trilogy'. Kelis has said she wants to make her mark with this album, as it will be the last 'album like this' she will make.

In October 2007, Kelis was dumped by Jive Records, for poor sales of Kelis Was Here but a new album is in the pipeline. The Hits - a greatest hits collection - was released in March 2008, including tracks where she was a featured artist, eg, Got Your Money by Ol' Dirty Bastard , N.E.R.D's Truth or Dare, and Richard X's Finest Dreams.

Kelis then signed to Interscope Records, and released her fifth studio album entitled Flesh Tone in May 2010. The David Guetta-produced Acapella preceded the LP in February of that year. Other singles released from the album include '4th of July (Fireworks)', 'Scream' and 'Brave'. The following year, Kelis appeared on Calvin Harris' 'Bounce'.

In the beginning of 2010, Kelis received a letter by animal rights organization PETA, in which she was informed about the cruelty that comes along with the production of fur coats. She pointed out that the organization seems to have little concern about the treatment of people of color and that she will continue wearing fur and eating meat.

Songfacts reported that 'Distance', the planned first single from Kelis’ sixth studio album received its first play during the June 30, 2012 show of The Beatnik Mix on London's Reprezent 107.3FM. At the time, the album was set to be house/dance-inspired, but sessions with TV on The Radio's Dave Sitek led to it taking a soul-like direction.

Kelis completed her sixth album in April 2013, and her new label Ninja Tune confirmed details regarding the album in January the following year, 'Jerk Ribs' served as the lead single for the album; the track had however been previously released as a free download the previous year.
Food was released in April 2014 to critical acclaim. Kelis also appeared for the first time at the annual South by Southwest festival, both performing and serving meals to attendees from her food truck.

Finest Dreams
KELIS Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

**Intro**
Oh baby, you're the finest, the finest, i've seen,
Oh baby, you're the finest, the finest, i've seen,
Oh baby, you're the finest, the finest, i've seen,
Oh baby, you're the finest, the finest, i've seen,

**Verse 1**
If i had a choice,

I'd always choose love,
Up or down,
???
I don't mind,
Just as long as it's real,
My friends say i'm lucky,
To have found someone as good as you,
My love's understanding,
Understanding how to hold onto you,

**Chorus**
After all that we've been through,
Time won't change the way i feel about you,
Out of all the love before,
You're the finest i've ever known,
After all that we've been through, (we've been through)
Time won't change the way i feel about you,
Out of all the love before, (love before)
You're the finest i've ever known,

Baby, you're the finest,
I've never met anybody like you,
You can call me,
I'll come on and... (just call me)

**Verse 2**
If i had to choose,
I'd be by myself,
I want to be in love,
Or with nobody else,
Time flies when you're with me,
Goes so slow whenever you're away,
Made up my mind and i'm positive,
I thought love would never come my way,

**Chorus**
After all that we've been through, (we've been through)
Time won't change the way i feel about you,
Out of all the love before, (love before)
You're the finest i've ever known,
After all that we've been through, (we've been through)
Time won't change the way i feel about you,

Out of all the love before, (love before)
You're the finest i've ever known

Overall Meaning

In the song "Finest Dreams," Kelis sings about finding true love and appreciating the person she's with. The repetitive chorus emphasizes the idea that no matter what happens, her feelings for this person will never change. In the first verse, Kelis expresses her willingness to accept the ups and downs of love as long as it's real. She implies that she's lucky to have found someone as good as her lover, and that they have a deep understanding of each other. The chorus reaffirms her love and admiration for her significant other, stating that they are the finest she has ever known. Kelis speaks to her lover, calling them "baby," and declares that she's never met anybody like them. The second verse highlights Kelis's desire to be in love and her reluctance to be with someone else. She describes feeling as though time goes by too fast when her lover is around and too slowly when they're not. She's sure of her feelings and glad that love finally found her.

The lyrics of "Finest Dreams" focus primarily on the importance of love and finding true love. The song talks about how having someone special by your side can make life a lot better. The song's message is straightforward and touching, and it resonated with many people after its release. Kelis's vocal delivery is soothing, and the backing track has a steady beat, which adds to the song's overall appeal. With this song, Kelis demonstrated her versatility as an artist and her ability to fuse different genres of music.

Line by Line Meaning

Oh baby, you're the finest, the finest, i've seen,
The singer acknowledges that her partner is the best she's ever had.

If i had a choice, I'd always choose love,
The singer values love very highly and if she had to choose between anything else, love would always come first.

Up or down, ???, I don't mind, Just as long as it's real,
The singer does not care what direction their relationship takes, as long as it's genuine.

My friends say i'm lucky, To have found someone as good as you, My love's understanding, Understanding how to hold onto you,
The singer's friends recognize how valuable her partner is and the singer is confident in her ability to maintain the relationship.

After all that we've been through, Time won't change the way i feel about you, Out of all the love before, You're the finest i've ever known,
Despite facing obstacles in their relationship, the singer's feelings for her partner will never falter and she regards her partner as the best she's ever had.

Baby, you're the finest, I've never met anybody like you, You can call me, I'll come on and... (just call me)
The singer reiterates how unique and special her partner is and declares her willingness to always be available for them.

If i had to choose, I'd be by myself, I want to be in love, Or with nobody else,
The singer would rather be alone than settle for anyone who isn't capable of loving her the way her partner does.

Time flies when you're with me, Goes so slow whenever you're away, Made up my mind and i'm positive, I thought love would never come my way,
The singer cherishes the time spent with her partner and feels hopeful and optimistic for their future together, despite previously thinking she may never find true love.

Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: JAMES SAMUEL III HARRIS, PHIL OAKEY, PHILIP ADRIAN WRIGHT, TERRY LEWIS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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